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Fuel Focus, March 6, 2015

Table of Contents


National Overview

National Retail Pump Prices Increased 9 Cents per Litre from Last Week

For the week ending March 3, 2015, Canadian average retail gasoline prices increased by nearly 9 cents per litre from the previous week to $1.12 per litre—a three-month high. Since the last report two weeks ago, retail pump prices are 9 cents per litre higher.

Wholesale and retail pump prices across Canada moved upward, despite relatively flat crude oil prices. Oil prices remained firm while the price differential increased between the Brent and North American crudes. Refinery issues slowed gasoline production, resulting in gasoline market tightening, which in turn pushed gasoline prices upward.

Diesel fuel prices increased by more than 4 cents per litre from the previous week to $1.22 per litre, while furnace oil prices increased by 1 cent per litre, ending at $1.20 per litre. Compared to a year ago, prices for diesel and furnace oil are 17 and 13 cents per litre lower, respectively.

Figure 1: Crude Oil and Regular Gasoline Price Comparison
(National Average)

Crude Oil and Gasoline Price Comparison

 
Text version

Figure 1

The graph shows prices in cents per litre for gasoline at retail, gasoline excluding taxes, and Canadian Light Sweet and Brent crude oil prices. Gasoline prices ended the period of March 3, 2015, at 112.3 cents per litre, excluding taxes at 74.1 cents per litre, Canadian Light Sweet at 35.1 cents per litre and Brent at 44.6 cents per litre.

Dates Gasoline at retail Excluding Taxes Canadian Light Sweet Brent crude
09/09/2014 133.0 93.3 61.2 69.5
16/09/2014 129.9 90.4 60.5 68.2
23/09/2014 129.4 90.0 61.1 68.0
30/09/2014 130.1 90.6 60.6 67.6
07/10/2014 128.0 88.8 60.8 66.4
14/10/2014 123.1 84.4 58.0 64.2
21/10/2014 121.9 83.2 54.8 60.5
28/10/2014 118.8 80.3 53.1 60.8
04/11/2014 117.8 79.5 51.7 60.8
11/11/2014 119.2 80.7 49.0 59.6
18/11/2014 116.2 78.1 47.5 57.2
25/11/2014 114.4 76.4 47.0 56.2
02/12/2014 112.3 74.4 45.9 54.3
09/12/2014 107.2 69.9 42.9 50.3
16/12/2014 101.1 64.4 41.4 49.7
23/12/2014 99.4 62.8 35.6 44.3
30/12/2014 98.1 61.6 35.7 44.2
06/01/2015 95.0 58.8 33.8 42.0
13/01/2015 91.5 55.7 30.5 38.1
20/01/2015 91.3 55.4 29.8 35.8
27/01/2015 92.5 56.5 30.3 37.6
03/02/2015 96.5 60.2 30.7 39.1
10/02/2015 101.2 64.5 34.7 44.2
17/02/2015 103.0 66.2 35.0 45.3
24/02/2015 103.7 66.8 35.7 47.7
03/03/2015 112.3 74.1 35.1 44.6
 

Figure 2: Weekly Regular Gasoline Prices

Weekly Regular Gasoline Prices

 
Text version

Figure 2

This graph shows the gasoline price trends from 2013 to 2015.

Date 2013 Gasoline at Retail Date 2014 Gasoline at Retail Date 2015 Gasoline at Retail
13-01-01 118.90 14-01-07 125.00 15-01-06 95.00
13-01-08 120.60 14-01-14 125.60 15-01-13 91.50
13-01-15 118.90 14-01-21 125.70 15-01-20 91.30
13-01-22 119.70 14-01-28 126.60 15-01-27 92.50
13-01-29 123.30 14-02-04 125.90 15-02-03 96.50
13-02-05 129.20 14-02-11 127.60 15-02-10 101.20
13-02-12 127.70 14-02-18 129.30 15-02-17 103.00
13-02-19 130.50 14-02-25 130.70 15-02-24 103.70
13-02-26 131.20 14-03-04 132.50 15-03-03 112.30
13-03-05 131.20 14-03-11 131.80 15-03-10  
13-03-12 129.90 14-03-18 132.00 15-03-17  
13-03-19 130.10 14-03-25 132.90 15-03-24  
13-03-26 129.40 14-04-01 132.90 15-03-31  
13-04-02 128.70 14-04-08 133.90 15-04-07  
13-04-09 126.50 14-04-15 136.80 15-04-14  
13-04-16 125.00 14-04-22 137.70 15-04-21  
13-04-23 125.10 14-04-29 139.80 15-04-28  
13-04-30 126.30 14-05-06 136.90 15-05-05  
13-05-07 126.00 14-05-13 135.70 15-05-12  
13-05-14 129.30 14-05-20 136.00 15-05-19  
13-05-21 131.40 14-05-27 136.80 15-05-26  
13-05-28 132.90 14-06-03 137.40 15-06-02  
13-06-04 131.10 14-06-10 138.10 15-06-09  
13-06-11 132.90 14-06-17 138.80 15-06-16  
13-06-18 133.10 14-06-24 141.20 15-06-23  
13-06-25 130.50 14-07-01 138.70 15-06-30  
13-07-02 128.30 14-07-08 137.20 15-07-07  
13-07-09 132.40 14-07-15 133.80 15-07-14  
13-07-16 134.40 14-07-22 133.00 15-07-21  
13-07-23 134.70 14-07-29 131.80 15-07-28  
13-07-30 132.70 14-08-05 131.10 15-08-04  
13-08-06 131.50 14-08-12 133.60 15-08-11  
13-08-13 130.00 14-08-19 131.30 15-08-18  
13-08-20 132.00 14-08-26 132.10 15-08-25  
13-08-27 133.00 14-09-02 132.80 15-09-01  
13-09-03 133.90 14-09-09 133.00 15-09-08  
13-09-10 132.10 14-09-16 129.90 15-09-15  
13-09-17 130.60 14-09-23 129.40 15-09-22  
13-09-24 126.40 14-09-30 130.10 15-09-29  
13-10-01 124.30 14-10-07 128.00 15-10-06  
13-10-08 123.60 14-10-14 123.10 15-10-13  
13-10-15 124.80 14-10-21 121.90 15-10-20  
13-10-22 125.50 14-10-28 118.80 15-10-27  
13-10-29 124.40 14-11-04 117.80 15-11-03  
13-11-05 123.70 14-11-11 119.20 15-11-10  
13-11-12 122.60 14-11-18 116.20 15-11-17  
13-11-19 124.60 14-11-25 114.40 15-11-24  
13-11-26 126.40 14-12-02 112.30 15-12-01  
13-12-03 125.40 14-12-09 107.20 15-12-08  
13-12-10 125.90 14-12-16 101.10 15-12-15  
13-12-17 124.50 14-12-23 99.40 15-12-22  
13-12-24 125.00 14-12-30 98.10 15-12-29  
13-12-31 128.30        
 
