Pathways Carbon Capture Project Shrinks by Half, Industry Group Still Calls It Slightly Smaller

The Oil Sands Alliance, formerly Pathways Alliance, confirmed its flagship carbon capture project in Alberta has been scaled back significantly. First phase capacity dropped from 12 to 6 megatonnes per year, with the target pushed from 2030 to 2032. The overall goal fell from 68 MTA to 16 MTA by 2050, a 77 percent reduction from original claims. Group president Kendall Dilling called the change 'slightly smaller' and said infrastructure will be built to expand later, but construction has not started and the timeline keeps slipping. Cost estimates remain between CAD 20 and 30 billion, with heavy reliance on government subsidies. Industrial carbon credit prices in Alberta hover around USD 20 to 25 per tonne, far below the USD 130 analysts say would be needed to justify CCS. Critics point out that even at full capacity, the project captures only a fraction of oil sands emissions and does nothing about emissions from exported oil. The project's viability, financing, and real climate impact remain in doubt.