Canada Needs Other Customers. Fast.
Ottawa, ON – The Hon. Pierre Poilievre, Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and the Official Opposition, released the following statement on the competitiveness of Canadian Oil after US action in Venezuela:
“This morning, Mark Carney said Canadian oil will remain ‘competitive’ because it is ‘low risk,’ ‘low cost,’ and ‘low carbon.’ Canadians deserve the truth: Venezuela’s return to global oil markets is a specific threat to Canadian oilsands petroleum in a way that Saudi oil, or other light crudes are not. And we can’t afford to delay any action that will protect our sovereignty and give us new customers to sell it to, especially a pipeline to the Pacific Coast.
“Many U.S. refineries, especially on the Gulf Coast, are purpose-built to process heavy crude, a type of oil only found in Canada and Venezuela. They’ve invested billions in specialized equipment, including cokers, that only earn a return when fed heavy barrels. For years, many of these same refineries ran Venezuelan heavy crude until sanctions cut it off and they switched to Canadian oil.
“If Venezuelan supply returns, Gulf Coast refineries like Marathon Petroleum in Garyville, Valero in Corpus Christi and Chevron in Pascagoula can easily switch between Venezuelan and Canadian oil without major retooling. In plain terms: for every barrel of Venezuelan oil processed by the U.S.,one barrel of Canadian oil will be displaced, first on the Gulf Coast, and eventually in the Midwest, because they compete for the same limited, specialized refinery capacity.
“In other words, we need other customers. Fast.
“If we don’t get the federal government out of the way of a pipeline to the Pacific, we could suffer enormous losses of jobs, tax revenue and sovereignty. Canada must diversify beyond the U.S. as our only customer. The first and fastest way to do this is by approving and building a pipeline to the Pacific.
“Canadians do not need more photo-ops and reassurance, they need the Prime Minister to get out of the way, grant a permit and let private investors and tradesworkers build a pipe to the Pacific. I am ready to work with the Prime Minister and any party at a moment’s notice to protect our workers and defend our sovereignty.”