Energy statistics, October 2021

Released: 2022-01-07

Following an 11.0% increase in September, primary energy production rose another 7.7% year over year to 1.9 million terajoules in October—the highest production level since January 2021. Crude oil (+10.8%) and natural gas (+6.4%) accounted for most of the growth in primary energy production. In contrast, secondary energy production fell 1.2% year over year, mostly on lower refinery and coke production. Overall, however, energy production increased in four of the nine commodity groups in October.

Total energy exports increased 5.3% year over year in October because of higher volumes of natural gas (+14.8%), crude oil (+4.6%) and coal (+14.6%) exported primarily to the United States. A combination of increased volumes and high prices for energy products led to substantial growth in energy exports in October, surpassing the previous record set in 2014. During the same period, total energy imports were down 9.5%—the first year-over-year decline in seven months, mostly as a result of reduced demand for crude oil and natural gas.

Higher energy prices in October were the main contributor to the largest gain in the Consumer Price Index since February 2003.

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Crude oil production and prices continue to rise

Production of crude oil and equivalent products rose 10.8% in October to 24.4 million cubic metres—the highest level of crude production since December 2019, before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The overall gain was largely driven by oil sands production, up 16.2% to 16.3 million cubic metres, as maintenance completed in September enabled operators to increase production to the highest level since December 2020. Synthetic crude production rose by almost one-third (up 29.1% to 6.5 million cubic metres), while crude bitumen production was up 9.0% to 9.8 million cubic metres.

Meanwhile, oil extraction saw a smaller increase of 1.8% in October, to 5.9 million cubic metres. Heavy crude oil production, up 4.9% to 1.9 million cubic metres, was the main contributor to the increase, while light and medium crude oil production edged up 0.3% to 3.9 million cubic metres.

Chart 1 
Production of crude oil, by type of product

Following a 7.1% increase in September, the crude oil and bitumen price index rose another 12.0% in October—the largest month-over-month increase since February 2021. Benchmark prices for crude oil reached a five-year high in October, as production limits by countries of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries Plus (OPEC+) continued and global demand outweighed supply. According to the US Energy Information Administration, daily global consumption of crude oil rose 5.5% year over year in October—the eighth consecutive monthly increase.

Exports of crude oil and equivalent products increased for the seventh consecutive month in October, up 4.7% year over year to 18.2 million cubic metres. Exports by pipeline (+5.1%) and by other means (+14.0%) to the United States both increased during the month, as demand for Canadian crude oil in the United States remained high. In contrast, imports of crude oil and equivalent products decreased 15.2% to 2.9 million cubic metres in October. The decline was attributable to lower imports to refineries (-30.1%), as Canadian refiners sourced more of their feedstocks from domestic sources.

Refinery production edges down, consumption up year over year

Production of finished petroleum products edged down 0.2% to 9.0 million cubic metres in October—the second consecutive year-over-year decrease. The slight decline was attributable in part to turnarounds and maintenance that reduced capacity utilization at some refineries throughout October. Distillate fuel oils (-11.4%) and finished motor gasoline (-3.5%) were the main contributors to the monthly decline, while renewable fuels (-9.7%) posted their lowest production level since February 2021. In contrast, jet fuel (+44.8%) and other petroleum products (+17.8%) were up year over year, partially offsetting the overall decline in production.

Despite lower production, demand for finished petroleum products was up 9.9% year over year to 8.6 million cubic metres. Driving the gain was an 83.3% increase in demand for jet fuel, as air transportation activity continued to grow in October. Demand for finished motor gasoline (+6.2%), distillate fuel oils (+7.8%) and other refined products (+9.1%) was also up.

Following a 3.8% increase in September, prices of refined petroleum products rose 8.5% month over month in October. This was the largest month-over-month increase since February 2021, partially reflecting the rise in crude oil prices. Higher prices for jet fuel (+12.8%), diesel fuel oils (+11.3%) and motor gasoline (+5.3%) were the main contributors to the monthly increase. Overall, prices of refined petroleum products were over three-quarters (+78.2%) higher compared with October 2020.

Chart 2 
Exports and imports of finished petroleum products

Exports of finished petroleum products were down by just over one-quarter (declining 25.1% to 1.0 million cubic metres) in October. This was the lowest export level since the beginning of this series in January 2019, and it was attributable to reduced domestic production during the month. In contrast, imports of finished petroleum products rose 44.5% to 0.9 million cubic metres—the second-highest level since June 2020. Finished motor gasoline (+90.5%) and jet fuel (+228.8%) were the main products imported in October.

Natural gas production and consumption continue to increase

Production of marketable natural gas rose 6.4% to 607.3 million gigajoules in October, the fourth consecutive monthly year-over-year increase. The vast majority of production was concentrated in Alberta (68.4%) and British Columbia (30.3%).

Chart 3 
Marketable production of natural gas

Following a 5.1% increase in September, total deliveries of natural gas to Canadian consumers edged down 0.1% year over year in October to 348.4 million gigajoules. This modest decrease was attributable to lower demand from the residential sector (-21.5%) and the commercial and institutional sector (-17.0%). In contrast, deliveries to the industrial sector rose for the sixth consecutive month, up 6.2% to 279.3 million gigajoules in October. The industrial sector in Alberta received more than half (57.0%) of all natural gas delivered in Canada in October.

Demand for Canadian natural gas in the United States continued to rise in October. Following a 21.1% increase in September, exports of natural gas to the United States rose again in October, up 14.8% to 249.6 million gigajoules—the 11th consecutive monthly year-over-year increase. This was the highest level of exports for the month of October since 2017. In contrast, imports of natural gas declined 14.2% to 74.0 million gigajoules, mostly on lower demand from Ontario.

The natural gas price index was up 21.0% from September to October, reaching its highest level since October 2015. Natural gas prices in North America have been influenced in part by the European and Asian markets, where demand increased sharply because of colder-than-expected weather.

Electricity generation and consumption down year over year

Electricity generation in Canada was down 2.2% to 48.7 million megawatt-hours (MWh) in October—the third year-over-year decline in four months. Hydroelectricity generation (-4.6%) was the main contributor to the decrease, as lower water levels in Manitoba continued to affect overall production. Electricity generation from wind power (-5.5%) was also down in October. Increases in solar (+14.5%), combustible fuel (+3.4%) and nuclear (+0.5%) electricity generation partially offset the overall decline.

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

Following a 1.7% increase in September, electricity consumption was down 0.9% year over year to 44.9 million MWh in October. This was the lowest consumption level for the month of October since 2017, and it was primarily attributable to lower levels in Manitoba (-11.1%), Newfoundland and Labrador (-21.2%), and British Columbia (-2.5%). The overall decrease in demand for electricity was partially offset by increased demand in Alberta (+2.9%).

Exports of electricity to the United States declined for the fourth consecutive month, down 3.0% to 5.0 million MWh in October. Exports originating in Manitoba were down by almost one-half (-48.4%) year over year, accounting for most of the decrease. Quebec was the largest exporting province (2.0 million MWh), followed by Ontario (1.4 million MWh). Over the same period, electricity imports from the United States were up 87.2% to 1.2 million MWh, mostly because of reduced domestic production in Manitoba.

Coal production and exports continue to rise year over year

Coal production rose 4.1% year over year to 3.8 million tonnes in October. This was the highest production level since April 2021, primarily because of increased demand from foreign markets. Exports of coal increased by just over one-quarter (+25.7%) to 2.4 million tonnes. Coke production declined 12.4% to 152 200 tonnes in October.

Contact information

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