Forget Ike It's PetroCan's Fault

P.O. about the 13 cent rise in gasoline prices at the pump last Friday. Don't blame hurricane Ike, rather it was exasperated by the shut down of Petrocan here in Edmonton. The plant has been offline since July!

September 15, 2008

Petro-Canada Refinery Shutdown Causes Shortage Petro-Canada, Canada's second- largest refiner, said filling stations in Alberta and British Columbia may run out of fuel after the unexpected shutdown of a unit at its Edmonton, Alberta, refinery. The company is investigating the reason for the closing of the catalytic cracking unit, a gasoline-producing piece of equipment, according to a Bloomberg report. Petro-Canada spokesperson Jon Hamilton said the reduction in gasoline could last several weeks as the company fixes the unit. "It could be short term, it could be a little longer," Hamilton said. "We're looking at, I'd say, weeks not days, right now." Gasoline shortages may occur in parts of British Columbia's so-called interior region and Alberta, Petro-Canada said in a statement. The Calgary-based company said it's trying to boost supplies in Canada's western provinces partly by buying fuel from rivals. Deliveries to some customers and filling stations have been curbed, Hamilton said without providing details. "The deliveries that we're sending out are reduced from what they would normally get,'' he said. "That might mean a smaller load or that might mean less frequent loads." The company intends to import more supplies to its port terminal in Vancouver and truck the fuel to customers, Hamilton said. Petro-Canada also is altering its distribution network across the country to boost supply in western Canada. The equipment failure is unrelated to a C$2.2 billion ($2.07 billion) modification project nearing completion at the plant. Parts of the refinery were scheduled to be shuttered for about two months starting this month so that the plant can run on crude extracted from Alberta's oil sands. Output at the refinery was cut last month because of a water-boiler equipment problem. The plant is capable of processing 135,000 barrels a day. Imperial Oil Ltd. of Calgary is Canada's largest refiner and marketer.

Since Petrocan, Shell and Imperial Oil are the area's main refiners losing Petrocan put pressure on their retail outlets. Of course this should have been predicated. Add to that the shut down of East Coast gasoline due to Ike and you have the perfect storm.

In March, a shut down at Imperial's 187,000-barrel-a-day Strathcona refinery near Edmonton caused gasoline shortages at Esso stations throughout Alberta, Saskatchewan, B.C. and Manitoba.

Around the same time, Shell Canada Ltd. said its Scotford refinery and upgrader near Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., were operating at reduced rates because of unplanned maintenance.

Last year, Ontarians experienced gasoline shortages for several weeks after a fire at Imperial's Nanticoke refinery.

Canada's refining infrastructure is aging, but companies are not keen on investing in new facilities, said Roger McKnight, an energy analyst with Oshawa, Ont.-based consulting firm En-Pro.

Not only would it would take up to 10 years and billions of dollars to build a new refinery, but they would tilt the market against the companies' favour.

"Their refining margins would drop because of excess supply. So there's no incentive at all for them to do that," McKnight said.

Another factor discouraging the industry from spending money on new refineries is uncertainty about government regulations.

"If I was an oil company, I would like to know in 10 years, when I'm going to have this refinery built, what the eventual specs are going to be and what the emission standards are going to be," McKnight said.

As for the solution it is as clear as the nose on Uncle Ed's face, we need more refinery capacity in Alberta and Canada. Of course given the anti regulatory anti-public ownership attitude of Big Oil and its government in Alberta that ain't gonna happen any time soon.


And so we have gasoline shortages on refinery row.

Back in August, it was Petro-Canada. Now, it’s Shell that has run out of gasoline at some of its Alberta stations.

In Medicine Hat, the Shell stations on Dunmore Road and Eighth St. NW have been out of gas since Friday, while the Shell on South Railway had gas as of Monday but wasn’t sure how long its supplies would last. Shell stations on Redcliff Drive SW and Trans-Canada Way were reporting they still have gas.

Jana Masters, spokesperson for Shell Canada, said there are also a couple of stations in Calgary and Edmonton that are running on empty.

