Good afternoon, Mr. Chair.

I'm Michele Harradence, EVP and president of Enbridge's gas distribution and storage business.

We acknowledge that our projects and operations span treaty and tribal lands, the national Métis homeland, unceded lands and the traditional territories of indigenous nations, tribes, governments and groups across Turtle Island. As such, we have a responsibility to preserve and care for the land, learn from her original inhabitants and move forward together in the spirit of healing, reconciliation and partnership.

In the spirit of reconciliation, I want to thank all parliamentarians for the important step this spring towards a national loan guarantee program. Following on the success of our own Project Rocket, where 23 communities purchased an equity position in our Athabasca system, thanks to the Alberta program, we believe the national loan guarantee is a critical step to open up more opportunities for indigenous communities to fully participate in Canada's economy.

Building on my copanellists' presentations, which represent the perspectives of upstream producers, I will focus today on the critical role of natural gas in delivering safe, reliable, affordable and sustainable energy to millions of homes and businesses in Canada and beyond.

Enbridge recently celebrated our 75th anniversary, and our Ontario utility has been operating for over 175 years. Over that time, we have evolved to meet society's changing energy needs while contributing to Canada's economic development and quality of life. Today, our gas distribution and storage business serves four million customers in Quebec and Ontario, including rural, northern and indigenous communities, and with our recent U.S. acquisitions will soon be the largest natural gas utility in North America.

We're North America's leading energy infrastructure company for oil and natural gas, moving resources from production to demand centres across the continent and around the world, and we're one of the largest renewable companies on the continent.

We also deliver benefits for Canada. In 2023, Enbridge invested over $2.5 billion in capital and spent over $3.6 billion on operations across Canada. We contributed over $3.15 billion in property tax, corporate tax and other taxes, and we firmly believe that natural gas has a key role in our energy future. In fact, the IEA predicts that the path to net zero will involve diverse energy sources that will shift over the decades.

Natural gas is a highly reliable energy source. It remains a cost-effective energy source for consumers, at about half the cost of oil or propane and about 50% cheaper than electric baseboard heating. Natural gas pairs well with renewable energy. When the sun doesn't shine and the wind doesn't blow, or in cold snaps and heat waves, natural gas is quick and easily dispatchable to meet peak demand.

A 24-7 economy requires 24-7 power, and as energy demand rises, all sources will be needed to meet it. For heavy industries like steel, chemicals and cement, natural gas is a critical feedstock and a fuel for the manufacturing process. In the future, these sectors may well be supported further by lower carbon options like renewable natural gas, carbon capture and storage and, eventually, hydrogen.

While of course electricity will have a vital role in the future energy mix, it's inextricably linked to natural gas. For instance, consider the growing power demands for data centres and AI. Clean tech, EV plants and critical minerals, which have been enticed by federal incentives, also create more energy demand.

We believe industry has a key role to play in reducing emissions related to natural gas. Enbridge is a signatory to the One Future Coalition, a group of over 55 gas companies aiming to reduce methane emissions intensity to below 1%. To get there, we're investing in modernizing our systems, and we're innovating to manage methane emissions. In 2023 we reported a 20% reduction in absolute emissions from 2018 levels and a 40% reduction in our methane emissions. We're encouraged by these results and focused on reaching our 2050 net-zero target.

As we look to ensure Canada's investment in its natural gas infrastructure remains used and useful, we're investing in low-carbon fuels that can be blended with natural gas. In Ontario, we're involved in a biogas facility that's turning organic waste into RNG, fuelling Ontario's first carbon-negative bus in the city of Hamilton. We also launched, just north of me here, North America's first hydrogen-blending project, which serves over 4,000 residential customers in Markham and which has lots of potential to grow.

Finally, Canadian LNG is providing energy security in Europe and Asia and helping to reduce global emissions by replacing coal-fired generation. Canada must look beyond our borders and the 1.5% of global emissions we produce to deliver our reliable, affordable and responsibly produced natural gas to our allies and partners.

I thank you. I certainly welcome your questions.