[LINK] "In Economic Growth, It’s Newfoundland Over Alberta"

[rfmcdonald]

Ben Dummett's brief Wall Street Journal noting that the province of Newfoundland and Labrador is experiencing greater economic growth than Alberta is ironic, not least because the Atlantic Canadian province is still a noteworthy source of migrants for Alberta. The extents to which economic growth in Newfoundland and Labrador does translate into jobs, and to which economic growth might be concentrated in some regions but not others, is worth taking a look at.

Newfoundland is historically one of Canada’s poorest provinces. But its economy is expected to surpass that of Alberta this year as the fastest growing among Canada’s provinces, fueled by rising oil production and private-sector investment, according to a new report by the Conference Board of Canada.

Newfoundland is expected to grow its economy by 6% this year, with oil production anticipated to jump by 12.5% and private-sector investment continuing “to climb to all-time highs,” the Conference Board report said. And the province is forecast to lead the way again in 2014, generating gross domestic product growth of 3.4%, the report says.

Energy-rich Alberta produced a province-leading economic growth rate last year of 3.9%, but GDP growth there is expected to slow this year — to a still-not-too-shabby 3.1% — as uncertainty looms over approval of the Keystone pipeline and other energy infrastructure projects. New pipeline construction is expected to allow the province’s energy producers to better access U.S. and global markets, helping to lift Western Canadian oil prices more in line with U.S. crude prices.

“If no progress is made within the next 12 months (on new pipeline approvals), resource investments could be severely curtailed and the (Alberta) economy would take a hit,” the Conference Board said.

For Newfoundland, construction of the large-scale Hebron gravity-based structure for development of the offshore Hebron oil field and the massive Muskrat Falls hydroelectric power plant in Labrador are two projects central to that province’s “robust” growth outlook, the report says.