“But these are very small numbers compared to our total operations across the province,” she said.

While the Petro-Canada gas shortage in August had to do with a problem at that company’s refinery, Masters said that is not the case at Shell.

“It’s just a temporary challenge keeping up to customer demand,” Masters said.

It is the lack of tertiary refining that causes gasoline shortages in Canada and subsequently price increases. And wqe won't get more refineries built until there is a national initiative to make it so including a Green Plan.

Call it a Green National Energy Program. If you want to end price gouging lets have a made in Canada Energy Plan that includes increased bitumin processing and tertiary refining capacity.

Of course others have solutions too, like importing more dirty gas from the U.S. but that is all refined in Hurricane Alley, and we know what that means. 13 cent price increases in one day.

Petro-Canada said it’s pulling out all the stops to make sure supplies of gasoline keep flowing.

Company officials said on Petro-Canada’s website that it was able to use trucks to ship approximately 200,000 litres of gasoline per day from its Vancouver storage facility last week, but that volume has now more than quadrupled.

That’s been partially accomplished by hiring truckers from Ontario to move more product, Stevens said.

The company is also trying to find rail cars that could be pressed into service to deliver gasoline to destinations in B.C. and Alberta.

The company also is trying to boost its gasoline supplies by looking to its other Canadian refineries and to the United States and overseas, Stevens said.

An industry group that represents independent gasoline retailers is calling for a harmonization of gasoline standards between Canada and the U.S., which would allow for more importation of American products during shortages.

Canadian gasoline has hard caps on sulphur and benzene levels in gasoline, which prevents the importation of the product from the U.S. to ease any shortages, said Dave Collins, a director with the Canadian Independent Petroleum Marketers Association.

"It’s great if you’re a refinery because it blocks competition and helps you keep our prices up," he said in an interview from Halifax.

"But it’s not good for consumers and, at times like this, it’s not good for our operations either because we can’t get any gas," he said.

The federal government’s failure to ease importation restrictions means such shortages will likely happen again, Collins said.

Of course the solution is not unrestricted trade with the U.S. for dirty gas, rather the solution was in hand until the Liberals under Paul Martin sold off the last of Canadians taxpayers shareholdings in Petrocan.There is a solution to price gouging, that is worker and community control of the refineries.


SEE:

It's Time to Take Back Our Oil and Gas

NDP And Workers Control

Nationalize the Oil Industry

The Myth of the NEP

Aren't you sorry you sold your shares

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Tweedle Dee Tweedle Dum Petro Tales

One increases its investements in production and the other cuts investment in production and yet both can offer shareholders huge dividends. Without turning into Income Trusts.

In the case of Petro-Can shouldn't someone take the Liberals to task about the fact that they sold off our shares in the once crown corporation, for a one time attempt to buy votes by declaring a surplus under PM Paul Martin. Cutting one's nose to spite one's face.

Petro-Canada to raise capital spending by 15 per cent to $4.1B

Oil and gas giant Petro-Canada Inc. (TSX:PCA) plans to raise capital spending by 15 per cent to $4.1 billion in 2007 and grow output as major projects come onstream despite more problems or delays at its Terra Nova and Hibernia projects off the coast of Newfoundland.

Petro-Canada announced late Thursday it expects to boost oil and gas production about 15 per cent in 2007 to about 420,000 barrels of oil equivalent output a day from 390,000 barrels this year.

In another development, Petro-Canada said it's boosting its quarterly dividend to 13 cents a share from 10 cents, a 30 per cent jump in the cash payment to stockholders.

The increased dividend will be payable April 1 to shareholders of record as of March 3, 2007.

EnCana cuts capital spending by 6 pct for 2007
EnCana Corp. (ECA.TO: Quote, Profile , Research) will cut spending by 6 percent to $5.9 billion in 2007 as it grapples with cost inflation due to booming energy-industry conditions, Canada's biggest oil and gas producer said on Thursday. EnCana also said it planned to double its quarterly dividend next year, resulting in an annual payout of 80 cents a share. Stock buybacks could total 3 percent to 5 percent of those outstanding in 2007, compared with 10 percent this year.

