This report on Quebec Hydro is one in a long series of reports of 'troubles in Canada's utility land' brought about by the shale gas revolution, new technologies (solar, wind), larger investments in energy efficiency measures and slowing per capita demand, all taking...
Blog
Stephen Moore on how the energy boom is saving manufacturing in America
An animated version of Stephen Moore's talk - America's Energy Boom: How It Will Save U.S. Manufacturing and Recharge The U.S. Economy.
Mark Steyn at Manning Networking Conference 2014
Last month I attended the Manning Networking Conference in Ottawa. It's the largest annual gathering of conservative and libertarians in Canada, with a noticeable generational split between those two philosophies. The keynote speaker on the final day of the conference...
Spectrum auction delivers more wireless competition, mostly in Alberta and BC
What does the federal government’s policy to enhance wireless competition look like the morning after the 700 MHz spectrum auction results were announced? We have another player, Videotron, in BC and Alberta. Videotron, Quebec’s largest cable company, has...
Featured News
Timeless Wisdom – The Politics of Successful Structural Reform
It’s a well-known pattern in public policy – profligate politicians damaging their economies with out-of-control spending, massive borrowing and higher taxes – inevitably leading to fiscal crisis, sharp declines in growth and ultimately rapidly falling currency value...
Canada’s National Hysteria in the 21st Century
Mass hysteria is the spontaneous manifestation of a particular behaviour by many people. There are numerous historical examples: Middle Age nuns at a convent in France spontaneously began to meow like cats; at another convent, nuns began biting one another. In...
Property rights still in jeopardy at border
A Saskatchewan couple is still discovering that property rights are precarious when it comes to the Canada-United States border. A saga pitting a Saskatchewan couple against a federal agency may soon be coming to a sad conclusion. Edwin and Alison Morris were informed...
Evidence Suggests Windfall Government Revenue Worsens Corruption
A study published in this month’s American Economic Review demonstrates that increased federal transfers to municipalities in Brazil lead to increased corruption. While one can quibble over whether the effect is as strong in more developed countries, the results are precisely what should be expected, given the incentives facing politicians.
Wireless Ad Battles
The prospect of Verizon moving into the Canadian wireless market has resulted in an unprecedented ad campaign from the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA). Not since the days of the proposed “cable tax” that would have required cable, satellite...
Lessons from Uruguay’s Drug Reform
Uruguay is set to become the first country to legalize the manufacture, distribution, and sale of marijuana. This is a meaningful step toward reducing drug-related crimes, eliminating wasteful spending, and shifting the debate from criminalization to individual...
First Anniversary of Changes to Canadian Wheat Board
One year after liberalising the Canadian Wheat Board's lock on cereal farmers, it is time to turn on supply management and its marketing boards. Today, August 1, marks the first anniversary of the liberation of the wheat and barley (among other cereals) markets in...
Realistic Environmentalism
“The government is the worst shareholder in the world,” says Mr. Dwyer, whose business is subsidy-free, a rare status for green industry in Canada.
Equalization Corrodes Belgium
An occasional topic at Frontier is equalization, a very time worn federal transfer program that flows vast sums of money, no-strings-attached, to the so-called "have-not" provinces. While certainly well-intended, several think tanks have documented the program's...
Costs and Benefits
The Province's majority NDP government has released another media release praising its plans and actions "to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and become better able to withstand climate change". Publius wonders if the Province's taxpayers, ratepayers and...
Natural Gas Versus Hydro
The energy debate in Manitoba is slowly getting around to looking at a proposition I advanced when I was with the Manitoba Sustainable Energy Association that involves deploying scalable natural gas systems as an alternative to large, long lead time hydro dams.
In my opinion, there is a need to move towards a more distributed model of producing energy in this province. As I described in 2009, it is possible that moving towards a combination of a distributed energy generation and smart grids could…
- improve the security of supply of energy across Manitoba;
- distribute benefits associated with electrical energy production more equitably throughout Manitoba;
- encourage the adoption of combined heat-and-power energy systems in agricultural, commercial, industrial and institutional settings;
- reduce greenhouse gas emissions and negative environmental impacts associated with energy mega-project development;
- create a platform to implement demand-side energy management systems and time-of-use rates;
- more fully utilize existing electrical transmission and distribution assets throughout Manitoba.