The oil price crash of recent weeks has triggered a wave of huge exploration and production capital expenditure cuts
Lack of appetite to invest in the energy sector is leading the world into a supply crunch, says the International Energy Agency (IEA) in its recently unveiled World Energy Investment (WEI) 2020 report. The COVID-19 pandemic is having widespread and often dramatic effects on investments in the energy sector. At the start of the year,…
How one University of Alberta student persevered after losing brother in the Humboldt Broncos bus crash
The loss of her brother in a horrific bus crash that killed 16 members of the Humboldt Broncos hockey team will never leave Mariko Boulet, but as she graduates with her University of Alberta degree on June 12, she hopes it will make her a better person. “I think I’ve become a more loving, understanding…
Oil sands extraction declined largely because of shutdowns and maintenance of some production facilities. Crude oil extraction also falls
The natural resources sector in Canada continues to be challenged. A new report released Friday by Statistics Canada said real gross domestic product (GDP) of the natural resources sector fell 2.2 per cent in the third quarter, following a 2.8 per cent rise in the second quarter. The federal agency said the decline was largely…
Limited cash flow also a concern for business owners when it comes to investing in their companies these days, according to BDC survey
Many Canadian entrepreneurs will continue investing in their companies in 2020 despite growing uncertainty about world economies. But business owners in the Prairies are the most pessimistic, mostly because of low commodity prices and limited cash flow, says the latest annual survey by BDC. The study on investment intentions found that entrepreneurs in the manufacturing…
Alberta produced 18.3 million cubic metres of crude oil and equivalent products in October, down 4.9 per cent
Energy production in Canada declined in several sectors in October 2019, compared with the same month in 2018, according to Statistics Canada. The federal agency said production of crude oil and equivalent products (-1.7 per cent), natural gas (-1.3 per cent), and coal (-9.3 per cent), as well as electricity generation (-3.3 per cent) declined…
Fell by 35 per cent in Alberta, 1.9 per cent in Manitoba and by 1.4 per cent in Saskatchewan
A cold, wet spring and summer on the Prairies took a devastating toll on honey production this year in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Statistics Canada reports. Production in Alberta, the largest honey-producing province in Canada, fell by 35 per cent to 25.1 million pounds, which was the lowest level since 2000, according to the federal…
Industry blames ‘punitive’ federal policies and regulations for its struggles
Following the federal election in October, the sentiment toward Canadian oil and gas is nearing all-time lows, says a report by the Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors. The association says that since 2017 the industry has lost an estimated $30 billion in foreign capital, and companies continue layoffs and relocation efforts. It says its…
And StatsCan says exports of crude oil and equivalent products increased in March
Production in all primary energy sectors rose in March compared with a year ago, according to data released Wednesday by Statistics Canada. And over the same period, exports of crude oil and equivalent products increased, while exports of natural gas and electricity decreased. The federal agency said production of crude oil and equivalent products rose…
In the conclusion of an exclusive two-part interview, the former Saskatchewan premier talks about how changing political winds will drive the economy
Former Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall recently joined Calgary-based Avenue Living Asset Management as a special business adviser, as well as a trustee to the Avenue Living Real Estate Core Trust. The company has more than $1.3 billion in assets with more than 8,500 residential units across Western Canada. Calgary's Business has a two-part question and…
StatsCan study over 66 years provides insight into which provinces experienced the most growth over three generations
Data released Thursday by Statistics Canada may be a couple of years old but it illustrates the importance of the oil and gas sector to the economies of several provinces. “According to a new study, from 1950 to 2016, real gross domestic income (GDI) per capita grew fastest in provinces with large oil and gas…
According to a recent ATB Financial Economics & Research Team economic update, the number of people moving to Alberta from other parts of Canada was higher than the number moving out last year, for a net gain of 7,736 new residents. But where are they coming from? “British Columbia, Ontario and Saskatchewan stand out in this regard,…
Exports on the rise to U.S. and elsewhere: StatsCan
Canadian production of crude oil and equivalent products totalled 264.6 million cubic metres in 2018, up 8.5 per cent from the previous year, according to Statistics Canada. The federal agency reported on Monday that non-upgraded production of crude bitumen (+12.7 per cent) was the main contributor to the overall rise. Since January 2016, the average…
Statistics Canada said exports of crude oil and equivalent products increased 10.7% from the same month a year earlier