Stocks advance as oil heads up

Oil prices rise after OPEC sets stage for possible cut next year

See

Encana

Oil


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Canadian Tire, Petro-Canada to partner up on gas stations and rewards programs

The Canadian Press

• 
  
  

Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd.'s more than 200 retail fuel sites will be rebranded under Petro-Canada as part of a new partnership between the retailer and the fuel brand. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd.'s more than 200 retail fuel sites will be rebranded under Petro-Canada in a new partnership between the retailer and the fuel brand. 

Canadian Tire says in a joint release with Suncor Energy Inc. that the agreement will see Suncor's Petro-Canada become the primary fuel provider for the Canadian Tire network of gas stations.

The companies say this deal will increase Petro-Canada's retail fuel sales volume by 17 per cent compared with 2022.

The two brands' loyalty programs, Triangle Rewards and Petro-Points, will also partner to deliver expanded benefits, Canadian Tire says, though each company will retain full ownership and control of its own loyalty program. 

Canadian Tire president and CEO Greg Hicks said in the press release that the new partnership means the Triangle Rewards program will reach more than 1,800 gas stations, giving members more opportunities to earn rewards. 

Suncor president and CEO Rich Kruger said in the release that the partnership will provide value to shareholders by securing a long-term supply relationship for the company's refineries. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 3, 2023.

 

Petro-Canada says cyberattackers obtained Petro-Points members’ contact info

Holly McKenzie-Sutter, BNN Bloomberg

Petro-Canada has advised customers that cyberattackers accessed contact information for members of its Petro-Points program.

In a series of tweets posted Thursday, the company owned by Suncor Energy Inc. said its investigation so far has found its IT network “was accessed by an unauthorized party on or about June 21,” impacting its Petro-Points program.

“The unauthorized party obtained members' basic contact information. Out of caution, we disabled our Petro-Points systems, including our website and app, and we are conducting enhanced security monitoring,” the company wrote, advising members to “watch for any unusual emails or messages.”

“You should confirm that any request to link, download, call someone or provide personal information is legitimate.”

Petro-Canada said customers’ points balances are “safe,” and the company will provide credits for points earned during the ongoing outage, though they cannot currently be redeemed.

“The security of your personal information is important to us. We regret this incident has happened and we appreciate your patience and understanding as we work to resolve the situation,” Petro-Canada added.

BNNBloomberg.ca has reached out to parent company Suncor for more details.

Suncor confirmed on June 25 that it had been hit by a “cybersecurity incident,” afters days of customers reporting issues over paying at Petro-Canada gas stations.

Calls for ‘ethical oil’ are pushing Canada to become a Petrol-State

Pumpjacks draw oil in a canola field near Olds, Alta. 

THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

THE CONVERSATION
Published: May 31, 2022 

Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine has brought fossil fuels and geopolitics to the forefront of public discussion. In an effort to evade economic sanctions, Russia has weaponized its energy exports.

In March, President Vladimir Putin said he expects “unfriendly” countries — those that have imposed sanctions over Russia’s war in Ukraine — to pay for gas sales in rubles. In May, Russia halted gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria after they refused to pay in rubles. The European Union buys a significant portion of its natural gas (40 per cent) and imported oil (27 per cent) from Russia. Some analysts have said a few countries, like Germany, could see a recession if gas from Russia were completely cut off.

The escalating energy crisis has reignited calls to increase the production and export of Canadian oil and gas to diversify Europe’s energy supply. Pro-bitumen think tanks such as the Canadian Energy Centre and the Macdonald-Laurier Institute have made similar arguments accusing opposition to pipelines as dooming western countries’ energy security.

Imports of natural gas into Europe from both pipelines and liquefied natural gas (LNG). 

