China accounted for 50% of oil exports via Vancouver in 2024: China Institute

China has quickly become a significant buyer of Canadian crude oil, thanks to the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, according to an analysis from the China Institute at the University of Alberta.

“Contrary to many analysts’ expectations, early data indicates that a large amount of this new export capacity is finding its way not to California’s refineries, but rather to China,” say U of A researchers Daniel Lincoln and Philippe Rheault.

“This marks a noteworthy shift from Canada’s almost complete reliance on the United States as its predominant oil customer - a shift all the more timely given the context of recent travails in the Canada-U.S. bilateral relationship.”

The expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline increased its capacity from 300,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 890,000 bpd, and an expansion of the Westridge Marine terminal in Burnaby increased oil tanker berthing capacity.

https://www.biv.com/news/resources-agriculture/china-accounted-for-50-of-oil-exports-via-vancouver-in-2024-china-institute-10190694