Energy statistics, May 2025
Released: 2025-07-30
23.6 million cubic metres
May 2025
-0.2% 
(12-month change)
8.9 million cubic metres
May 2025
-3.2%
(12-month change)
694.7 million gigajoules
May 2025
6.0% 
(12-month change)
46.5 million megawatt-hours
May 2025
4.8%
(12-month change)
Energy production in May was impacted by planned, annual maintenance activities and some disruptions due to the ongoing wildfire situation in several provinces. Overall, primary energy production increased 2.2%, while secondary energy production decreased 8.2%.
Chart 1
Year-over-year contribution to change in primary energy production
For more information on energy in Canada, including production, consumption, international trade and much more, visit the Canadian Centre for Energy Information portal and follow #energynews on social media.
Maintenance and forest fires impact oil sands production
Production of crude oil and equivalent products fell 0.2% year over year to 23.6 million cubic metres in May as planned turnarounds were underway in the oil sands sector, in addition to forest fires which temporarily shut down some production towards the end of the month.
Chart 2
Production of crude oil and equivalent products
Oil sands extraction was down 3.6% to 14.6 million cubic metres in May. This was the lowest monthly volume since May 2023 and was due to significant spring maintenance, which impacted both synthetic crude (-8.7%) and crude bitumen (-1.1%) production.
Meanwhile, production of light and medium crude oil rose 8.3% to 4.2 million cubic metres in May, largely driven by production from offshore Newfoundland and Labrador, which reached its highest monthly volume (1.3 million cubic metres) since August 2021.
Exports of crude oil rose 2.7% in May, the first monthly year-over-year increase in four months. The gain was driven by exports to countries other than the United States, which rose to 1.8 million cubic metres. Meanwhile, exports to the United States by pipeline fell 7.6%, the eighth monthly year-over-year decline in the last nine months.
Production and exports of natural gas rise while inventories decrease
Production of marketable natural gas rose 6.0% year over year to 694.7 million gigajoules in May, while inventories of natural gas held in Canadian facilities stood at 900.6 million gigajoules, down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Withdrawals from storage in British Columbia more than tripled year over year as operations at the new liquified natural gas export terminal in Kitimat ramped up.
Exports of natural gas increased 4.8% year over year to 274.3 million gigajoules in May, while imports climbed 32.1% to 82.7 million gigajoules.
Chart 3
Closing inventories and exports of natural gas
Nuclear and wind drive increase in electricity generation in May
Total electricity generation in Canada increased 4.8% year over year to 46.5 million megawatt-hours (MWh) in May. Nuclear generation (+41.4%) was the largest contributor to the growth, as nuclear generating stations in both Ontario and New Brunswick were back online in May after undergoing refurbishment or maintenance during the same month the previous year.
Wind power (+21.1%) was the second largest contributor to the overall gain in May as all provinces and two territories recorded year-over-year increases. The exception was Nunavut, which has no wind generation.
Chart 4
Nuclear and wind electricity generation
Production of refined petroleum products down in May
Inputs of crude oil to Canadian refineries declined 5.0% year over year to 7.5 million cubic metres in May, while production of refined petroleum products fell 3.2% to 8.9 million cubic metres.
Chart 5
Inputs of crude oil to Canadian refineries
Consumption of refined petroleum products fell 3.4% to 8.5 million cubic metres in May, as a 7.3% drop in distillate fuel oil offset increases in finished motor gasoline (+1.3%) and kerosene-type jet fuel (+1.4%).
Focus on Canada and the United States
Exports of electricity to the United States rose 39.3% to 2.7 million megawatt-hours (MWh) in May. The increase was driven by exports from Ontario (+86.7%), British Columbia (+72.9%) and Manitoba (+44.0%). At the same time, electricity exports from Quebec fell 89.6% to their lowest level since the series was redesigned in 2016. Quebec, which relies heavily on hydroelectric generation, has been struggling with drought conditions since mid-2023. Additionally, low electricity prices in New England states were likely a factor in Quebec reducing exports.
Nationally, electricity imports declined 6.3% to 1.6 million MWh in May.
For more data and insights on areas touched by the socioeconomic relationship between Canada and the United States, see the Focus on Canada and the United States webpage.
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Note to readers
The Energy Statistics Program relies on data collected from respondents and administrative sources.
The Consolidated Energy Statistics table (25-10-0079-01) presents monthly data on primary and secondary energy by fuel type (crude oil, natural gas, electricity, coal, etc.) in terajoules and supply and demand characteristics (production, exports, imports, etc.) for Canada. For more information, consult the Consolidated Energy Statistics Table: User Guide.
Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted.
The following survey programs support the "Energy statistics" release:
- Crude oil and natural gas (survey number 2198; tables 25-10-0036-01, 25-10-0055-01 and 25-10-0063-01)
- Energy transportation and storage (survey number 5300; tables 25-10-0075-01 and 25-10-0077-01)
- Natural gas transmission, storage and distribution (survey numbers 2149, 5210 and 5215; tables 25-10-0057-01, 25-10-0058-01 and 25-10-0059-01)
- Refined petroleum products (survey number 2150; table 25-10-0081-01)
- Renewable fuel and hydrogen (survey number 5294; table 25-10-0082-01)
- Electric power statistics (survey number 2151; tables 25-10-0015-01 and 25-10-0016-01)
- Coal and coke statistics (survey numbers 2147 and 2003; tables 25-10-0045-01 and 25-10-0046-01).
The newly expanded Trans Mountain pipeline began operation in May 2024, transporting crude oil and refined petroleum products from Edmonton, Alberta, to the port of Burnaby, British Columbia. This expansion nearly tripled the capacity of the existing line built in 1953, allowing for more Canadian crude oil to be exported to the global market. As a result, year-over-year rates of change are expected to be significant for some data series through to April 2025.
Revisions
Energy survey data and administrative sources are subject to revisions to reflect new or updated information. Historical revisions will be processed periodically.
Occasionally, data from Environment and Climate Change Canada are referenced by the Energy Statistics Program using Cooling Degree Days (CDDs) or Heating Degree Days (HDDs) as a measure of temperature. CDDs reflect the relationship between outdoor temperatures and the need to cool indoors to maintain room temperature. As temperatures outside rise, the number of CDDs increases. HDDs are the opposite and reflect the need to heat indoors to maintain room temperature. As temperatures outside fall, the number of HDDs increases.
Contact information
For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; infostats@statcan.gc.ca) or Media Relations (statcan.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.statcan@statcan.gc.ca).
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