(The Associated Press)

In essence, these arguments repackage the ethical oil rhetoric that frames investment in bitumen as morally superior to oil from non-democratic regimes. But the significant expansion of bitumen infrastructure comes with economic uncertainties and contradicts Canada’s COP26 commitment to decarbonization. Moreover, it diverts public attention away from the inconvenient reality that Canada and Russia are petro-states that share numerous similarities in energy policy making.

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Oil booms and petro-states

Political scientist Terry Lynn Karl introduced the idea of a petro-state in her 1997 book, The Paradox of Plenty: Oil Booms and Petro-States. She developed the petro-state thesis to explain the inability of oil-exporting nations such as Saudi Arabia and Nigeria to convert their petroleum revenues into more stable and self-sustaining economies.

Karl’s main insight was that a nation’s reliance on oil exports leads to economic and political problems such as weak economic growth in manufacturing sectors, vulnerability to price shocks, widespread social inequality, authoritarianism, corruption and so on.

Throughout the first decade of the 21st century, soaring oil prices substantially altered the global energy demand and supply landscape. This trend considerably bolstered the oil and gas industry in countries like Canada, Norway and Russia. In response, scholars began to debate whether the petro-state thesis should include them, given their increasing dependence on fossil fuel revenues.

Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting in Moscow on May 16, 2022, shortly before halting gas supplies to Finland, after the country refused to pay in rubles. (Alexander Nemenov/Pool Photo via AP)

For instance, scholars noted that Russia is compelled to prioritize the energy sector over other economic sectors due to the influence of natural gas in generating export revenues and in sustaining its geopolitical influence in Europe. This results in an economic structure that is vulnerable to energy market volatility. In 2020, record-low oil prices imposed a hefty cost on Russia, contributing to a dramatic currency depreciation and negative GDP growth for the whole year.
Overcome the petro-state curse

Scholars have debated the extent to which Canada can be classified as a petro-state. After all, energy products only account for 8.3 per cent of national GDP, which is notably lower than typical petro-states. Nonetheless, the Canadian economy and well-known petro-state economies exhibit comparable structural vulnerabilities.

The Hebron Platform, anchored in Trinity Bay, N.L., in April 2017. 

THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Daly

Canada’s energy sector has struggled from declining demand, as a result of the pandemic. Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador rely heavily on the energy sector, and have been hit especially hard.

The resurgence of “ethical oil” narratives that moralize bitumen extraction and demonize critics aim to frame resource dependence as part of Canadian identity. Put differently, the bitumen industry and its allies are pushing for “petro-nationalism,” which symbolically celebrates bitumen while obfuscating the unequal distributions of bitumen’s economic benefits and its environmental costs.
In search of a path to net-zero

Days after Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney tweeted, “Now if Canada really wants to help defang Putin, then let’s get some pipelines built!”

However, building more pipelines to increase the Canadian economy’s reliance on fossil fuels is not the only option. Norway, whose economy is currently reliant on the oil and gas industry, is a shining example of how to overcome the petro-state curse.

As policy analyst Bruce Campbell has written, instead of the denial, delay and division that characterizes current Canadian climate policy, Norway’s path to net-zero is built on climate action, close collaboration with labour unions and NGOs and strong government leadership in collecting and redistributing energy revenues.

Read more: 5 ways Norway leads and Canada lags on climate action

If Canada is truly concerned about becoming a moral energy producer, then our public conversations need to focus on exploring immediate policy actions aimed at limiting greenhouse gas emissions from the energy sector and planning for its phaseout.

Author

Sibo Chen
Assistant Professor, School of Professional Communication, Toronto Metropolitan University
Disclosure statement

Sibo Chen receives funding from Toronto Metropolitan University and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

Alimentation Couche-Tard Stock Could Soar if it Acquires Suncor’s Retail Business

Pumps await a car for fueling at a gas and diesel station.

Written by Joey Frenette 

at The Motley Fool Canada

Thu, August 4, 2022 

Shares of Alimentation Couche-Tard (TSX:ATD) have been powering higher over the past few weeks, thanks in part to some better-than-expected results and talks that the incredibly liquid firm may be in the running for Suncor Energy’s gas stations in what could be a marked-down price.

