North American Energy Relationships

The document analyzes the energy profiles, infrastructure, and security perspectives of Canada, the United States, and Mexico, highlighting their deep interdependence. It examines existing trilateral and bilateral cooperation frameworks, such as NAFTA and the U.S.-Canada Clean Energy Dialogue, and identifies potential trade irritants like border adjustments and low-carbon fuel standards. The author proposes three climate policy scenarios for 2020, concluding that a 'bottom-up' approach with increasing linkages between Canadian and U.S. cap-and-trade systems is the most likely outcome.

• North America is a global energy hub, producing approximately 25% of the world's energy supply and consuming about 33% of commercial energy.
• Canada and Mexico are critical crude oil suppliers to the United States; as of July 2009, they provided 39.1% of the total volume from the top 15 suppliers.
• The integration of renewable energy into the North American grid will require significant infrastructure changes, with wind and solar projected to add 260,000 megawatts of nameplate capacity over ten years.
• Energy security is interpreted differently by the three nations: the U.S. focuses on reducing reliance on foreign oil, Canada on maintaining market access for its exports, and Mexico on managing declining oil reserves and increasing fuel imports.
• Several trade irritants could hinder climate cooperation, including U.S. border adjustments for carbon-intensive imports, California's Low-Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), and 'Buy American' provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
• The author posits that the most likely policy scenario to 2020 is a 'bottom-up' approach where Canada and the U.S. implement separate cap-and-trade systems that become increasingly linked after 2015.
• Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is a key area of bilateral cooperation, with the U.S. and Canada working toward a consistent regulatory framework and sharing information from large-scale demonstration projects.

APA

Russell, D. (2009). North American Energy Relationships. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/north_american_energy_relationships.pdf

Chicago

Russell, Doug. North American Energy Relationships. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2009. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/north_american_energy_relationships.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Russell |first1=Doug |title=North American Energy Relationships |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=December 2009 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/north_american_energy_relationships.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{russell2009north, author = {Russell, Doug}, title = {{North American Energy Relationships}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2009}, month = dec, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/north_american_energy_relationships.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }