We have expanded the list of climate policies we assess company engagement with to incorporate land-use related policy, referring to legislative or regulatory measures to enhance and protect ecosystems and land where carbon is being stored. Assessments under this category are currently underweighted in terms of their contribution to the overall company metrics. This weighting will be progressively increased over the next 6 months.
We adjusted the terminology used to describe the queries running down the left-hand side of our scoring matrix and added additional explanatory text to the info-boxes. This has no impact on the scores and methodology. It has been done following user feedback to improve clarity.
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
TC Energy is a member of Canadian Gas Association (Up to date as of April 2023)
Greg Grant, the President of Canadian Natural Gas Pipelines at TC Energy, is a member of CGA board
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
TC Energy is a member of Canadian Gas Association (Up to date as of April 2023)
Greg Grant, the President of Canadian Natural Gas Pipelines at TC Energy, is a member of CGA board
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
CEO of TC Energy is a member of NPC (Up to date as of August 2022)
François L. Poirier
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
TransCanada is a member of National Petroleum Council (2020)
Russell K. Girling
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
CEO of TC Energy is a member of NPC (Up to date as of August 2022)
François L. Poirier
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
TransCanada is a member of National Petroleum Council (2020)
Russell K. Girling
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
TC Energy is a member of the American Gas Association (AGA) (Up to date as of August 2022).
not specified
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
TC Energy is a member of the American Gas Association (AGA) (Up to date as of August 2022).
not specified
--no extract--
In this section, we depict graphically the relationships the corporation has with trade associations, federations, advocacy groups and other third parties who may be acting on their behalf to influence climate change policy. Each of the columns above represents one relationship the corporation appears to have with such a third party. In these columns, the top, dark section represents the strength of the relationship the corporation has with the influencer. For example if a corporation's senior executive also held a key role in the trade association, we would deem this to be a strong relationship and it would be on the far left of the chart above, with the weaker ones to the right. Click on these grey shaded upper sections for details of these relationships. The middle section contains a link to the organization score details of the influencer concerned, so you can see the details of its climate change policy influence. Click on the middle sections for for details of the trade associations. The lower section contains the organization score of that influencer, the lower the more negatively it is influencing climate policy.
Open PDF file of Data Source
Open PDF file of Data Source
Climate Lobbying Overview: TC Energy (formerly TransCanada) appears to have a negative stance toward policy action on climate change. The company considers fossil gas as a critical component in the future energy mix and undertakes policy advocacy in favor of fossil gas and pipeline infrastructure.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: TC Energy appears to have a mixed position on the need for overall climate action. The company’s 2021 Sustainability Report, published in October 2021, recognized climate change as “one of the most pressing societal issues” and appeared to support a net-zero economy by 2050. The company also supported the objectives in the Paris Agreement in its corporate website, when accessed in August 2022.
However, in its response to the 2021 CDP Climate Change Information request, TC Energy emphasized the need for economic considerations in implementing carbon pricing through the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change, and encouraged the government to adopt “technological innovations” for emissions reduction. While the company has stated support for “broad-based” economy-wide carbon pricing on the website when accessed in August 2022, it placed several caveats such as an emphasis on market-based mechanisms, competitiveness, and compliance flexibility.
Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: TC Energy’s disclosure of its engagement with climate change policies through its direct channels is very limited. The company has disclosed some of its policy engagement through CDP disclosures, including its claims of support for key strands of climate policy, while noting major exceptions to each. However, the company does not reveal in detail what these exceptions and how they could affect the ambition of the policy. For instance, in 2021 and 2020 the company stated support with exceptions for Canada’s Clean Fuel Standard, highlighting the need for 'Canadian competitiveness' to be considered in its design. In its 2021 CDP response, the company declared that it was “undecided” on its position on Oregon’s proposed cap and trade program.
Positioning on Energy Transition: Evidence shows that it is actively engaged in advocating for an increasing role for fossil gas. In TC Energy’s ‘Corporate Profile’ for the investors, published in August 2022, the company stated that expansion of fossil gas infrastructure is “critical” to Mexico.
Evidence from the Canadian lobbyist registries suggests that TC Energy is actively lobbying for government support for fossil fuel infrastructure development. In the company’s filing in Alberta in August 2022, it stated that it had advocated to several departments of the Alberta government regarding the permitting and approval of the Keystone XL pipeline. Similar advocacy seeking government support for energy pipelines were also registered in the federal lobbying registry.
In the US in March 2022, TC Energy sent a joint letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission advocating for a quick approval process for fossil gas pipelines, citing the Russia-Ukraine crisis and its impact on global energy supply. Later in April 2022, TC Energy’s comments on FERC’s proposal to include climate consideration in fossil gas infrastructure approval process opposed the measure, contending that the proposals were outside FERC’s jurisdiction.
Industry Association Governance: TC Energy discloses a list of memberships it holds with industry associations on its corporate website. However, the company does not disclose if it is aligned with the climate policy stances held by each industry association. TC Energy remains a member of several trade associations with negative views on climate policies, such as the American Petroleum Institute, American Gas Association, and the US Chamber of Commerce.
InfluenceMap collects and assesses evidence of corporate climate policy engagement on a weekly basis, depending on the availability of information from each specific data source (for more information, see our methodology). While this analysis flows through to the company’s scores each week, the summary above is updated periodically. This summary was last updated in Q1 2023.