Indeed, hoarding cash leaves one feeling the full force of inflation’s impact. However, with market valuations contracting while credit becomes harder to come by as a result of higher interest rates, it’s cash and strong balance sheets that could separate the haves from the have-nots.

As valuations contract and firms look to sell retail assets, it’s Couche that could have a chance to pay three quarters to get a full dollar, so to speak. At writing, the company has more than $2.2 billion in cash and cash equivalents, with the capacity to make a merger and acquisition (M&A) splash in the $10 range.

Undoubtedly, it’s been a while since Couche-Tard pulled the trigger on a massive deal. The last big deal it made was of CST Brands. Such locations have since been integrated and rebranded. Though Couche has been quiet, it’s not from lack of trying.

Management tried (but ultimately failed) to acquire French grocery firm Carrefour in the first half of 2021. The deal was met with skepticism, as Couche-Tard isn’t exactly in the business of generic grocery retail. Though it has introduced more fresh food across its convenience stores in recent years, the proposed tie-up was rather confusing to many.
Petro Canada stores up for grabs

Though Couche-Tard has moved on, it really hasn’t made a big splash. And its cash hoard could swell as the firm continues moving through a challenging environment. Though Couche has the means to make a big deal, investors shouldn’t expect one to happen, unless all the right boxes are checked. Couche’s managers put in the due diligence and then some prior to proposed deals. Their ultimate goal is to create value over the long run.

Looking ahead, Couche looks like it’s a frontrunner for Suncor’s Petro Canada retail unit. The deal could lie in the $10 billion range and help the firm make use of its solid liquidity position. According to Bloomberg, there’s quite a bit of overlap between Petro Canada stores and existing Couche-owned stores. This overlap could prove problematic. Further, there are anti-trust concerns that may make things difficult.

Couche-Tard is already such a dominant force in convenience retail. In any case, don’t count on Couche-Tard to run the risk of overpaying for the deal. If there’s no steal to be had, it’s more than fine with standing pat.

At the end of the day, Couche-Tard is a global player, leaving ample room for M&A at the international level. If anything, the company may wish to expand into the Asian region to improve upon its geographic diversification and returns on invested capital (ROIC).
Bottom line

Couche-Tard is in very capable hands.

The strong balance sheet makes the nearly $60 billion retail behemoth a top bidder for Suncor’s prized retail assets. With over $10 billion in acquisition capacity, Couche-Tard may very well be the only realistic buyer. The price tag will be really hard for smaller rivals like Parkland Fuel to justify. To make a deal happen, the $5.6 billion Parkland would have to raise astronomical amounts of debt. And I just don’t think it’s plausible.

The way I see it, Couche may have most of the leverage in a potential Petro Canada deal if federal regulators allow such a deal to happen.

The post Alimentation Couche-Tard Stock Could Soar if it Acquires Suncor’s Retail Business appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
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Fool contributor Joey Frenette has positions in Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.

Alberta's Boom = Ontario's Bust

I found this interesting post I thought I would share.

It explains why the U.S. will pay more attention to us in the declining years of the Bush administration. Not because of the friendlier relations promised by the newly elected Harper regime in Ottawa, but because of Alberta Crude. Bush made that clear in his State of the Union address on America's need for energy security.

We have here what many are calling a perfect economic storm, with demand, price, and political instability in the Middle East - our low-cost competitor - all lining up to produce a gusher of energy revenues. A decade ago our biggest customer, the U.S., didn't take Alberta seriously as a major source of oil. Now, George W. Bush is on a crusade to wean America off its addiction to foreign oil from "unstable" sources. "It creates a national security issue when we're held hostage for energy by foreign nations that may not like us," he warned. In fact, Alberta and its bottomless oilsands seem like the perfect solution to Washington's search for energy security.
Securing the future Edmonton Sun, Canada - 22 Feb 2006 By PAUL STANWAY

And thanks to Canada's Petro-Dollar economy the Alberta Boom means a Bust for Ontario. Which will put the Harper in tough tight spot. Inceasing unemployment in Ontario, a freeze or decline in Federal civil service jobs, will adversely affect his ability to win a Majority government. Ironically thanks to the success of Alberta which is his parties largest base.

