Energy
Russia & U.S. mull joint Arctic energy projects

MxM News
Quick Hit:
Russia and the U.S. discussed potential cooperation on Arctic energy projects during Tuesday’s meeting in Saudi Arabia.
Key Details:
- Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) chief Kirill Dmitriev confirmed the discussions on joint Arctic projects, emphasizing a broad but productive dialogue.
- The meeting, held in Riyadh, included U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
- Talks focused on economic cooperation.
Diving Deeper:
Russia and the United States have opened discussions on potential joint energy projects in the Arctic. The meeting, held in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, brought together senior officials from both nations.
Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), revealed that discussions included the prospect of joint Arctic energy initiatives. While details remain vague, Dmitriev emphasized that the Arctic was a focal point in the conversations. “It was more a general discussion — maybe joint projects in the Arctic. We specifically discussed the Arctic,” he stated while departing Riyadh.
The meeting, which notably excluded Ukraine and European representatives, comes as both Russian President Vladimir Putin and former U.S. President Donald Trump seek to assert greater control over Arctic resources.
Historically, U.S.-Russia energy cooperation in the Arctic has been fraught with complications. ExxonMobil had partnered with Russian oil giant Rosneft to explore Arctic hydrocarbons, but the venture collapsed in 2018 due to Western sanctions imposed after Russia’s 2014 invasion of Ukraine.
Dmitriev, who was part of the Russian delegation alongside Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov, framed the discussions as a positive step following what he described as the Biden administration’s complete breakdown of U.S.-Russia dialogue. He also highlighted an RDIF estimate claiming that American businesses have lost roughly $300 billion due to their exodus from Russia following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
“There is an understanding that bad relations between Russia and the U.S. actually cost a lot to American business, and there are ways to have productive cooperation benefit both Russia and the U.S.,” Dmitriev noted.
Canadian Energy Centre
Saskatchewan Indigenous leaders urging need for access to natural gas

Piapot First Nation near Regina, Saskatchewan. Photo courtesy Piapot First Nation/Facebook
From the Canadian Energy Centre
By Cody Ciona and Deborah Jaremko
“Come to my nation and see how my people are living, and the struggles that they have day to day out here because of the high cost of energy, of electric heat and propane.”
Indigenous communities across Canada need access to natural gas to reduce energy poverty, says a new report by Energy for a Secure Future (ESF).
It’s a serious issue that needs to be addressed, say Indigenous community and business leaders in Saskatchewan.
“We’re here today to implore upon the federal government that we need the installation of natural gas and access to natural gas so that we can have safe and reliable service,” said Guy Lonechild, CEO of the Regina-based First Nations Power Authority, on a March 11 ESF webinar.
Last year, 20 Saskatchewan communities moved a resolution at the Assembly of First Nations’ annual general assembly calling on the federal government to “immediately enhance” First Nations financial supports for “more desirable energy security measures such as natural gas for home heating.”
“We’ve been calling it heat poverty because that’s what it really is…our families are finding that they have to either choose between buying groceries or heating their home,” Chief Christine Longjohn of Sturgeon Lake First Nation said in the ESF report.
“We should be able to live comfortably within our homes. We want to be just like every other homeowner that has that choice to be able to use natural gas.”
At least 333 First Nations communities across Canada are not connected to natural gas utilities, according to the Canada Energy Regulator (CER).
ESF says that while there are many federal programs that help cover the upfront costs of accessing electricity, primarily from renewable sources, there are no comparable ones to support natural gas access.
“Most Canadian and Indigenous communities support actions to address climate change. However, the policy priority of reducing fossil fuel use has had unintended consequences,” the ESF report said.
“Recent funding support has been directed not at improving reliability or affordability of the energy, but rather at sustainability.”
Natural gas costs less than half — or even a quarter — of electricity prices in Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan, according to CER data.
“Natural gas is something NRCan [Natural Resources Canada] will not fund. It’s not considered a renewable for them,” said Chief Mark Fox of the Piapot First Nation, located about 50 kilometres northeast of Regina.
“Come to my nation and see how my people are living, and the struggles that they have day to day out here because of the high cost of energy, of electric heat and propane.”
According to ESF, some Indigenous communities compare the challenge of natural gas access to the multiyear effort to raise awareness and, ultimately funding, to address poor water quality and access on reserve.
“Natural gas is the new water,” Lonechild said.
2025 Federal Election
MORE OF THE SAME: Mark Carney Admits He Will Not Repeal the Liberal’s Bill C-69 – The ‘No Pipelines’ Bill

From EnergyNow.Ca
Mark Carney on Tuesday explicitly stated the Liberals will not repeal their controversial Bill C-69, legislation that prevents new pipelines being built.
Carney has been campaigning on boosting the economy and the “need to act forcefully” against President Donald Trump and his tariffs by harvesting Canada’s wealth of natural resources — until it all fell flat around him when he admitted he actually had no intention to build pipelines at all.
When a reporter asked Carney how he plans to maintain Bill C-69 while simultaneously building infrastructure in Canada, Carney replied, “we do not plan to repeal Bill C-69.”
“What we have said, formally at a First Ministers meeting, is that we will move for projects of national interest, to remove duplication in terms of environmental assessments and other approvals, and we will follow the principle of ‘one project, one approval,’ to move forward from that.”
“What’s essential is to work at this time of crisis, to come together as a nation, all levels of government, to focus on those projects that are going to make material differences to our country, to Canadian workers, to our future.”
“The federal government is looking to lead with that, by saying we will accept provincial environmental assessments, for example clean energy projects or conventional energy projects, there’s many others that could be there.”
“We will always ensure these projects move forward in partnership with First Nations.”
Tory leader Pierre Poilievre was quick to respond to Carney’s admission that he has no intention to build new pipelines. “This Liberal law blocked BILLIONS of dollars of investment in oil & gas projects, pipelines, LNG plants, mines, and so much more — all of which would create powerful paychecks for our people,” wrote Poilievre on X.
“A fourth Liberal term will block even more and keep us reliant on the US,” he wrote, urging people to vote Conservative.
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