Jesse Kline: Mark Carney’s $70-billion U.A.E. deal to nowhere

Prime Minister Mark Carney takes part in a press conference at the National Press Theatre in Ottawa June 25, 2026. Photo by Blair Gable/Postmedia Photo by Blair Gable /Photo by Blair Gable / Postmedia

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Given that the Liberals long ago ditched Stephen Harper’s vision of transforming Canada into an “energy superpower,” Prime Minister Mark Carney has resorted to going cap-in-hand to actual energy superpowers to get some of their sweet, sweet oil money. The only problem: despite his promise to fast-track nation-building projects, Canada still doesn’t have anything to invest in.

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This week, Carney made an historic trip to Saudi Arabia, becoming the first prime minister to visit the kingdom in 26 years. There, he met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and announced the creation of a bilateral council to advance joint political and economic priorities, a memorandum of understanding on energy co-operation and an agreement to promote trade and finalize a foreign investment deal by the end of next year.

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The prime minister is ultimately hoping to entice officials from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund to attend the Canada Investment Summit, which will be held in Toronto in September, and contribute to the Liberals’ goal of attracting $1 trillion in new investments over the next five years.

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The visit follows a similar trip to the United Arab Emirates last fall, where Carney said he secured $70 billion worth of investments. Yet according to a report in the Financial Times this week, when U.A.E. officials contacted the Major Projects Office (MPO), which is responsible for fast-tracking infrastructure projects, they were told there was nothing to invest in, as all the projects are still mired in bureaucratic red tape — the very thing the MPO was created to cut through.

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“The PM keeps talking about the $70-billion U.A.E. commitment he secured on his first visit in November. None of that has been deployed,” a Canadian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told FT. Jean Chariest, who’s co-chairing the U.A.E.-Canada Business Council, confirmed that the MPO “gave them the only answer they could give them at this point: we’re not ready.”

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To be fair, Carney’s goal has always been to secure infrastructure approvals within a “maximum of two years,” and the first tranche of major projects were announced last September. But the fact that almost a year has passed since the MPO was created and none of the 18 projects it’s currently reviewing are far enough along to accept investor funds is a scathing indictment of the prime minister’s promise to build the Canadian economy in record time.

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Carney also said in November that a $1-billion critical minerals agreement between Canada and the U.A.E. was “in the process of being finalized.” But nine months later, nothing has been announced, which doesn’t bode well for the promises he made in Saudi Arabia this week.