Energy statistics, April 2021

Released: 2021-07-07

Primary energy production rose 4.7% on a year-over-year basis in April, up from a 1.4% gain in March. A significant proportion of this increase was attributable to the steep declines in energy production at the onset of the pandemic in the spring of 2020. Crude oil, coal, and natural gas were the main contributors to the year-over-year increase in production, while primary electricity generation was down in April. Secondary energy production (+9.8%) was also up year over year, mostly due to higher production of refined petroleum products. Nevertheless, overall energy production in April remained below pre-pandemic levels.

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Crude oil production increases year over year, but remains below pre-pandemic levels

Production of crude oil and equivalent products rose 5.9% to 21.3 million cubic metres in April. This was the second monthly year-over-year increase since the occurrence of two high-impact events in April 2020. The first was the start of the pandemic, which began to reduce energy demand. Also, a dispute between the members of OPEC+ (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries Plus) led to an oversupply to the global market causing crude oil prices to decline sharply. Despite the year-over-year increase in April 2021, production of crude oil and equivalent products remained below the pre-pandemic level of March 2020.

Oil sands extraction increased 7.0% year over year to 13.3 million cubic metres. Crude bitumen production rose by almost one-third (+32.6%) and remained at elevated levels compared with April 2020, when reduced demand and falling crude oil prices led to a significant drop in production. In contrast, synthetic crude oil production fell by over one-quarter (-26.5%) to the lowest level in four years. The decline was due to long-awaited maintenance work which was postponed until this year as a result of the pandemic. Further outbreaks of COVID-19 at oil sands facilities and subsequent measures to contain them also impacted upgraders' activities in April.

Oil extraction was up 4.5% to 5.8 million cubic metres, driven by production of heavy crude oil which rose 26.6% from April 2020. Despite the year-over-year increase, production of heavy crude oil has yet to recover to pre-pandemic levels. Production of equivalent products (+2.7%) also increased in April, while light and medium crude oil production was down 3.3% year over year.

Chart 1 
Production of crude oil and equivalent products, by type of product

After five months of increases, the crude oil and bitumen price index fell 3.6% from March to April, primarily due to a 5.7% decline in synthetic crude oil price. A number of factors contributed to the decrease, including the decision by OPEC+ countries to boost their production for the next three months, the uncertainty caused by a resurgence of COVID-19 cases in some Asian and European countries, and the reopening of the Suez Canal. Nevertheless, the crude oil and bitumen price index in April was 350.6% higher compared with April 2020, when prices collapsed at the beginning of the pandemic.

Exports of crude oil and equivalent products rose 3.6% year over year to 17.3 million cubic metres. The gain was driven by pipeline exports to the United States (+4.6%) and exports by rail, marine and truck (+9.1%), while exports to other countries decreased by over one-quarter (-26.7%).

Following three consecutive monthly declines, imports of crude oil and equivalent products increased 39.6% to 3.8 million cubic metres in April. Imports by refineries were almost two-thirds (+64.3%) higher compared with the lower levels observed at the beginning of the pandemic in April 2020. Imports by other entities (+9.1%) were also up year over year in April.

Refinery production remains low in April

In April, refinery production was reduced due to scheduled spring maintenance shutdowns at some refineries, while consumption of refined petroleum products continued to be affected by pandemic-related measures which remained in place in most provinces.

Net production of finished petroleum products totalled 7.8 million cubic metres in April—the lowest level in 12 months—due primarily to lower production of distillate fuel oils and motor gasoline. Refinery capacity utilization was down 4.0% from March to April, to the lowest level since November 2020. Similarly, consumption of refined petroleum products remained low in April due to reduced demand. Refinery products supplied to Canadian consumers totalled 6.9 million cubic metres, down from 8.1 million cubic metres in March. Despite the overall decline, both refinery production (+12.0%) and consumption of refined petroleum products (+21.0%) were up year over year in April, from the unprecedented lows observed during the first wave of the pandemic in April 2020.

