Royalties - a balance

The Journalism in Alberta has been really good as of recent times, even excellent. No exception to this in Gordon Jaremko’s even handed article on the profits of the oil companies.

At the heart is what we pretty well all know is; if they get windfall profits, better than any place else on this earth, they will come and, they will stay. A no brainer.

My argument has long been we should be receiving at the very least, a royalty that is not less than 80 percent lower than the lowest royalty in the world!

Time for numbers! If we were to add an additional 1% (increasing to 2% the royality paid on deveoping projects and add 15% royalty onto all levels of the tar sands royalties it would increase by 10 times the amount of money received in this province!

Perhaps then the Conservatives could legislate standards of care for seniors?

Would the oil companies suffer? Not at all! It is not that they have to consider costs; it is all cost plus and, my figures will still leave this province with the lowest royalities in the world, bar none!

Their stocks would still pay more than that of banks or other leading industries. They will still have their windfall profits! Consider the high oil prices are expected to continue for another 15 years we have to ask ourselves why are we content with this sham of a program? Do we have to wait through 10 years of BS to get a proper dividend?

I would love to hear from the oil companies if they feel I am in error!

John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca