Interview with Alicia Quesnel Managing Partner, BD&P Law
Alicia Quesnel, 2024 CIWB Professional Services Award honouree is the Managing Partner of Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer LLP (BD&P), a leading business and complex litigation firm in Calgary, Alberta. Since joining BD&P as an articling student in 1994, Alicia has advised on over $100 billion of energy deals. She negotiates large scale unconventional resource and midstream infrastructure joint venture deals in connection with the development of Canada’s LNG, oil sands, shale gas, CCUS and renewables sectors. A specialist in competition law and foreign investment, Alicia routinely helps companies secure regulatory approvals and advises on Competition Act and Investment Canada compliance matters.
First, CHOA wants to offer congratulations on your 2024 CIWB Professional Services Award – your recognition for professional excellence and commitment to advancing diversity. To kick off the interview and to help our readership get to know you a bit better, can you tell us a little bit about yourself? What's your story? When you consider your career so far, what are you most proud of, and what are you most excited about looking forward?
Like many Albertans, I was born in Saskatchewan. We moved to Calgary when I was 2, then shortly thereafter to Red Deer, where I grew up until I left home to go to university. I was always very studious, so I spent the next 10 years at university studying political science at the University of Lethbridge for my B.A., international relations at the University of Calgary, for my M.A., an LL.B. in law at Queen's University and finally, an LL.M from the University of Ottawa in international trade law. Notwithstanding my love of international politics, I always intended to come back to Calgary.
As a recognized female trailblazer, can you share one or two things that were pivotal to your success?
For those that know me, they know that I attribute much of my success to the mentors and sponsors that have supported me throughout my career at BD&P. I had the benefit of working with Mr. Palmer and his protégées, who have been some of the best and most respected lawyers in the industry – John Brussa, John Cuthbertson, Don Chernichen, Bill Maslechko, Grant Zawalsky, Ken Stickland, John Wilmot, Steve Cohen and Shannon Gangl – I could go on. It's a very long list! All these individuals provided me with so many excellent career opportunities – opportunities that I may not have gotten at another firm. I have had exemplary role models and have tried to incorporate what I have learned from them into my own style of leadership and teaching. It is very rewarding to watch someone advance and thrive in their career knowing that you have helped in a small way. The energy and excitement that young people have when they are starting out their careers is infectious. It keeps us all learning and growing!
Working as an energy lawyer since 1994, how have you seen the energy sector shift when it comes to female leadership and engagement? What will take us to the next level?
There are so many more female leaders in the energy sector in 2024 than there were in 1994. Back then, it was unusual to see females in C-suite positions, including general counsel positions. But there were a few, which gave many of us hope for change. It is much more common today to see female energy sector executives in general counsel (legal), finance and human resources roles, but it is still less common to see female energy sector executives in CEO, business development and operational or technical executive roles. Thankfully, that too is changing. Getting those numbers to rise will require the business community to make strategic and mindful choices to sponsor more women at a fairly early stage in their career to help them build the skills they need to be considered for executive roles on par with their male colleagues.
How do you see the future for Canada's energy sector and, more specifically, the Canadian heavy oil and oil sands sector? How can we shift the perception of Canada's heavy oil and oil sands and become recognized as the global barrel of choice?
I think it is a myth that as global demand declines, the Canadian oil sands will be the first barrels to shut-in. The premise of this argument is that these commodities are the most carbon emission intensive and most expensive barrels to produce. But that, in fact, is not the case. There is almost negligible methane emissions from this sector which, when included as part of the carbon intensity of conventional crude oil production, puts these barrels on a much more level playing field. In addition, the six largest oil sands producers through the Pathways Alliance are, and will continue, to spend billions on increasing efficiencies and incorporating carbon reduction technologies (including CCUS) into their projects.
These are world class assets and producers will show to the world that net- zero is achievable. In addition, it costs more to shut-in production from a heavy oil or oil sands project than it does to continue to produce, even in the face of lower commodity prices. While the upfront costs of developing oil sands assets are much greater than the upfront costs of developing conventional crude oil resources, the ongoing capital or marginal cost required to maintain production levels, is much less than the average cost of producing a barrel of conventional crude oil. The oil sands sector can withstand lower prices for longer. We know this from experience. When prices were low, even negative, in the past decade, producers of conventional crude oil stopped drilling new wells, resulting in decreased production of conventional crude oil. Production of oil sands, by contrast, was not impacted in nearly the same way. While low oil prices mean that new or greenfield oil sands projects are unlikely to be built, existing projects remain resilient with low production decline rates.
In the last 10 years, versus the 10 prior to that, it has been a challenge to advance large capital projects in energy and we are now also seeing investment outflows from Canada. What are your thoughts around our competitiveness? What will bring investment back? Will we be able to attract the capital we need to succeed in our decarbonization efforts?
Over the past decade, navigating the landscape of large capital-intensive energy projects has indeed presented its share of challenges. Notwithstanding setbacks like the 2014 price collapse and shifts in capital flow, we have learned a lot and adapted along the way. This industry is resilient and committed to success, which is something Albertans have always been known for. There's never really been a time when this province has stayed down and out for long.
“With determination and the support of both the provincial government and industry, we are charting a course towards contributing to a sustainable future, while maintaining energy sovereignty for our country.”
Today, our producers stand stronger, leaner and more efficient than ever before. While capital may not be flowing as freely as it once did, this period of restructuring has allowed the energy industry to refine its strategies and streamline operations. Certainly, there are hurdles to overcome. There is a need for policy alignment between different levels of government and industry stakeholders and between competing objectives. There is also a need for regulatory reform to rationalize the labyrinth of regulations that are pancaked one on top of the other. But, in recognizing these challenges, we also acknowledge the opportunity for collaboration to forge a path forward. In Alberta, we are proud of the work done by the CHOA and initiatives like the Pathways Alliance—a testament to the power of partnership and collective vision. With determination and the support of both the provincial government and industry, we are charting a course towards contributing to a sustainable future, while maintaining energy sovereignty for our country. This is something many Canadians are obviously excited about, as the net inbound migration to our province demonstrates. The journey to 'net zero' may be challenging, but with our unwavering commitment and collaborative spirit, we are confident in the bright future that lies ahead for the energy sector and Alberta.
Alicia Quesnel, B.A., M.A., LL.B, LL.M, ICD.D, is the Managing Partner of Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer LLP (BD&P), a leading business and complex litigation firm in Calgary, Alberta. Since joining BD&P as an articling student in 1994, Alicia has advised on over $100 billion of energy deals. She negotiates large scale unconventional resource and midstream infrastructure joint venture deals in connection with the development of Canada’s LNG, oil sands, shale gas, CCUS and renewables sectors. Alicia also advises on acquisitions, mergers and divestitures, and reorganizations and restructurings. A specialist in competition law and foreign investment, Alicia routinely helps companies secure regulatory approvals and advises on Competition Act and Investment Canada compliance matters.
She has been recognized as a leading energy lawyer by Who’s Who Legal Thought Leaders: the Global Elite in 2020, 2023 and 2024. Alicia has also been recognized by Chambers Global, Legal 500 Canada, Best Lawyer, Who’s Who Legal, International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers, and Chambers Canada for her expertise in energy law. She was awarded the 2022 Women in Law Leadership Award (Private Practice) and the 2023 Female Trailblazers Award at the Canadian Law Awards. Alicia is a former President of the Canadian Energy Law Foundation. Her community involvement includes serving as past Board Chair for the Wings of Hope Breast Cancer Foundation, director and Chair of SOS Children’s Villages Canada and Second Vice- President and member of Board of Governors of the Calgary Petroleum Club.