Key Influencer - Sonya Savage - Minister of Energy

First elected as MLA for Calgary – Northwest in 2019, Sonya Savage was subsequently appointed Minister of Energy and Deputy House Leader for the United Conservative Party. She is well suited to her portfolio with an extensive background in energy law and policy with Enbridge’s government relations department and later as the senior director of policy & regulatory affairs with the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association. She worked for nearly a decade on the Northern Gateway Pipeline during which she was named to Ottawa’s top 100 lobbyists in the Hill Times seven years in a row. Other energy projects that she worked on include the Line 9 reversal, Alberta Clipper, and other non-petroleum projects that involved wind, solar, geothermal, and sour gas.

Minister Savage received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Master of Laws, Environment and Energy from the University of Calgary. During her undergraduate studies, she spent a significant amount of her time being mentored by the Calgary School professor Ted Morton. It should come to no one’s surprise that she followed in his footsteps in becoming Alberta’s Minister of Energy, with her Master’s thesis discussing Canada’s National Energy Board. From a young age, Savage was heavily involved in conservative politics, likely inspired by her rural roots from growing up on a farm near the town of Standard, Alberta. She attended the 1993 federal leadership convention to help campaign for Kim Campbell and was Alberta’s Progressive Conservative Youth Association’s president. Savage is one of the many successful graduates from her political science class, with her peers including Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi and MP Pat Kelly.

Following her graduation, Savage worked as a lawyer for over a decade with various firms before transitioning to government relations. At home, she has two adorable cats named Tia and Taz with her husband Eric. With a background as impressive as hers, it is no surprise that Sonya Savage was Kenney’s top pick for Minister of Energy as a longtime friend and an expert on Canadian energy.