Sask. premier, opposition leader jointly slam federal net-zero target

Both the Sask. Party and provincial NDP opposition are against the federal government’s clean electricity regulations, with Premier Moe calling it "unaffordable, unrealistic, and unconstitutional."

On Thursday morning, Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault released draft regulations designed to clean Canada’s energy grid and make it net-zero by 2035.

In a tweet, Premier Scott Moe argued the net-zero regulations will drive electricity rates "through the roof" and leave the province with an unreliable power supply.

“Trudeau’s net-zero target are simply not achievable in Saskatchewan, and we will not ask our residents to pay the extraordinary price for the federal government’s divisive policies," Moe said.

NDP Leader Carla Beck released a statement, also saying she does not support the net-zero timeline.

“With more than two-thirds of SaskPower’s generation coming from fossil fuels today, it isn’t realistic to replace all that generation capacity with renewables in the timelines proposed by the federal government,” her statement read.

“Would net zero by 2035 been possible with a different provincial government committed to emissions reductions over the last 16 years? Probably," Beck said.

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The federal government expects the planned regulations to decrease greenhouse gas emissions by 342 million tonnes between 2024 and 2050.

The federal environment ministry will consult on the draft regulations for 75 days, with a final version expected to be published in January 2025.

--With files from the Canadian Press