Power Struggle

Is Canada entering a new commodity supercycle — and are we prepared for what comes next?

In this episode of Power Struggle, Stewart Muir is joined by Heather Exner-Pirot, Director of Energy, Natural Resources, and Environment at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, to explore the economic and geopolitical forces reshaping Canada’s future.

From uranium and mining stocks to LNG expansion and oil markets, Exner-Pirot explains why commodity cycles matter — and why this one could redefine Canada’s global position.

They discuss:

• The return of investor interest in energy and mining
• Why oil demand continues to grow globally
• LNG, natural gas, and British Columbia’s strategic role
• Methane regulations and the cost of compliance
• Carbon competitiveness and investment risk
• Nuclear power and Canada’s uranium advantage
• Arctic sovereignty, security, and NORAD modernization
• What it truly means to be an “energy superpower”

This is a candid conversation about prosperity, policy, and realism in a world where energy demand is rising — not falling.

At a time of global instability and shifting alliances, Canada’s resource base may be its greatest strategic advantage.

The question is no longer whether the world needs Canadian energy — but whether Canada will seize the opportunity.

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The energy conversation is polarizing. But the reality is multidimensional. Get the full story with host Stewart Muir.

Reach out to us with thoughts, questions, or ideas at info@powerstruggle.ca

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🎧 For audio versions of our podcast visit powerstruggle.ca and listen on the go in your favourite podcast app!
Video available on Power Struggle’s YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/@PowerStrugglePod

Canada says this is the decade of energy security and trade diversification.
But can we actually build the infrastructure to make that happen?

In this episode of Power Struggle, Stewart Muir sits down with Radha Curpen, National Leader of McMillan LLP’s ESG and Sustainability Practice, to unpack what it really takes to deliver major projects in Canada today.

From pipelines and transmission lines to ports, data centres and critical minerals, Curpen explains why modern infrastructure must pass three tests:
legal legitimacy, social durability, and capital credibility.

The conversation explores:

• The Canada–Alberta Memorandum of Understanding and what it actually means
• Why a west coast pipeline is possible — but far from inevitable
• Alberta’s urgency vs. B.C.’s caution
• Indigenous consultation, equity ownership, and economic reconciliation
• Why some investors now describe B.C. as “uninvestable”
• How duplication and regulatory complexity stall projects
• Why governance — not politics — determines durability

Curpen argues that project success depends on early planning, corridor thinking, relationship-building, and legal clarity. Equity is no longer just about revenue sharing — it’s about operational oversight, environmental accountability, and long-term value for Indigenous communities.

At stake is more than one pipeline.
It’s whether Canada can operate as a first-world economy — attracting capital, reconciling rights, and building nation-scale infrastructure in an era of polarization.

This is a national test case.

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The energy conversation is polarizing. But the reality is multidimensional. Get the full story with host Stewart Muir.

Reach out to us with thoughts, questions, or ideas at info@powerstruggle.ca

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🎧 For audio versions of our podcast visit powerstruggle.ca and listen on the go in your favourite podcast app!
Video available on Power Struggle’s YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/@PowerStrugglePod

What if the future we’re planning simply can’t be built?

In this episode of Power Struggle, Stewart Muir speaks with Craig Tindale, private investor, systems thinker, and author of the widely discussed essay “Copper: Limits to Growth in the Age of Demand Simultaneity.”

Tindale argues that for the first time in industrial history, three massive transitions are colliding at once: artificial intelligence, electrification, and military rearmament. Each demands staggering quantities of copper and critical minerals. Together, they may exceed what the physical world can supply.

AI data centers require 50,000 tons of copper each.
Gallium demand projected to outstrip global production.
Transformers and rare earths facing 5–10 year bottlenecks.
China is refining 50–60% of the world’s copper.

The conversation explores:
• Why price signals alone won’t solve mineral shortages
• How central banking and cost of capital shape industrial capacity
• The strategic implications of China’s refining dominance
• Whether electrification timelines are physically achievable
• Why innovation and circular economy solutions may not arrive fast enough
• The case for surge capacity and domestic refining
• How robotics and AI may reshape industrial production
• Why policymakers may need to rethink globalization

Is this a temporary bottleneck — or a structural turning point for Western economies?

This episode connects resource geology, geopolitics, climate ambition, defense strategy, and financial systems into one uncomfortable question:
Are we planning a future the planet cannot supply?

Send a text

The energy conversation is polarizing. But the reality is multidimensional. Get the full story with host Stewart Muir.

Reach out to us with thoughts, questions, or ideas at info@powerstruggle.ca

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Instagram
Facebook
Twitter

🎧 For audio versions of our podcast visit powerstruggle.ca and listen on the go in your favourite podcast app!
Video available on Power Struggle’s YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/@PowerStrugglePod