And the loss of the manufacturing base in Ontario is what drove Buzz Hargrove mad during the election. He could see this coming. Watch him and the CLC go into concession bargaining mode as their industrial based unions decline in membership by attrition.

What will keep Buzz out of politics is his and CAW's need to organize the exapanding Japanese car manufacturing base, and the secondary car parts manufacturing sector like Stronach's Magna which are non-union.

Sid Ryans backing off from CUPE's wildcat strike over the pension issue is an indication of the economic weakness that even the public service unions now face in manufacturing based Ontario. Concession averts strikePension reform will pass, but government promises reviewUnion claims victory even though legislation unchanged

And Harpers promises benefit the financial and investor sector in Canada far more than they do working Canadians and their families. And they do little for non-working, unemployed or retired Canadians. Which will be largely in Ontario.

The Psychology of the Canadian Petro-dollar

Gary Dorsch

Editor, Global Money Trends magazine

Mr Dorsch worked on the trading floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange for nine years as the chief Financial Futures Analyst for three clearing firms, Oppenheimer Rouse Futures Inc, GH Miller and Company, and a commodity fund at the LNS Financial Group.

After the price of US light crude oil jumped above the psychological $40 per barrel level in 2004, global investors began to take a harder look at the underground oil deposits around northeastern Alberta, Canada that hold about 1.6 trillion barrels of oil, the largest lode of hydrocarbons on Earth. Soon after, Canada's "Loonie" was anointed as the heir of the British pound, and bestowed the coveted position as the world's Petro-currency. And over the past 12-months, US crude oil futures have traded in the same direction as Canada's Petro-dollar about 74% of the time.

Long regarded as a "commodity currency" the demand for the Loonie is increasingly linked to the direction of energy, gold and base metal shares. Nearly half of the market capitalization of the benchmark Toronto Stock Exchange index is linked to the energy and materials sectors. Canadian exports, led by the energy sector, surged to a record $C41.3 billion in December 2005, up 3.9% from November, despite a Canadian dollar that is gyrating at highest level since the early 1990's.

Canada's trade surplus with the United States hit a record $C11.6 billion in December, as energy exports jumped 11.2% to a record high of $C9.3 billion, led by a surge in natural gas shipments. Total exports advanced to a record high of $C423.6 billion in 2005, compared with $C408.9 billion in 2004. Imports also hit a record high, rising 8.8% to $C413.8 billion. Canadian exports rose even as the Loonie climbed from an average 77 US-cents in 2004 to 83 US-cents in 2005.

Geologists estimate that anywhere from 175 to 330 billion barrels of the molasses-like crude in Canada's oil sands region are recoverable. Saudi Arabia, by contrast, possesses 262 billion barrels of proven reserves. Over the next decade, nearly two dozen companies from Canada, the United States, France and China are planning an estimated $100 billion in oil sands projects, and few countries can match growth on that scale. Longer term, there's only really one rival and that's Saudi Arabia.

Current production in the Oil Sands region is about one million barrels a day, about half of which goes to the US by pipeline. Production is forecast to rise to 2 million barrels a day by 2010 and possibly 3.9 million a day by 2015. The Saudis can pump oil at a cost of $2 to $3 a barrel, but converting the molasses-like sands of Alberta into useable crude requires substantial manpower, technology and energy. After adding capital costs, shipping and depreciation, sands producers need per-barrel global prices above the $C18-to-$23 level.

The USA guzzles more than 21 million barrels a day, about 62% of which is imported. Daily US demand is projected to climb to 23 million barrels by 2010, while domestic production falls. So the US is looking to its friendly neighbor to the north to help satisfy its thirst for oil, and reduce its reliance on the Persian Gulf oil kingdoms, unstable Nigeria, and Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. Crude oil prices command a high premium due to the instability of the countries that produce it.