Canada produced 23.1 million cubic metres (145.6 million barrels) of crude oil and equivalent products in October, up 13.2 per cent from the same month a year earlier, according to Statistics Canada. The federal agency said on Friday that Alberta produced 19.3 million cubic metres of crude oil and equivalent products in October, an increase…
U.S. is by far the world’s largest refining market for heavy oil, processing more than half of all that type of crude globally in 2018
A new report released on Tuesday by IHS Markit says imports of Canadian heavy crude are an increasingly important source of supply to the United States, the world’s largest refining market for such crudes. The report, Looking North: A U.S. Perspective on Canadian Heavy Oil, said U.S. imports of Canadian heavy crudes will approach 2.8…
Alberta (82.6%), Saskatchewan (10.3%) and Newfoundland and Labrador (4.7%) accounted for the vast majority of Canadian production
Canadian production of crude oil and equivalent products continued at a robust pace in August as production totalled 23.6 million cubic metres (148.6 million barrels), up 9.6 per cent compared with the same month in 2017, says Statistics Canada. And Alberta produced a record 19.5 million cubic metres of crude oil and equivalent products in…
Project to study the effectiveness of using cannabis as a treatment for dementia
Alberta-based cannabis producer Sundial Growers is partnering with the University of Saskatchewan to research the efficacy of cannabis as a treatment for dementia. Clinical studies will be undertaken as part of the research. “With today's (Tuesday) announcement and similar collaborations with the University of Calgary and Sundial's Mitacs research initiative, we are demonstrating our commitment to becoming…
CEO Carol Kitchen talks about how UFA is part of the fabric of rural Alberta, helping agriculture feed people around the world
Carol Kitchen is president and CEO of UFA. Calgary’s Business: What’s the United Farmers of Alberta and what does it do? Kitchen: United Farmers of Alberta (UFA) is a member-owned co-operative. We’re a progressive and diversified business that provides the products, services and solutions our owners and customers in rural communities need to successfully run…
Company plans 115,000-square-foot cannabis cultivation facility near Battleford
Westleaf Cannabis is receiving a development loan of up to $24 million from ATB Financial to build its business. “As one of the first traditional lenders to enter the cannabis space, we’re proud of our long-term partnership with ATB as it has been instrumental in bringing our Westleaf vision to life,” said Taylor Ethans, chief…
Railway plans to spend more than $1.55 billion in capital investments in 2018
Canadian Pacific railway announced on Monday that it moved 25.8 million tonnes of Western Canadian grain and grain products, soybeans and other non-regulated principal field crops during the 2017-2018 crop year, up one per cent over the 2016-2017 crop-year and one per cent above its three-year average. It also said that September 2017 was CP's…
Pipelines delivered 7.4 million cubic metres of crude oil to Canadian refineries in June, up 3.2% over last year
Pipelines in Canada received 20.8 million cubic metres of crude oil and equivalent products from fields and plants in June, up 4.5 per cent compared with the same month in 2017, according to Statistics Canada. The federal agency reported 0n Monday that the vast majority of product came from Alberta at 86.4 per cent of…
Alberta (80.9%), Saskatchewan (10.7%) and Newfoundland and Labrador (5.9%) accounted for the vast majority of Canadian production of crude oil and equivalent products
Canada produced 21.8 million cubic metres (137.3 million barrels) of crude oil and equivalent products in May, up 13.5 per cent from the same month a year earlier, according to Statistics Canada. The federal agency said on Monday that non-upgraded production of crude bitumen (+22.8 per cent) was the main driver for the increase of…
A new report by PetroLMI, a division of Energy Safety Canada, details the changing face of the energy workforce
Canada’s oil and gas industry has undergone a significant transformation in the past decade. And as the industry has adjusted to the ups and downs of the economy, there were corresponding shifts in the distribution of the industry’s workforce and the daily experiences of those workers, says a new report by PetroLMI, a division of…
A three-year initiative assesses how Canadians think and talk about energy in all forms, bringing together disparate and typically unaligned voices
Monica Gattinger, a University of Ottawa scholar, is doing more to do advance constructive energy conversations in Canada than just about anyone. She's the chair of Positive Energy, a three-year initiative to assess how Canadians think and talk about energy in all forms. Positive Energy is bringing together disparate and typically unaligned voices. Her goal is to reframe our…
Smart agriculture movement offers the perfect template: it's about building trust with consumers by telling stories about good – and improving – practices
First there was precision agriculture. Then came decision ag. Now there’s smart ag. These terms describe fundamental changes in agriculture to better produce crops or livestock. It’s all about maximizing yield while minimizing costs and environmental impact. They include everything from predictive analytics and digital technologies to soil management and crop protection strategies. Autonomous tractors. Bio-fertilizers. Variable rate inputs for applying…