How 4 different expansions are being planned for Canada’s largest oil export pipeline system

A handful of proposed expChanges to major pipelines in the country could significantly increase the amount of oil exported from Western Canada. Altogether, their sum amounts to the creation of one large bran.D. New pipeline.

Enbridge is proposing four separate expansions to its pipeline system, the largest in the country.

calgary based company announced A final investment decision will be made on Friday to proceed with the first phase, which will cost US$1.4 billion to add 150,000 barrels per day of capacity on its mainline system and an additional 100,000 barrels per day on its Flanagan South pipeline. The project should be completed in 2027.

“We see supply slowingis growing rapidly,” and these pipeline expansions are meeting that need, said Colin Gruending, president of liquids pipelines for Enbridge.Hill was speaking to reporters on Friday.

The proposals come as Alberta is working on its own pipeline project and there are renewed discussions about reviving the failed Keystone XL pipeline.

There are also concerns about pipelines filling up in the next few years, as oil production continues to reach new record highs. When export pipelines reach their capacity, a backlog of oil may occur, causing Canadian crude oil prices to fall and resulting in lower royalties for governments.

‘What should he do?’

Meanwhile, Trans Mountain Public Relations isProtested two separate improvements to its pipeline from Edmonton to a Vancouver-area port. The physical size of the pipeline will not change, but Crown corporation is searching Using drag-reducing agents to increase the amount of oil that can be transported. The second project will look at building stronger pumping stations to deliver more oil through pipes.

Gruening said, overall, there should be no concern about export limits, even if oil companies continue to produce more oil in Alberta.

“The way we see the base case unfolding is a combination of Enbridge optimization and Trans Mountain optimization. We’ll keep that in mind,” he said. “We think it should. And it’s perfectly fine to have a little more exhaust than supply.”

There is always room for further improvement in the future, he said.

“We have more adaptations to take care of it than we have for 75 years. I think we’ve expanded the system hundreds of times over.”

clear area

Currently, the country’s export pipelines are filling According to a recent report from TD Cowen, this could peak by the fall of 2028. However, improvements to existing pipelines could create additional export capacity for many other pipelines Year.

“Early pipeline expansion could push this to the mid-2030s, but the timeline is already tight and visibility remains low,” the TD Cowen report said.

The sum of all expansions exceeds one million barrels per dayextra shree’sEpping potential, according to the TD Cowen report.

Currently, Western Canada produces approximately 4.5 million barrels of oil per day. The country’s oil export capacity is about 5.2 million barrels per day.

Alberta wants more

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith recent announcement of a possible provincial government pipeline proposal West Coast, as well as discussion about it another revival The Keystone XL pipeline, both described by TD Cowen as A “blue-sky” scenario because both are hypothetical, highly uncertain and would require many years of development if they actually move forward.

Smith wants a new pipeline to the west coast to reach world markets and provide plenty of export potential in hopes of significantly expanding the oil industry in the province.

“To make matters more complicated, the concept of reviving Keystone XL was recently raised by Prime Minister Mark Carney with US President Donald Trump,” the report said.

The report said this suggests the country is feeling less confident about its ability to complete a new pipeline project than it otherwise would have given its stated goal of diversifying beyond the US.

This week, the International Energy Agency forecast a significant surplus of oil worldwide, with supply potentially exceeding demand by 2.4 million barrels a day this year and four million barrels a day. One day next year, as the US, Brazil, Canada and other countries pump more oil.

At the same time, Paris-BaseD The agency estimates that global consumption of crude oil will reach 788,000 barrels per day this year and 770,000 barrels per day in 2026.

Enbridge is one of the companies advising the Alberta government on its potential pipeline venture, such as testing the feasibility and business case for a new eastPort Project.

“It takes time to develop these. There.”There are a lot of ideas,” Gruending said.

One of the biggest determining factors for a proposal is demand from oil companies, as well as their willingness to sign long-term contracts to use a new pipeline.

For now, when so much new pipeline S.P.With the coming years already anticipated, it’s hard to know how eager companies will be for this.