Table 1: Changes in Fuel Prices
¢/L Week of: 2015-03-03 Change from:Previous  Week Change from:Last Year
Gasoline 112.3 +8.6 -20.2
Diesel 122.2 +4.3 -23.5
Furnace Oil 119.5 +1.3 -12.9
Natural Gas Prices in $CA/GJ
Alberta (NGX) 2.50 -0.47 -5.55
Ontario (Dawn) 5.71 -0.24 -30.81

Source: NRCan, Bloomberg, NGX

Table 2: Natural Gas Prices for Vehicles
2015-03-03 ¢/kilogram ¢/L gasoline equivalent ¢/L diesel equivalent
Vancouver 114.5 75.5 78.3
Edmonton 115.0 75.9 78.7
Toronto 128.4 84.7 87.8

 

Source: ¢/kg Kent Marketing Services Limited

Recent Developments

  • Gasoline Sales Up 2.2%: Canadians consumed 41 billion litres of gasoline from January to November 2014, or nearly 890 million litres more than the same period last year. In the same period, diesel fuel sales increased by 2.5% to 27 billion litres, or 680 million litres, while furnace oil sales rose by less than 1% to 2.3 billion litres. (Statistics Canada, Cansim Table 134-0004)
  • Canadian Energy Dynamics: The Canadian crude oil exports by pipeline and rail reached new highs in 2014, while natural gas exports continued to decline as gas flows change across North America, and notably into Ontario and Quebec. Conventional fuels were increasingly phased out by cleaner fuels, exemplified by Ontario’s completion of its coal phase-out and growth in small-scale liquefied natural gas. The Canadian Energy Dynamics report provides insight, statistics and regional descriptions that frame these and other developments over the last year, from all across Canada. (Source: National Energy Board)

Retail Gasoline Overview

The four-week average regular gasoline pump price in selected cities across Canada was $1.05 per litre for the period ending March 3, 2015. This is 25 cents per litre lower than the price recorded at this time last year.

The four-week average crude oil price component of gasoline registered at 43 cents per litre, up 3 cents per litre from two weeks ago. Compared to the same period in 2014, the crude oil price component of gasoline is 27 cents per litre lower.Retail gasoline prices in most Western centres increased, on average, by 8 cents per litre when compared to the previous report and ranged from 86 cents per litre to $1.12 per litre. Prices in Eastern cities rose, on average, by 5 cents per litre and ranged from 94 cents per litre to $1.07 per litre.

Ranging from 92 cents per litre to $1.22 per litre, retail gasoline prices in most Western centres increased, on average, by 6.4 cents per litre when compared to two weeks ago. Prices in Eastern centres increased on average by 6.5 cents per litre, and ranged from $1.04 per litre to $1.14 per litre.

At the national level, refining and marketing costs and margins increased by 3 cents per litre from two weeks ago, and are 4 cents per litre higher than last year at this time.

Figure 3: Regular Gasoline Pump Prices in Selected Cities Four-Week Average (February 10 to March 3, 2015)

Regular Gasoline Pump Prices in Selected Cities Four-Week Average (February 10 to March 3, 2015)

 
Text version

Figure 3

This graph shows the gasoline price components for 2 territories and 10 cities plus the national average.

  Whitehorse Yellowknife Vancouver Calgary Regina Winnipeg Toronto Montreal* Saint John* Halifax* Charlottetown* St. John's* Canada
Pump Price/Prix à la pompe 99.4 111.4 121.8 93.1 95.8 91.6 103.7 113.9 99.6 104.3 103.7 109.4 105.1
Crude (est.) / Brut (est.) 35.1 35.1 35.1 35.1 35.1 35.1 39.1 45.5 45.5 45.5 45.5 45.5 43.3
Federal Taxes / Taxes fédérales 14.7 15.3 15.8 14.4 14.6 14.4 10.0 15.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 15.3
Provincial Tax / Taxe provinciale 6.2 10.7 32.2 9.0 15.0 14.0 14.7 32.1 13.6 15.5 13.1 16.5 22.3
HST             11.9   11.5 13.6 12.7 12.6  
Refining & Marketing Costs & Margins /  Coûts et 43.4 50.3 38.7 34.6 31.1 28.1 28.0 21.3 19.0 19.7 22.3 24.8 24.2
 

Source: NRCan
* Regulated Markets

Note: Toronto crude oil cost includes pipeline tolls of $4 per barrel for light crude oil from Edmonton to Sarnia, Ontario.
 

