After two serious setbacks, B.C. offshore oil and gas developers will renew their quest to lift a federal moratorium on West Coast drilling later this month.

The third annual North Coast Offshore Oil and Gas Development conference comes as the petroleum industry attempts to recover from last fall's unfavourable Priddle panel report on B.C. offshore drilling and the Terra Nova oil spill off the coast of Newfoundland.

The conference Feb. 23-24 at the Four Seasons hotel in Vancouver will feature speakers representing the oil and gas industry; federal, provincial, municipal and First Nations government officials; and an environmentalist.

Both the federal and provincial governments have had moratoria on B.C. offshore exploration in place since the early 1970s. If Ottawa lifts its moratorium, B.C. will likely lift its ban because Premier Gordon Campbell's government has expressed a desire to have offshore activity begin by 2010.

Engineer John Hunter

North Vancouver engineer John Hunter says he will be speaking at the conference on "the myths" about offshore oil and gas development.

"My intention is to try to put some things in perspective," says Hunter.

Groups in favour of offshore oil and gas development say that seismic and preliminary evaluations should be allowed to determine the size of the oil and gas reserves and whether they are commercially viable. But opponents argue that seismic and drilling activities pose a risk to fish, whales and other marine species as well as a safety concern in case of an oil spill or explosion.

Hunter hopes the conference helps the industry overcome the "alarmist" rhetoric on the possibility of wells off the West Coast.

Citing examples in Nova Scotia, where he grew up, Newfoundland and Ontario's Lake Erie, he contends that offshore oil and gas revenues would help B.C. pay for infrastructure projects such as a Victoria sewage treatment plant and rapid-transit line, and cover a large chunk of health- care costs.

"It's an industry," says Hunter. "We need more industries in this province."

According to the report prepared by a panel headed by former National Energy Board chairman Roland Priddle, 75 per cent of the 3,700 people who made oral or written submissions are opposed to offshore oil and gas activity.

Ian Bruce, oil and gas co-ordinator in the David Suzuki Foundation's marine conservation program, is the lone environmentalist speaking at the conference. He was invited back after appearing last year.

"I definitely think it would be more beneficial if they'd round up a more balanced panel or program as far as (using) different stakeholders," says Bruce. "It definitely is dominated by business interests."

Bruce says the high registration fee of $1,695 prevents many groups from attending the conference. He and other speakers did not pay a registration fee.

A geological engineer, Bruce will talk about the economic opportunities that the provincial government has squandered while "dwelling" on offshore oil and gas - an industry that will take 15-20 years to develop.

He says the $6-$7 million spent annually on B.C.'s offshore oil and gas team could instead be invested in forest growth, sustainable industries such as fishing, and sustainable energy sources such as wind power.

"We're spinning our wheels," says Bruce, adding the federal moratorium has served B.C. well.

"We're paying a lot of taxpayers money. We've got a whole team of government bureaucrats spending time on this issue. It's not going anywhere."

But Hunter says the Priddle report reflected the views of two highly polarized groups - not all British Columbians.

He agrees with provincial Energy Minister Richard Neufeld's description of the Priddle report as "useless" because it didn't tell the provincial government anything it did not already know - and made no recommendation on whether to lift or continue the federal moratorium.

The timing of last November's Terra Nova spill, estimated as the equivalent of 1,000 barrels and described as the worst in Newfoundland's history, left the industry reeling.

"The timing (of the Terra Nova spill) was awful," agrees Hunter. "It was just after the Priddle panel (report). The Priddle report comes out and then you get this spill off Newfoundland."

But one scheduled speaker will not attend the conference after parting ways with a B.C. offshore energy lobby group.

John Gunton, former chairman of Ocean Industries B.C. and its predecessor, the Pacific Offshore Energy Association, says he quit the organ- ization because it has become focused on politics instead of business issues and public education.

For-profit conferences such as this one - which is being hosted by conference organizer Insight Information Co. - are not a way to get information out to the general public, he adds. "The average person cannot afford to go to these conferences in downtown Vancouver," says Gunton, calling on the provincial government to play "a much more significant role" when it comes to educating the public about offshore oil and gas.

Rob Carss, B.C. operations manager for the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), who will serve as a moderator at the conference, says the event is open to all who wish to participate.

"Nothing is delivered for free," says Carss, adding any of the organizers that are going incur costs.

"It's put on to discuss the issue," he adds. "It's not a public meeting. These conferences go on all the time. It's just one of them."

Like Hunter and Gunton, Carss expects the Priddle report will receive plenty of discussion. Conditions have changed since the Priddle report came out, and the minority Liberal government in Ottawa is likely having an impact on keeping the federal moratorium in place, he believes.

Carss says producers such as Shell and Chevron, which have sub-surface rights in the region, do not want to commit to B.C. offshore development until more is known about the geology and fiscal and regulatory regimes.

Producers want the same rules that apply on the East Coast, where offshore production occurs, to apply on the West Coast.

With an election approaching in May, the provincial Liberals have said little lately about offshore oil and gas development.

Jose Villa-Arce, the head of B.C.'s offshore oil and gas team, says the province won't proceed as far as it expected by 2010.

"We'll see activity by 2010, but not to the level that we anticipated," says Villa- Arce, whose group will be represented at the conference.

The province's 2001 throne speech delivered by Lt.-Gov. Iona Campagnolo projected that B.C. offshore oil and gas would be in advanced stages of exploration or early stages of production by 2010.

But, given the Priddle report and other delays, Villa-Arce says that plan would be a "very ambitious" target.

"I think we define activity now as getting things going out there," says Carss.

Villa-Arce says the province will increase its public- consultation efforts, work with First Nations to determine reasonable ways to develop offshore oil and gas, and discuss a fiscal and regulatory regime with the industry.

But Victoria does not accept Priddle's call for a referendum on the issue because it would not fit within Canada's parliamentary system, says Villa-Arce, adding it's up to governments to make decisions for voters.

As long as the federal moratorium is in place, he says, industry players won't be able to gain the knowledge they need to make invest- ment decisions, and questions on potential environmental impacts and economic benefits to communities will remain unanswered.

The Priddle report's findings are legitimate concerns but they can be addressed, he says, adding he has not seen any overwhelming research that prohibits Ottawa or Victoria from lifting their moratoria.

"What we need to do," says Villa-Arce, "is get on with it."

Web watch: www.insightinfo.com

(Monte Stewart can be reached at monte@businessedge.ca)