However, Canada is a safe haven and reliable supplier of energy for its southern neighbor. The United States imported 2.3 million barrels per day of crude and refined products from Canada last year, a million barrels more per day than from Riyadh, exceeding imports from the Saudis every year since 1999. Canada is America's single biggest supplier of foreign oil, providing 17% of all US oil imports.

But cash rich Beijing is also eyeing direct investments in Canadian oil sands projects, and might want to ship increasing amounts of oil to China in the future at the expense of United States. Former Canadian natural resources minister John McCallum foresaw China taking as much as 400,000 bpd, or 25% of the oil currently being shipped to America.

But total trade volume between Canada and China is only $30 billion compared with $500 billion between Canada and the United States. And much to the dismay of Beijing, Canada's newly elected Conservative leader Stephen Harper is expected to pursue much closer ties with the US, in contrast to former Liberal leader Martin, who played the China energy card in trade disputes with the US.

Exports of commodities account for roughly 13.5% of Canada's C$1.1 trillion economy, the world's eighth largest. Nearly 34% of Canada's exports are energy-related, and metals are roughly 15 percent. For better or worse, the psychology of the foreign currency market is fixated on the price of crude oil, gold, and base metals when setting the price of the Canadian dollar, against the Japanese yen and US dollar, and by default the Chinese yuan. As a result, the Canadian dollar is expected to remain strong for a long time, wrecking havoc on manufacturers in Ontario.

A sizeable economic gap is developing between resource-rich provinces in Alberta, British Columbia, and Newfoundland, riding the wave created by the resource boom, versus central Canada's manufacturing base, in Ontario, Quebec, and New Brunswick. Manufacturers are getting hammered by a flood of cheap Chinese imports, made cheaper by a strong Loonie. British Columbian exports of lumber could also drop from a US housing slowdown. However, Canada as a whole is expected to grow 3% in 2006, just a bit stronger than the 2.9% pace in 2005.

For Canada's manufacturing sector, more than half of which is located in Ontario. January was a brutal month, with an estimated 41,600 factory jobs lost, the biggest one-month drop in 15 years. Ontario saw 33,000 manufacturing jobs disappear last month, taking the province's total cuts to 93,000 since the end of 2002, just before the Loonie began its 37% appreciation against the US dollar.

Canada's factory sector employs 2.13 million people, and started cutting about 145,000 payroll positions over the past 12 months. But the government employed 42,800 more people in January, including temporary staff hired for Canada's Jan. 23rd federal election, and natural resource companies hired another 12,300 workers.

Ironically, the US dollar has tumbled from about 1.40 Canadian dollars to just below 1.15 Canadian dollars while interest rate differentials have moved decidedly in the US dollar's favor by 350 basis points. In this rare situation, the enormous flow of foreign capital into Canada's resource-rich capital markets has overpowered the influence of short-term interest differentials between the two currencies.

Four quarter-point rate hikes by the Bank of Canada to 3.50% over the past six months went un-opposed by the Bank of Japan, providing additional incentives for Japanese "carry traders" to bid the Petro-dollar 23.8% higher to as high as 104-yen last year. Canadian and Detroit car manufacturers are feeling the heat from a weaker yen, while others succumb to a weaker Chinese yuan. Canada's economy is in danger of losing more of its manufacturing base, while transitioning to a service sector economy, which accounts for two-thirds of output.

In addition to a booming resource sector, the Loonie was the only currency among the big-7 industrialized economies to enjoy both trade and budget surpluses. In 2000, there was a budget surplus of more than 2% of GDP, rising to 4% by 2001. Since then, annual budget surpluses have been shrinking and almost disappeared in fiscal 2005, leaving less money to pay down the $C500 billion federal debt.