Current Diesel and Gasoline Price Gap

The average Canadian operating a vehicle fueled by gasoline has seen those retail prices drop nearly 50 cents per litre since their peak in June of last year, whereas those operating a diesel vehicle have realized a drop of only half that amount over the same time period.

Gasoline prices were under significant downward pressure in December and January, due to lower seasonal demand and the surge in production resulting from North American refineries running at very high utilization rates. Gasoline inventories sat well above their seasonal norms. In contrast, diesel inventories were relatively low compared to historical seasonal norms, due to high offshore demand for North American diesel and high diesel exports. This put additional upward pressure on wholesale diesel prices.

This price disparity is expected to decrease in the coming months as winter turns to spring.  Gasoline demand typically increases with the end of winter, while diesel and furnace oil demand declines. The gap between average Canadian diesel and gasoline prices has already dropped from 21 cents per litre in the first week of January to just 12 cents per litre in the first week of February.

Source: NRCan; Kent Marketing Group Ltd.

 

Wholesale Gasoline Prices

Wholesale gasoline prices increased in most centres for the week of February 26, 2015, compared to the previous week. Price changes ranged from an increase of nearly 2 to 12 cents per litre.

For the Eastern markets in Canada and the United States, wholesale gasoline price changes ranged from an increase of 2 to 5 cents per litre when compared to the previous week, with prices ending the period in the 58 to 63-cent-per-litre range.In the Eastern markets of Canada and the U.S., wholesale gasoline prices, compared to the previous week, registered increases ranging from 2 to 3 cents per litre. Prices for the period ended in the 54 to 57 cent-per-litre range.

Wholesale prices in Canadian and U.S. Western centres increased in the range of 4 to 12 cents per litre, ending the period in the 59 to 70-cent-per-litre range.

In the last four weeks, wholesale prices in selected Canadian and American centres have increased in the range of 10 to 26 cents per litre.

Prices are below last year’s level in the range of 11 to 30 cents per litre.

 
Text version

Figure 4

This graph shows the trend in wholesale gasoline prices for selected centres in Canada and the U.S.

