Moe still confident of investment plans amid pause of canola crush, bio-diesel plants in Regina

Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe gestures while speaking during a press conference before Speech from the Throne in Regina on November 25, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Heywood Yu (Heywood Yu/The Canadian Press)

The recent pausing of two highly anticipated construction projects near Regina are doing nothing to discourage Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe from his government’s goal of attracting investment into the province.

On Friday, Jan. 17, Federated Co-operatives Limited (FCL) CEO Heather Ryan announced her company’s canola crush and renewable diesel projects were being put on hold.

The decision was due to several factors including political uncertainty, potential shifts in low-carbon public policy, and rising costs.

The Integrated Agriculture Complex was proposed as a partnership between FCL and Regina-based AGT Foods.

Speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Moe furthered the idea that an expected change in federal governance is leading to some investments being put on ice.

“There’s uncertainty around the future of the clean fuel standard, but there’s also other ways that they’re able to reduce the carbon content of the fuel that they produce,” Moe said.

Canada’s Clean Fuel Regulations were first promised by the federal government in 2016 – but weren’t implemented until 2022.

The regulations are designed to reduce emissions from every stage of producing gasoline and diesel while also driving investment into biofuels and infrastructure for electric vehicles.

“I think that’s what you see happening here is a potential uncertainty of policies that have been brought in that is changing some of the investment decisions, specifically with FCL,” Moe added.

The premier pointed to other projects that are going forward, including Cargill’s canola crush plant being constructed west of the city, which is slated to open later this year.

Louis Dreyfus and Richardson Pioneer in Yorkton are also expanding their capacities.

With these ongoing projects and expansions, the province is confident that it will reach its canola crush target.

“I think it’s fair to say that we still will meet our 75 per cent crush target here in the province. We were poised to go far beyond that, and actually to some degree, maybe even becoming an economic importer in Canada … because of the crush capacity that we would have,” Moe added.

“I think that, in fairness, [we] would be striving to attract those investments. There’s some that are not gone away, but are on pause, and can be looked at some point in the future when or if the market changes, if the policy changes, whatever that might be.”

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The Viterra-Bunge merger was also a topic of conversation, with Moe saying his government received an assurance that Bunge’s acquisition of the Regina-based agriculture firm would not lead to cuts but rather an expansion of the new company’s presence in Saskatchewan and western Canada.

“Now, I think they’ll be looking at what the opportunities are for the crush plant that was announced by Viterra previously, as we make a decision whether they’re going to continue to move forward with that, our hopes that they certainly do,” Moe added.

Prior to Moe’s availability with reporters, Opposition NDP Leader Carla Beck criticized Moe for his lack of comment on FCL’s pause – painting the governing party as “more focused on looks than substance.”

“The Sask. Party are the first ones there with their golden shovels for the photo-op but are now in hiding as billions of dollars and thousands of jobs go up in smoke,” Beck said in a statement on Jan. 17.

FCL’s Integrated Agriculture Complex was slated to create 2,500 jobs in its construction phase.

An array of organizations representing Saskatchewan producers have also expressed concerns over the Bunge/Viterra merger – with a University of Saskatchewan study estimating the merger will lead to an $800 million loss annually for producers.