sa国际传媒 Premier Christy Clark is heading back to Alberta for a visit with Premier Alison Redford.
We don鈥檛 know exactly when 鈥� Clark is hoping 鈥渋n the next couple of weeks鈥� 鈥� and we don鈥檛 know exactly what they鈥檒l discuss. But you can bet on two things: They鈥檒l talk about the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline and this time Clark will use the front door.
When Clark last visited the Alberta legislature, she snuck in the back way.
That was July 19, 2012, and Clark was so worried about secrecy that she asked Redford鈥檚 office not to tell the media about the meeting.
Redford said after the meeting she didn鈥檛 understand why Clark had bothered to come.
For her part, Clark later said she had only come to declare that her support for Enbridge鈥檚 proposed Northern Gateway pipeline to ship Alberta鈥檚 oilsands bitumen to the West Coast would be contingent on sa国际传媒 receiving its 鈥渇air share鈥� of energy revenues generated by the project.
That the two premiers couldn鈥檛 even agree on what was discussed at the meeting was just a sign of things to come.
For the next 10 months, as Clark geared up for sa国际传媒鈥檚 May 14 provincial election, she repeatedly demanded a piece of the oilsands action as a condition for approving the pipeline. Redford emphatically responded that would never happen.
The two simply stopped pretending to be civil. It was with more than a little understatement that Clark acknowledged relations had grown 鈥渇rosty.鈥�
Now, they鈥檙e ready for a big thaw.
The turnabout, of course, is thanks to Clark鈥檚 sa国际传媒 Liberals winning another majority government in last week鈥檚 provincial election. Clark might have lost her own seat but Redford phoned to congratulate her and invite her back for a visit. Clark happily said yes.
In an interview with Maclean鈥檚 magazine this week, Clark said it was a 鈥渞eally nice chat鈥� and 鈥渨e鈥檙e hopefully going to meet in the next couple of weeks.鈥�
Most importantly 鈥� and you could almost hear the squeals of delight from the Alberta government 鈥� Clark also told Maclean鈥檚 that she sees last week鈥檚 vote as a mandate to increase natural-resource development. If Clark is open for business in sa国际传媒, surely she鈥檚 open to business from Alberta 鈥� at least that鈥檚 the renewed hope in Redford鈥檚 office.
Clark鈥檚 press secretary, Mike Morton, says even if the two premiers can鈥檛 meet right away, the two will chat face to face during the western premiers鈥� conference in Winnipeg next month.
That won鈥檛 be quite the same. Symbolically, perhaps, Redford would much rather meet in her office, the very spot where their relationship went off the rails so spectacularly last year. But it probably doesn鈥檛 matter where they meet. Clark is already offering a veritable plantation of olive branches.
鈥淚 think we will have a very constructive relationship,鈥� Clark told Maclean鈥檚. 鈥淵es, we have had a very public disagreement about the Enbridge pipeline and heavy-oil movement. But you know, everything is resolvable. I know it鈥檚 been public 鈥� but that鈥檚 a really small part of our relationship, overall.
鈥淚t鈥檚 like a marriage: You might fight about who takes out the garbage, but you still sit down and have dinner together, and plan a future for your kids.鈥�
Speaking of kids, Redford is so keen to kick-start the new relationship with Clark that she鈥檚 suggesting their preteen children 鈥� Redford鈥檚 daughter and Clark鈥檚 son 鈥� get together at the annual premiers鈥� conference in Ontario later this summer. Call it playdate diplomacy 鈥� and based on how badly the grown-ups have behaved, it can鈥檛 do any worse.
No matter how eager Redford is to hit the reset button on the Alberta-sa国际传媒 relationship, she鈥檚 not popping the champagne yet. They still have a lot to negotiate and it鈥檚 not clear how sa国际传媒 will manage to get its 鈥渇air share鈥� of the economic benefits of the Northern Gateway pipeline. There鈥檚 talk of sa国际传媒 charging a toll to Enbridge, but that would appear to invite Alberta to charge a toll on sa国际传媒 pipelines that transport natural gas across Alberta to the U.S.
There鈥檚 also talk of collaborating on an upgrader in Kitimat that would allow sa国际传媒 to profit from value-added products.
But nobody really wants to talk too loudly right now, not until Clark has safely won a seat in a byelection.