DATE Halifax Braintree Montreal Rochester Toronto Buffalo Edmonton Grand Forks Vancouver Seattle
Thu 02-Jan-14 83.00 81.60 83.90 81.26 82.40 81.49 72.90 77.05 77.80 72.33
Thu 09-Jan-14 81.80 79.89 81.30 81.25 80.00 81.12 72.60 77.50 75.40 69.37
Thu 16-Jan-14 79.90 78.10 80.80 80.69 79.20 80.27 73.60 78.54 74.50 69.50
Thu 23-Jan-14 83.30 81.27 82.50 80.86 81.50 84.27 75.20 81.56 77.80 72.04
Thu 30-Jan-14 83.60 81.57 82.50 81.27 81.60 83.07 75.90 82.75 77.20 72.24
Thu 06-Feb-14 83.00 81.77 81.00 79.85 80.60 82.00 75.00 82.38 76.40 73.02
Thu 13-Feb-14 85.40 84.58 83.50 82.68 83.50 83.54 77.70 86.24 79.80 74.26
Thu 20-Feb-14 87.30 87.33 84.90 85.83 85.20 88.00 79.60 89.82 80.40 76.56
Thu 27-Feb-14 87.60 87.64 84.60 86.29 85.70 87.43 83.00 89.92 82.60 80.13
Thu 06-Mar-14 85.10 84.56 83.30 84.37 84.20 85.84 84.10 91.11 84.80 81.55
Thu 13-Mar-14 85.90 84.97 83.80 85.80 83.50 86.75 85.30 91.48 85.40 82.23
Thu 20-Mar-14 84.20 86.34 82.40 86.82 82.10 87.62 85.00 91.13 85.70 84.11
Thu 27-Mar-14 83.40 84.62 84.00 84.72 82.80 87.34 85.90 90.80 86.80 85.82
Thu 03-Apr-14 81.90 82.99 83.10 83.94 82.50 87.19 85.30 90.11 85.90 83.37
Thu 10-Apr-14 86.70 82.53 86.50 85.36 86.00 95.70 88.00 91.01 89.40 86.71
Thu 17-Apr-14 90.60 88.47 87.90 88.00 88.70 97.62 88.80 90.24 91.20 88.76
Thu 24-Apr-14 91.30 91.03 90.10 89.26 91.40 99.92 90.50 92.66 94.50 88.79
Thu 01-May-14 87.60 88.06 87.00 86.18 88.80 87.36 88.70 88.15 91.30 83.13
Thu 08-May-14 86.90 87.20 84.80 83.61 86.60 89.49 86.60 87.11 91.00 84.56
Thu 15-May-14 86.50 84.35 85.10 84.57 87.20 86.86 86.90 88.18 92.50 85.56
Thu 22-May-14 88.30 85.62 86.70 85.75 89.30 88.24 88.30 90.07 93.20 88.76
Thu 29-May-14 87.30 85.51 86.80 85.31 89.40 87.46 88.60 90.44 93.60 87.32
Thu 05-Jun-14 84.80 84.40 86.10 82.54 89.80 86.83 90.60 89.57 93.60 88.04
Thu 12-Jun-14 86.10 87.14 86.30 84.73 91.30 88.58 89.80 90.68 95.40 89.01
Thu 19-Jun-14 88.80 87.87 89.70 86.27 93.50 88.82 90.50 91.88 97.40 90.68
Thu 26-Jun-14 87.20 85.34 88.00 82.13 92.30 86.41 87.70 89.10 95.80 89.24
Thu 03-Jul-14 85.20 83.69 86.20 81.51 91.00 83.83 86.10 87.49 92.60 84.50
Thu 10-Jul-14 83.30 85.59 84.00 81.81 88.30 81.79 82.70 85.06 87.10 77.57
Thu 17-Jul-14 83.00 80.56 83.20 80.28 87.00 80.73 81.10 83.27 85.90 80.33
Thu 24-Jul-14 82.80 79.09 82.80 79.34 86.20 79.74 80.00 81.68 85.80 81.44
Thu 31-Jul-14 83.80 87.46 83.40 80.18 86.40 80.24 82.20 83.30 87.80 84.44
Thu 07-Aug-14 81.40 79.26 81.80 80.46 84.90 79.89 81.90 88.04 87.30 86.85
Thu 14-Aug-14 82.60 77.16 82.40 79.65 84.90 78.55 84.30 84.66 87.00 84.17
Thu 21-Aug-14 81.90 79.42 81.70 79.51 83.90 81.73 81.80 85.88 86.20 87.20
Thu 28-Aug-14 83.10 78.90 82.80 80.35 84.40 80.39 82.90 83.88 86.70 83.98
Thu 04-Sep-14 83.10 80.84 83.70 79.15 84.90 82.42 84.60 83.78 87.50 82.30
Thu 11-Sep-14 81.50 76.41 81.80 76.36 81.60 81.51 83.70 81.38 84.00 76.59
Thu 18-Sep-14 80.60 77.81 80.50 74.98 80.70 79.17 81.60 80.84 82.80 71.42
Thu 25-Sep-14 83.60 78.95 83.50 80.27 83.20 82.88 82.40 84.63 81.10 74.90
Thu 02-Oct-14 81.10 79.27 80.70 78.81 80.80 77.62 80.70 77.68 79.00 70.20
Thu 09-Oct-14 76.90 79.26 76.00 68.83 75.10 72.60 76.90 75.00 73.00 62.09
Thu 16-Oct-14 72.80 80.09 71.40 71.13 70.90 73.39 71.60 77.11 68.80 60.12
Thu 23-Oct-14 73.00 79.88 71.20 68.07 71.40 73.20 71.00 84.35 68.90 61.00
Thu 30-Oct-14 72.80 67.77 72.30 68.97 73.10 71.65 70.00 74.62 71.90 62.09
Thu 06-Nov-14 68.60 67.60 68.40 68.48 69.50 72.40 70.10 69.67 71.40 67.60
Thu 13-Nov-14 69.50 65.75 69.90 65.51 70.50 69.41 69.90 62.53 74.60 68.81
Thu 20-Nov-14 68.20 65.89 68.10 64.70 68.40 70.32 65.70 62.55 70.30 64.40
Thu 27-Nov-14 67.50 65.06 67.70 65.72 68.10 70.63 63.70 62.26 65.70 59.13
Thu 04-Dec-14 61.90 58.14 62.40 58.98 62.70 62.97 59.20 56.59 60.20 51.92
Thu 11-Dec-14 55.60 52.87 57.20 53.75 57.10 58.20 55.70 53.10 54.70 44.73
Thu 18-Dec-14 53.90 50.11 55.60 52.37 55.80 56.36 52.20 48.09 54.70 42.88
Thu 25-Dec-14 54.20 51.09 55.70 52.54 56.30 57.54 52.10 47.32 55.20 44.15
Thu 01-Jan-15 50.20 45.88 51.30 47.82 51.70 52.04 47.20 42.25 51.20 41.16
Thu 08-Jan-15 46.90 43.19 50.60 44.81 47.30 48.09 45.00 42.87 48.50 40.72
Thu 15-Jan-15 46.60 42.30 50.30 43.50 47.20 46.68 44.20 43.28 47.00 37.04
Thu 22-Jan-15 47.20 45.26 50.50 45.67 47.20 49.64 43.90 45.92 47.00 39.15
Thu 29-Jan-15 48.20 47.00 51.00 48.37 48.00 50.44 48.40 48.80 48.80 42.85
Thu 05-Feb-15 52.90 50.65 54.60 51.75 52.20 54.13 52.10 53.44 54.60 50.12
Thu 12-Feb-15 56.20 53.56 57.40 54.19 55.40 57.51 56.70 56.48 59.40 53.76
Thu 19-Feb-15 55.60 55.91 57.70 54.23 55.40 58.78 54.70 60.87 60.40 57.33
Thu 26-Feb-15 60.80 57.71 62.30 58.17 60.20 62.69 58.60 65.23 70.30 68.9
 

Sources: NRCan, Bloomberg Oil Buyers Guide

Gasoline Refining and Marketing Margins

Four-week rolling averages are used for gasoline refining and marketing margins.

The refining margin is defined as the difference between the wholesale price of gasoline and the crude oil price. However, this margin is very much a function of the gasoline supply situation and local market conditions. In turn, local market conditions can have a considerable impact on short-term wholesale gasoline prices.

Marketing margins can differ significantly from city to city and region to region. These margins must cover the costs associated with transporting products through the distribution system.

Some of the distribution challenges arise from the fact that petroleum products are refined in only a few geographic regions but are consumed all across Canada.

