PERSPECTIVE: Improving Canada’s Energy and Tax Policies Could Increase Business Investment and Restore the Country’s Competitiveness in the Energy Sector

Strategies to Secure Canadian Energy Sovereignty

In this study, we document Canada’s abundant energy resources and discuss its global rankings in reserves and capacity, production, and net exports. We also assess the performance of Canada’s energy sector across a variety of economic indicators. The study benchmarks Canada’s advantages in the broad energy sector and advocates for policies to deliver the benefits that these resources embody.

Source: NRCan, 2025.

Energy export diversification and additional infrastructure capacity are priorities but meeting these goals rests on redressing a long pattern of neglect by governments in Canada. The 2026 war in the Middle East highlights the scale and complexity of expanding energy-delivery infrastructure in Canada and the limited extent to which Canada is currently positioned to help meet the energy needs of allied nations and to capitalize on future growth of global demand for energy products and services.
The study outlines two concepts to guide Canada’s strategy in the coming years: energy security and energy sovereignty. Energy security is of little concern to Canada, given its extensive and diverse energy resource base.
To bolster its energy sovereignty, Canada should [1] take a more assertive approach to building the capacity to diversify its export markets for energy goods; [2] recalibrate the climate, tax, and regulatory policies of the previous decade so they align with the realities of the global energy system—proponents should not have to spend a decade or more seeking approval for energy projects while the world changes on a much shorter time scale; and [3] establish competitive “hosting conditions” to attract domestic and foreign capital into the country’s expansive and economically vital energy sector.