US energy executive says Canadian crude still critical for America

CALGARY — An American oil and gas executive has said North America’s integrated energy market has drastically reduced the United States’ dependency on Middle Eastern oil, positioning Canada and the US to better withstand global supply disruptions.Mason Hamilton, Vice-President of Economics & Research at the American Petroleum Institute (API), told an audience at the Calgary Petroleum Club on Wednesday that the US now imports roughly 8% of its crude oil from the Middle East — a stark contrast to the oil crisis of the 1970s — which he attributed to energy ties with Canada.“This is a new world,” Hamilton said, noting Canada was in a similar position, importing approximately 7% of its crude oil from Saudi Arabia.He added the startup of the Trans Mountain Expansion Project (TMX) now leaves Canada in a solid position to help fill supply gaps developing in Asian markets due to the Iran conflict and current situation in the Strait of Hormuz.Hamilton also dismissed suggestions that Venezuela could eventually replace Canada as an alternative crude oil source for the US despite some potential for increased Venezuelan production.“The infrastructure there has been decaying for decades,” Hamilton said.“In the long run, Venezuela will not displace Canadian crude into the United States. It's just an extra optionality. Just like you guys have TMX going out to Asia, we have Venezuela coming into the Gulf.”.UPDATED: Smith praises Trump's pipeline permits boosting Canada–US oil exports.Hamilton also reiterated that the energy trade between Canada and the US is deeply interconnected, warning that proposals and rumours circulating in Washington about possible crude export bans fail to account for how integrated the two economies have become.He pointed to US diluent exports sent to Canada for oil sands production that later return south as crude oil, while Canada remains the third-largest recipient of US crude exports.“An export ban may sound good on paper, but it really starts to make no sense when you dig into the data and look at the facts,” Hamilton said.When asked what single policy change could most improve the Canada-US energy relationship, he avoided advocating for major policy reforms but said he hopes American lawmakers continue recognizing the strategic importance of Canadian energy imports.“I would hope for a continuing recognition of the fact that Canadian energy imports have been exempted from tariffs,” he said.“I would hope that understanding and that logic continue in whatever policymaking comes out next.”

US energy executive says Canadian crude still critical for America

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