Overall, this margin can be fairly volatile as shown in the Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver markets, as outlets compete for market share. Conversely, they seem to be much less volatile in Toronto and Halifax.

 
Text version

Figure 5

These graphs show the trend in refining and marketing costs and margins for selected centres in Canada and the national average.

4-week rolling average Canada Vancouver Calgary Toronto Montreal Halifax
Marketing Margin Refining Margin Marketing Margin Refining Margin Marketing Margin Refining Margin Marketing Margin Refining Margin Marketing Margin Refining Margin Marketing Margin Refining Margin
2013-01-01 6.2 18.6 2.8 25.9 6.1 23.1 7.1 28.9 3.6 7.3 7.7 5.6
2013-01-08 6.4 19.0 2.7 24.5 6.0 19.8 7.1 27.6 4.4 8.0 7.5 6.6
2013-01-15 6.5 17.5 3.5 22.2 5.9 16.3 6.8 25.5 4.6 8.2 8.5 7.2
2013-01-22 6.9 15.6 4.4 20.2 6.3 14.3 7.0 23.9 5.5 8.3 8.5 7.6
2013-01-29 6.9 15.0 4.2 16.8 5.8 11.0 6.5 20.7 7.7 8.4 7.6 7.9
2013-02-05 7.0 14.6 4.2 18.2 6.4 12.3 6.8 21.1 8.1 9.5 7.1 9.2
2013-02-12 6.8 16.2 3.4 22.2 6.4 16.1 6.9 23.6 7.8 9.4 7.1 9.1
2013-02-19 6.4 18.5 2.4 25.6 6.2 19.9 6.8 25.7 7.0 11.0 7.4 10.8
2013-02-26 6.6 20.8 3.4 31.1 6.3 26.0 7.0 30.0 6.3 13.7 8.6 13.6
2013-03-05 6.7 22.7 4.7 32.0 5.2 27.8 7.0 30.1 6.7 13.9 9.3 14.0
2013-03-12 6.8 23.3 5.8 32.1 4.7 28.9 7.1 29.7 6.8 14.3 9.0 14.6
2013-03-19 7.2 23.1 7.0 31.5 5.1 29.1 7.4 29.4 6.8 12.3 9.1 12.8
2013-03-26 7.5 21.7 7.3 27.8 6.0 26.5 7.8 26.4 6.7 12.3 9.0 12.9
2013-04-02 7.1 20.9 6.9 26.5 6.4 25.8 7.5 25.6 5.2 12.6 8.4 12.9
2013-04-09 7.3 19.4 6.8 24.2 7.4 23.6 6.8 24.1 5.7 13.2 9.2 12.6
2013-04-16 7.8 17.9 6.9 22.7 7.7 21.6 6.7 22.2 7.2 11.6 10.1 10.5
2013-04-23 7.9 17.6 7.0 23.6 7.3 22.4 6.6 22.5 8.4 12.6 9.5 11.1
2013-04-30 8.2 17.6 7.2 24.1 7.4 22.9 6.8 22.2 9.5 12.2 9.2 10.6
2013-05-07 7.8 17.9 6.8 24.4 5.6 23.0 6.9 20.1 9.9 12.1 8.3 10.3
2013-05-14 7.4 19.2 6.7 27.0 4.4 25.1 6.9 19.3 10.2 12.4 7.8 10.2
2013-05-21 6.6 20.7 6.3 29.2 4.1 28.2 7.0 19.6 7.7 13.4 7.6 10.7
2013-05-28 6.7 21.3 6.3 31.3 5.4 32.2 7.0 20.8 6.9 13.8 8.1 10.9
2013-06-04 7.0 22.6 6.6 31.4 7.2 35.6 7.2 22.0 6.3 13.7 8.4 11.2
2013-06-11 7.3 23.3 6.8 29.9 8.5 36.8 7.2 22.9 6.4 13.9 8.1 11.8
2013-06-18 8.5 22.7 7.5 29.4 9.9 36.5 7.4 23.5 9.0 13.0 8.2 11.5
2013-01-01 6.2 18.6 2.8 25.9 6.1 23.1 7.1 28.9 3.6 7.3 7.7 5.6
2013-01-08 6.4 19.0 2.7 24.5 6.0 19.8 7.1 27.6 4.4 8.0 7.5 6.6
2013-01-15 6.5 17.5 3.5 22.2 5.9 16.3 6.8 25.5 4.6 8.2 8.5 7.2
2013-01-22 6.9 15.6 4.4 20.2 6.3 14.3 7.0 23.9 5.5 8.3 8.5 7.6
2013-01-29 6.9 15.0 4.2 16.8 5.8 11.0 6.5 20.7 7.7 8.4 7.6 7.9
2013-02-05 7.0 14.6 4.2 18.2 6.4 12.3 6.8 21.1 8.1 9.5 7.1 9.2
2013-02-12 6.8 16.2 3.4 22.2 6.4 16.1 6.9 23.6 7.8 9.4 7.1 9.1
2013-02-19 6.4 18.5 2.4 25.6 6.2 19.9 6.8 25.7 7.0 11.0 7.4 10.8
2013-02-26 6.6 20.8 3.4 31.1 6.3 26.0 7.0 30.0 6.3 13.7 8.6 13.6
