Alberta, Ottawa and Canada’s five largest oil sands companies have signed an agreement to push forward a massive carbon capture project in the province’s north, while setting the stage for a substantial increase in crude production.

The agreement stems from a memorandum of understanding signed by the provincial and federal governments in November, which tied a new oil pipeline from Alberta to the West Coast to lowering emissions through the carbon capture project, called Pathways.

Under the new tripartite agreement – signed July 2 but made public Monday – the governments and companies signalled their support for the development of financial and regulatory frameworks that would “enable sustained and substantial oil sands development and production growth.”

The companies that signed the agreement are Suncor SU-T, Cenovus CVE-T, ConocoPhillips COP-N, Canadian Natural Resources CNQ-N and Imperial IMO-T. Collectively, they make up the Oil Sands Alliance.