Canadian crude oil’s last big push
Oil sands set to provide growth over next few years, but infrastructure and policy hurdles could stifle momentum further out
Canada’s crude oil production has skyrocketed since the turn of the century, rising from under 2m b/d to an estimated 4.9m b/d last year, while information provider S&P Global Commodity Insights is projecting it to jump another 500,000b/d over the next two years—the bulk of which will come from the oil sands (see Fig.1). But this could be the “last big push” for Canadian production, with output basically plateauing as of mid-decade because of a slowdown in Western Canadian supply growth in general, and oil sands growth in particular, according to Kevin Birn, S&P's chief analyst for Canadian oil markets. Western Canada dominates Canadian crude oil production, accounting for almost 95%
Also in this section
26 April 2024
While the US has been breaking records for its premium grade crude, there are doubts over whether you can have too much of a good thing
26 April 2024
Slowing demand growth and capacity expansions will squeeze refiners in coming years
25 April 2024
Some companies with assets in Israel have turned towards Egypt as tensions escalate, but others are holding firm despite rising tensions
24 April 2024
But even planned exploration activity is unlikely to reverse declining output from mature fields