2013-03-05 6.7 22.7 4.7 32.0 5.2 27.8 7.0 30.1 6.7 13.9 9.3 14.0
2013-03-12 6.8 23.3 5.8 32.1 4.7 28.9 7.1 29.7 6.8 14.3 9.0 14.6
2013-03-19 7.2 23.1 7.0 31.5 5.1 29.1 7.4 29.4 6.8 12.3 9.1 12.8
2013-03-26 7.5 21.7 7.3 27.8 6.0 26.5 7.8 26.4 6.7 12.3 9.0 12.9
2013-04-02 7.1 20.9 6.9 26.5 6.4 25.8 7.5 25.6 5.2 12.6 8.4 12.9
2013-04-09 7.3 19.4 6.8 24.2 7.4 23.6 6.8 24.1 5.7 13.2 9.2 12.6
2013-04-16 7.8 17.9 6.9 22.7 7.7 21.6 6.7 22.2 7.2 11.6 10.1 10.5
2013-04-23 7.9 17.6 7.0 23.6 7.3 22.4 6.6 22.5 8.4 12.6 9.5 11.1
2013-04-30 8.2 17.6 7.2 24.1 7.4 22.9 6.8 22.2 9.5 12.2 9.2 10.6
2013-05-07 7.8 17.9 6.8 24.4 5.6 23.0 6.9 20.1 9.9 12.1 8.3 10.3
2013-05-14 7.4 19.2 6.7 27.0 4.4 25.1 6.9 19.3 10.2 12.4 7.8 10.2
2013-05-21 6.6 20.7 6.3 29.2 4.1 28.2 7.0 19.6 7.7 13.4 7.6 10.7
2013-05-28 6.7 21.3 6.3 31.3 5.4 32.2 7.0 20.8 6.9 13.8 8.1 10.9
2013-06-04 7.0 22.6 6.6 31.4 7.2 35.6 7.2 22.0 6.3 13.7 8.4 11.2
2013-06-11 7.3 23.3 6.8 29.9 8.5 36.8 7.2 22.9 6.4 13.9 8.1 11.8
2013-06-18 8.5 22.7 7.5 29.4 9.9 36.5 7.4 23.5 9.0 13.0 8.2 11.5
2013-10-22 7.3 13.2 5.9 18.8 7.3 20.0 7.4 18.8 6.9 5.1 6.8 6.3
2013-10-29 7.3 13.9 5.7 18.1 7.8 20.1 6.9 19.1 7.6 5.1 6.7 6.3
2013-11-05 7.8 13.6 5.9 18.8 8.9 21.3 7.2 20.8 8.4 5.7 7.3 6.9
2013-11-12 7.8 14.5 6.0 18.5 9.5 21.2 7.4 21.2 7.6 6.0 7.4 7.0
2013-11-19 7.6 16.2 6.1 21.9 7.7 24.7 7.3 25.6 8.3 5.9 6.6 7.0
2013-11-26 7.6 17.8 5.8 23.7 7.2 26.9 7.9 28.3 8.8 6.8 6.6 7.8
2013-12-03 7.0 19.9 4.9 24.8 6.1 28.1 7.7 30.5 7.3 5.9 6.1 6.9
2013-12-10 7.3 20.2 4.5 24.3 6.1 27.8 7.9 30.9 8.3 6.2 6.9 7.0
2013-12-17 7.8 18.9 4.3 22.2 8.2 24.6 7.8 28.9 8.0 6.1 8.0 6.4
2013-12-24 7.2 18.4 4.7 22.3 7.6 22.9 7.7 28.5 5.6 6.8 7.6 6.5
2013-12-31 7.5 18.1 4.0 21.0 7.5 20.0 6.8 26.3 5.6 8.2 6.9 7.3
2014-01-07 7.7 16.4 5.2 20.8 7.6 18.6 7.4 25.3 4.7 8.1 6.3 7.4
2014-01-14 7.3 16.7 5.5 21.2 6.8 19.7 7.6 25.6 4.1 8.7 5.8 8.1
2014-01-21 7.9 16.3 5.2 20.1 7.0 19.4 7.6 24.3 6.4 8.1 6.6 7.7
2014-01-28 7.9 15.6 6.6 20.1 6.7 20.1 8.7 24.1 7.8 6.9 7.4 6.7
2014-02-04 7.6 16.1 5.5 20.0 6.7 21.3 8.0 24.2 8.2 6.5 8.1 6.7
2014-02-11 7.3 16.4 5.0 16.9 6.1 18.0 8.0 20.7 7.8 6.5 7.6 7.3
2014-02-18 7.0 15.0 4.6 16.4 6.7 17.7 7.9 20.3 6.6 7.2 7.6 8.7
2014-02-25 6.5 14.3 4.3 12.5 6.5 14.3 7.8 16.8 5.1 8.2 7.4 10.2
2014-03-04 6.3 14.1 4.0 11.8 6.7 13.3 7.2 15.0 5.0 9.1 7.4 11.6
2014-03-11 6.7 12.6 4.7 14.0 7.3 16.0 7.1 16.0 5.3 9.1 8.8 11.2
2014-03-18 7.1 13.3 5.9 15.3 6.5 17.9 7.6 15.7 6.3 8.5 9.6 10.4
2014-03-25 7.7 14.3 6.8 19.7 7.4 22.1 7.8 18.0 6.6 8.4 9.6 9.7
2014-04-01 8.1 15.1 8.3 21.5 7.3 24.1 8.4 18.9 7.0 8.4 9.4 8.7
2014-04-08 8.1 16.6 8.3 22.4 8.1 24.5 8.5 19.0 6.8 9.5 8.4 9.3
2014-04-15 7.8 18.2 8.5 23.7 9.0 24.9 8.4 20.3 5.8 11.1 7.1 11.0
2014-04-22 7.8 18.9 8.6 24.4 8.5 25.2 8.6 21.3 5.7 11.5 7.2 12.1
2014-04-29 8.0 20.0 8.7 26.0 9.3 26.1 8.7 23.0 5.9 12.2 8.2 13.2
2014-05-06 8.4 20.3 9.0 26.7 9.6 26.3 8.8 23.7 6.4 12.3 9.4 14.0