Chart 2 
Net production of finished petroleum products

Following six consecutive monthly increases, prices of refined petroleum products remained stable month over month in April. Prices of motor gasoline (+3.6%) and jet fuel (+1.6%) were up while diesel prices (-3.7%) were down compared with the previous month. Nevertheless, on a year-over-year basis, prices of refined petroleum products were up 94.9% in April, which can be explained by the sharp decline in prices that occurred in April 2020.

Exports of finished petroleum products were down 7.8% year over year to 1.5 million cubic metres in April—the first decrease in three months. The year-over-year decline in April was due mostly to lower exports of distillate fuel oils, including diesel and light fuel oils (-28.9%), and finished motor gasoline (-22.1%).

Imports of finished petroleum products were up by over two-thirds (68.0%) year over year to 0.8 million cubic metres in April. This was the highest level since September 2020—mainly attributable to higher volumes of motor gasoline and distillate fuel oils imported into Nova Scotia and Quebec.

Natural gas production, exports and imports up year over year

Following a slight decrease in March (-0.1%), production of marketable natural gas rose 1.4% to 574.0 million gigajoules in April. Alberta (+1.4%) and British Columbia (+2.7%) were the main contributors to the overall increase in production.

The demand for natural gas continued to trend downward in April. Following a 0.8% decrease in March, total deliveries of natural gas to Canadian consumers fell 4.1% year over year in April to 356.0 million gigajoules. The decline was driven by lower demand from residential (-14.8%) and commercial and institutional (-10.6%) consumers, partially due to lower demand for heating. Temperatures in April 2021 were 15.6% warmer on average than in April 2020, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada data on heating degree days.

Meanwhile, deliveries to industrial consumers were up 0.3% to 246.1 million gigajoules in April. This was the fifth consecutive year-over-year increase, driven by higher demand from industrial consumers in Alberta (+2.1%).

Chart 3 
Marketable production, exports and imports of natural gas, year-over-year change

Demand for Canadian natural gas in the United States remained high in April. Following substantial increases in February (+11.1%) and March (+11.0%), exports of natural gas to the United States rose again in April, up 14.2% to 230.9 million gigajoules—the fifth consecutive monthly year-over-year increase. The natural gas price index was up 1.0% month over month in April, after a sharp decrease in March (-11.1%).

Imports of natural gas were up 5.4% to 92.4 million gigajoules in April. The vast majority of natural gas imported was destined to Ontario.

Electricity generation and consumption continue to fall year over year

Electricity generation continued on a downward trend in April, declining 1.0% year over year to 48.3 million megawatt-hours (MWh). Nuclear generation fell 8.3% year over year to 6.9 million MWh, as maintenance continued at nuclear plants in Ontario and New Brunswick. Electricity generated from combustible fuels was also down 3.8% to 8.5 million MWh, mostly because of lower quantities produced in Alberta.

The overall decrease in electricity generation was partially offset by renewable energy generation (including hydro, wind, solar and other sources of energy), which rose 1.4% year over year to 33.6 million MWh and accounted for over two-thirds (69.7%) of Canada's electricity generation in April.

Electricity consumption edged down 0.1% year over year to 44.5 million MWh in April—the tenth consecutive monthly decrease. Lower demand for electricity in Alberta (-4.2%) and Ontario (-0.9%) were the main contributors to the overall decline. The Electric Power Selling Price Index for industrial and commercial users fell 3.1% from March to April—the second consecutive monthly decline—due to lower prices in Ontario.

Chart 4 
Electricity generation and consumption, year-over-year change

Following a 10.1% year-over-year decrease in March, electricity exports to the United States fell 9.5% to 4.5 million MWh in April. Lower exports from Ontario and Manitoba were the main contributors to the year-over-year decline. Imports of electricity from the United States were down 3.5% to 0.8 million MWh, primarily because of lower demand for imported electricity in British Columbia.

Coal production and exports continue to rise year over year

In April, coal production totalled 3.8 million tonnes, up 17.9% from April 2020, when production was affected by mine closures and reduced demand for coal at the onset of the pandemic. Coal exports increased by almost one-quarter (+24.2%) to 2.0 million tonnes. Meanwhile, coke production declined year over year for the third consecutive month, down 9.4% to 161.2 thousand tonnes.

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