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CANADIAN INDUSTRY ONLINE - AUGUST 2014
I
NCREASING CRUDE OI L
sup-
plies from Canada’s oil sands will
help meet a growing global demand
for energy, but the oil sands do not
create demand for energy.
Contrary to a recent Stockholm
Environment Institute report released
in August 2014, the most recent World
Energy Outlook from the International
Energy Agency (IEA) indicates grow-
ing world populations and standards
of living are the primary drivers for
increasing global energy demands, not
pipeline capacity.
Non-OECD countries such as
China and India lead the growth in
energy demand and energy use rises
with improved living standards. In
addition to the IEA, all credible third-
party energy outlooks indicate oil will
remain the fuel of choice for transpor-
tation.
As the middle-class population
grows across the globe, demand for
energy is forecast to increase by 33 per
cent over the next two decades. The
renewable energy supply also will
increase but not in quantities sufficient
to meet the rise in overall energy de-
mand. Oil and gas will remain the pri-
mary source for the foreseeable future,
providing 45 per cent of world’s en-
ergy needs in 2035.
Given these facts, oil sands pro-
ducers believe the responsible devel-
opment of Alberta’s oil sands is im-
portant to meeting both domestic and
international energy demand for many
decades. Increasing oil production
from the oil sands will bring Canada
and North America closer to achiev-
ing energy self-sufficiency. Transport-
ing this oil via pipeline to Eastern
Canada will displace current imports
to Canada of about 700,000 barrels per
day. The U.S. imports about 4.6 million
barrels a day from countries other than
Canada. Increasing transportation ca-
pacity to the U.S. from Alberta would
displace that product, allowing it to be
sent to other markets in the developing
world.
As long as the world is using oil,
refiners and consumers have a choice
of source countries to meet consumer
demand. Canada’s oil sands produc-
tion occurs under responsible regu-
lations, including carbon mitigation
measures and prices on corporate
producers. It is one of the most respon-
sible and safest crude oil choices in the
market.
Even the Stockholm Environment
Institute report confirms that as oil
sands crude displaces other oil sup-
plies, the increased production does
not increase global GHG production.
A variety of strategies are needed
to meet our long-term energy needs,
including improved energy efficiency
to offset demand growth, which has
the potential to play a large role. For
example, despite population growth in
North America, oil demand is almost
flat. That’s an energy efficiency success
story. Industry, not-for-profit organi-
zations and governments must con-
tinue to do more to educate consumers
about efficient energy use.
Energy is precious. Let’s use it wisely.
CAPP