2014-05-13 8.7 19.8 8.4 27.4 9.9 26.0 8.5 23.5 7.4 11.5 10.0 13.3
2014-05-20 8.6 19.6 8.1 27.2 9.7 25.2 8.2 22.9 8.0 11.0 9.6 12.3
2014-05-27 8.0 19.4 7.7 27.2 7.9 24.8 7.8 22.5 8.0 10.8 8.4 12.1
2014-06-03 7.7 18.8 7.4 26.4 7.4 23.9 7.7 21.4 8.1 10.6 8.1 11.3
2014-06-10 7.4 19.4 7.3 26.4 6.9 24.3 7.6 22.0 7.7 11.2 7.8 11.3
2014-06-17 7.3 19.8 7.1 26.9 6.8 24.7 7.3 23.0 7.6 10.8 7.7 10.7
2014-06-24 7.8 19.9 7.3 28.5 8.6 25.7 7.7 24.8 7.6 11.0 8.0 10.5
2014-07-01 7.8 20.7 6.9 29.1 9.3 25.1 7.3 25.8 6.9 11.3 7.8 10.7
2014-07-08 8.2 20.0 7.7 28.0 10.0 24.0 7.7 25.6 7.1 10.8 8.2 10.3
2014-07-15 8.6 19.4 7.6 27.9 11.4 23.8 7.8 26.4 6.9 12.2 8.9 11.6
2014-07-22 8.4 19.0 7.3 26.2 11.2 22.4 7.1 25.6 7.2 11.6 8.7 11.3
2014-07-29 8.3 18.4 7.9 25.1 9.9 22.0 7.4 25.2 7.1 11.1 8.3 11.0
2014-08-05 7.9 18.2 7.6 24.6 8.9 21.6 7.2 24.4 7.2 10.4 8.1 10.4
2014-08-12 8.0 18.4 8.1 25.1 9.7 21.8 7.3 24.4 7.8 10.3 7.6 10.5
2014-08-19 8.6 17.8 8.3 25.2 10.5 22.3 7.3 24.2 7.0 10.1 7.8 10.4
2014-08-26 8.6 18.6 8.1 25.9 11.4 23.4 6.9 24.5 7.5 11.3 7.2 11.6
2014-09-02 8.4 19.5 7.9 26.6 11.8 24.5 6.8 24.7 7.4 12.2 7.0 12.5
2014-09-09 8.5 19.6 7.6 26.4 10.1 25.2 7.1 24.1 7.6 13.4 7.5 13.3
2014-09-16 8.0 20.1 8.2 25.4 8.5 25.4 7.6 22.9 7.7 13.4 7.8 13.3
2014-09-23 8.2 19.3 8.3 24.1 7.8 24.8 8.0 21.8 7.8 13.8 8.1 13.7
2014-09-30 8.1 19.2 8.6 22.2 7.5 24.4 7.9 21.6 7.3 14.3 8.0 14.2
2014-10-07 8.4 18.1 9.2 20.2 9.2 23.7 7.6 20.8 7.2 14.5 8.9 14.9
2014-10-14 8.8 17.0 8.6 17.9 11.0 22.1 7.7 19.2 8.0 13.2 9.6 13.9
2014-10-21 9.2 15.7 9.2 17.7 12.4 23.0 7.7 20.4 8.8 14.5 9.3 15.4
2014-10-28 9.6 13.4 8.5 16.5 13.8 21.1 8.0 18.8 9.2 12.5 9.6 13.5
2014-11-04 9.3 15.2 8.1 18.5 12.3 22.2 8.4 19.9 9.4 11.5 8.9 12.3
2014-11-11 9.2 16.2 8.3 19.7 10.5 21.9 8.7 20.2 9.9 10.6 7.5 11.1
2014-11-18 9.2 16.4 8.4 22.4 10.7 22.9 8.8 21.4 9.1 11.0 8.5 11.3
2014-11-25 9.2 16.8 9.4 22.7 10.9 22.7 8.7 21.4 9.4 10.8 8.3 11.0
2014-12-02 9.4 16.8 9.4 22.9 11.8 22.4 8.8 22.2 9.1 13.1 8.5 12.9
2014-12-09 9.7 15.7 9.9 19.4 13.2 19.6 8.8 20.1 8.9 11.5 9.4 11.1
2014-12-16 9.5 14.2 9.5 19.2 12.5 20.2 8.5 20.9 9.1 12.5 9.3 11.7
2014-12-23 9.4 13.8 9.5 18.3 11.8 19.4 8.8 20.1 9.1 11.9 9.0 10.4
2014-12-30 9.6 12.9 9.8 17.5 11.8 18.4 8.9 19.0 9.7 10.3 9.0 8.9
2015-01-06 9.4 12.5 9.7 18.1 11.3 18.3 9.1 18.9 8.8 11.2 9.0 9.0
2015-01-13 9.6 13.0 10.1 17.6 10.7 17.1 9.4 17.8 8.9 11.6 9.0 8.9
2015-01-20 9.5 12.9 9.9 17.1 10.9 16.7 9.4 17.1 8.3 12.1 8.8 9.0
2015-01-27 8.7 13.9 9.4 17.2 8.9 17.4 9.3 17.0 7.0 12.7 7.9 9.2
2015-02-03 7.6 16.1 8.6 18.9 7.5 19.3 8.5 18.3 5.7 14.0 6.1 11.0
2015-02-10 7.5 17.2 8.6 19.3 7.6 19.6 8.6 18.0 5.5 11.8 5.4 9.4
2015-02-17 7.6 18.0 9.3 21.9 7.6 21.9 9.0 19.4 5.3 12.5 5.8 10.6
2015-02-24 7.8 18.5 10.1 23.7 8.6 22.5 9.3 20.0 5.0 12.0 6.2 10.4
2015-03-03 9.5 19.1 11.3 27.3 10.8 23.7 10.2 21.7 7.7 13.2 7.7 11.6
 