There was a potential for a $13.4 billion surplus in fiscal 2006, but the newly elected conservative government promised to use up most of the projected surpluses for tax cuts and different spending priorities. PM Harper aims cut to dividend taxes, offer accelerated capital-tax elimination for businesses, corporate tax rate reductions by 2010, and allow Canadian investors to defer capital gains tax so long as they are replacing one taxable asset with another. And that's the icing on the cake for happy investors in the Toronto Stock Exchange and the Canadian "Petro-dollar."

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Petro-Canada services still recovering from cyberattack heading into long weekend

Holly McKenzie-Sutter, BNN Bloomberg

Jun 29, 2023

Petro-Canada said some service disruptions from a cyberattack on parent company Suncor Energy Inc. were still affecting operations as of Thursday, heading into the Canada Day long weekend.

The company said its sites were open, with debit and credit payments available at “most” locations, while some car washes along with its mobile app and Petro-Points program were still unavailable.

“We’re making progress on resolving the disruptions customers have been experiencing and will continue to update you as more services come back online,” Petro-Canada said on Twitter Thursday morning.

“We apologize for the inconvenience this has caused, and we thank you for your patience.”

Services have been hampered since last weekend, when some gas stations were only able to take cash, along with car washes and the company app going offline.

Suncor said late on Sunday that it had been hit by a “cybersecurity incident,” and Petro-Canada later confirmed its service issues were a result of the attack.

The companies have shared few details about the nature of the incident, though cybersecurity experts have speculated that the attack may have cost Suncor millions of dollars.

Aren't you sorry you sold your shares

That should be the question going through all our minds as shareholders in fact former owners of Petro Canada, the Liberals sold off the last of our shares to pay for their 2004 election promises. Too bad. Had they waited they could have paid them off on the interest the shares earned this past year.

Petro-Canada earns $1.8B in 2005, plans new upgrader near Edmonton
CBC News - 5 hours ago
CALGARY (CP) - Petro-Canada (TSX:PCA) posted record annual earnings of $1.8 billion Thursday, up slightly over 2004, and announced it will build its new oilsands upgrader just northeast of Edmonton.

Petro-Canada profit rises 62% Globe and Mail

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Parity

The loonie made parity with the U.S. dollar today.

Then it slipped to 99.9 which gave it parity with the average cost per litre for gas in Edmonton.

Highest Regular Gas Prices in the Last 60 Hours
Price	Station		Area	Time	Thanks
	Hyw 21
	Petro Canada		Edmonton - NE	Fri 7:51 PM	dancingiet
	36St & 144Ave
	Superstore		Edmonton - North	Fri 6:42 PM	Traciekl
	12350 - 137 Ave
	Shell		Edmonton - North	Fri 6:42 PM	Traciekl
	152 AVE & 127 ST
	Safeway		Edmonton - North	Fri 6:42 PM	Traciekl
	12950 - 137 AVE
	Petro Canada		North End	Fri 6:42 PM	Traciekl
	127 AVE & 127 ST
	Domo		Edmonton - West	Fri 6:42 PM	Traciekl
	St Albert Tr & 118 Ave (posted price)
	Domo		Edmonton - North	Fri 6:42 PM	Traciekl
	130 AVE & 127 ST
	7-Eleven		Edmonton - North	Fri 6:42 PM	Traciekl
	127 ST - Cumberland Rd
	7-Eleven		Edmonton - North	Fri 6:42 PM	Traciekl
	127 ST & 153 AVE
	Superstore		St Albert	Fri 3:50 PM	The_Parker
	St. Albert Tr
	Petro Canada		St Albert	Fri 3:50 PM	The_Parker
	ST Albert Tr N
	Esso		St Albert	Fri 3:50 PM	The_Parker
	Giroux Rd - St Alb Tr
	7-Eleven		Edmonton - North	Fri 3:50 PM	The_Parker
	97 St - 128 Ave

Legal Issues: As this site depends on visitor price updates, Edmonton Gas Prices is not responsible for information inaccuracies, inconsistencies or errors. Edmonton Gas Prices reserves the right to make changes to any of the site content at any time without notice.


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Gas Gouging

If It Ain't Broke

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