The taxman and cross-border takeovers

8th Jan 2006, 08:17 GMT

Life isn't fair, but when Canada's own tax laws give U.S. energy giant Kinder Morgan Inc. a leg up in acquiring British Columbia's largest natural gas utility, it's reasonable to be a little chafed. Terasen Inc. may not be well known in Eastern Canada, but its sale to a U.S. company this fall has become a federal election pinata on the West Coast.