Source: NRCan

Crude Oil Overview

Crude Oil Price Gap Widens between Brent and North American Crudes

For the week ending February 27, 2015, prices for the three marker light crudes averaged between $351/m3 and $475/m3 (US$45 to US$60 per barrel).

All light crude oil prices declined for the week ending February 27, 2015, compared to the previous week, with WTI dropping the most by $17/m3 (US$2 per barrel). Brent decreased by less than $2/m3 (US$0.51 per barrel).

For the week ending February 27, 2015, Brent crude oil prices traded at a widening premium to WTI oil by a margin of $85/m3 (US$11 per barrel).

WTI crude oil prices fell, mainly due to the large U.S. crude oil inventory levels relative to the demand for crude oil products. Meanwhile, Brent oil prices were buoyed on Libyan oil production constraints, which affected the supply and demand balance in the geographic area where Brent prices are set (e.g., Europe).

Figure 6: Crude Oil Price Comparisons

Crude Oil Price Comparison

 
Text version

Figure 6

This graph shows crude oil prices for Canadian Light Sweet, WTI, Brent and WCS. The average weekly prices for the period ending February 13, 2015, were $350/cubic metres, $402/cubic metres, $453/cubic metres and $296/cubic metres for the Canadian Light, WTI, Brent and WCS, respectively.

Dates (Canadian Light Sweet) WTI Brent WCS
01/13 549.97 592.14 699.83 387.55
02/13 553.76 605.29 736.06 370.93
03/13 560.66 598.93 705.36 430.10
04/13 571.20 590.06 663.78 441.27
05/13 598.81 608.31 662.59 519.16
06/13 577.25 630.51 680.52 489.10
07/13 664.03 685.36 703.73 592.16
08/13 665.21 697.44 722.47 595.65
09/13 647.06 691.84 723.16 543.60
10/13 592.41 655.54 713.92 483.77
11/13 511.65 620.13 711.21 413.23
12/13 524.69 655.42 740.65 394.48
01/14 561.87 651.27 735.43 452.06
02/14 665.35 699.89 756.56 566.93
03/14 655.67 701.90 752.47 554.81
04/14 647.62 704.92 747.57 550.77
05/14 652.85 697.62 748.13 566.87
06/14 665.50 715.93 762.22 589.57
07/14 629.45 690.70 730.08 558.81
08/14 606.25 660.32 710.46 507.84
09/14 608.92 644.03 681.65 515.00
10/14 551.84 594.78 621.20 497.90
11/14 474.20 540.12 569.75 447.90
12/14 378.11 430.68 459.36 313.77
January 9, 2015 305.46 362.54 381.36 251.97
January 16, 2015 297.77 353.89 357.92 252.78
January 23, 2015 303.47 360.13 376.15 251.18
January 30, 2015 307.17 360.26 391.43 252.74
01/15 304.92 359.85 377.71 232.32
February 6, 2015 346.72 398.50 442.48 297.54
February 13, 2015 349.83 402.18 452.96 296.39
February 20, 2015 356.59 406.89 477.15 302.49
February 27, 2015 350.73 3990.04 475.32 282.15
 

Sources: NRCan

Changes in Crude Oil Prices
Crude Oil Types Week Ending:
2014-02-13
Change From:
Previous Week
Change From:
Last Year
$Can/
m3
$US/
bbl
$Can/
m3
$US/
bbl
$Can/
m3
$US/
bbl
Canadian Light 350.73 44.54 -5.86 -0.95 -364.31 -57.92
WTI 390.04 49.53 -16.86 -2.38 -324.90 -52.92
Brent 475.32 60.36 -1.83 -0.51 -289.11 -49.18
WCS 282.15 35.83 -20.34 -2.76 -264.59 -42.52

Source: NRCan

 

Refinery Outages: First Half 2015

Planned refinery maintenance during the first half of 2015 is not expected to adversely impact the supply of gasoline and distillate (diesel and furnace oil). The impact of refinery outages on product supplies during the first half of 2015 depends on many factors, including petroleum product demand, the availability of product supplies from available refinery capacity, inventories, imports and redirected exports, as well as actual levels of both planned and unplanned refinery outages.

The Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) February Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) expects distillate demand to average 4.1 million bbl/d in the first half of 2015, an increase of 40,000 bbl/d (1%) compared to the same period last year. Colder-than-expected winter temperatures could cause distillate demand to be higher than expected in New England and the Mid-Atlantic states, which use distillate fuel for space heating. EIA's February STEO expects gasoline consumption to increase by 160,000 bbl/d (2%) during the first half of 2015 compared to the same period in 2014. U.S. gasoline demand is typically lower in the winter months and increases in the spring as the driving season begins.

Source: U.S. EIA.

 

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