Asia Paying Top Dollar for Canadian Oil. Pacific Link Will Get More to Market.

Asia Pays Premium for Canadian Oil

Building new pipelines and opening up additional export markets for Canadian oil gets Canadians the best value possible for our natural resources. That's just one example of why we need to keep building new pipelines, powerlines, ports, roads and railways. https://t.co/YkTWgkAo3s

— Oil Sands Action (@OilsandsAction) November 2, 2026

Across the Pacific, Canadian oil has been fetching a premium in recent months.

Canadian Cold Lake crude delivered to South Korea sold at a record USD $9.50 a barrel over the Dubai benchmark in September ^[1]. The country is targeting a record 16 million barrels of Canadian crude oil imports this year, more than triple the 4.88 million barrels it imported in 2025 ^[1].

In China, Canadian heavy cargoes were recently offered at premiums of up to USD $14 a barrel to Dated Brent [1]. Earlier this year, Energy Minister Tim Hodgson said that both India and China are hungry for Canadian oil.

Why the premium? Asian refiners built to run heavy oil are struggling to find it. Venezuelan shipments to Asia have slowed to a trickle as shipments have started flowing to the U.S., while Middle Eastern conflict has disrupted heavy oil supplies, including from once-dominant supplier Iraq ^[2].

Oil Discount Widens in U.S.

Meanwhile, looking south, Canada's biggest customer is paying less than it has in a long time.

The discount on Western Canadian Select (WCS) oil sold to the U.S. versus West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures widened to USD $31.70 a barrel in early November, the widest since 2018 ^[3].

Several reasons are contributing to the multi-year high in the WCS-WTI discount. Refinery maintenance and a wave of Venezuelan heavy crude have flooded the U.S. Gulf Coast with oil that competes directly with ours. Soaring tanker rates have also made it costly to ship those barrels anywhere else ^[2][3].

Canada exported 4.3 million barrels of crude oil a day in 2025, with 90.1 per cent heading to the U.S. ^[4] – a concentration that leaves Canada especially exposed when market conditions south of the border change.

"If we had more capacity going off the west coast and we could get more barrels off the west coast, then the impact of Venezuela on our light-heavy differential would be much less," said Susan Bell, Senior Vice President of downstream at Rystad Energy, as reported by Bloomberg ^[2].

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith put the lack of market diversification plainly in a recent LinkedIn post ^[6]:

"Our oil to the U.S. is selling at a significant discount at a disadvantage to the entire country. The only effective way to close that gap is to increase exports off our western coast and get more customers competing for our energy," the Premier said.

We couldn't agree more.

Trans Mountain is Already Full

Canada already has one oil pipeline to the Pacific, and it is proving its worth.

The expanded Trans Mountain pipeline has a maximum capacity of 890,000 barrels per day, with plans to push that to nearly 1.2 million by 2028 ^[6]. Tanker exports off Trans Mountain hit a record in October ^[3], while the pipeline is already running at capacity ^[2]. In its first year of operation, Trans Mountain narrowed the discount on Canadian oil enough to add an estimated CAD $12.6 billion in revenues ^[7].

Another West Coast oil pipeline could give Canada more room to reach Asian buyers, while likely reducing the WCS-WTI price differential even further.

Pacific Link Is Part of the Solution

The proposed Pacific Link pipeline could transport 1 million barrels of Canadian oil a day from Alberta to a new marine terminal on the B.C. coast ^[8]. Prime Minister Mark Carney made the case for it when he announced it as a project of national interest ^[9]:

"Today, 90% of Alberta's oil goes to the U.S. Pacific Link will materially reduce that dependence," said Carney.

"That means more customers, more choice, higher prices for all Canadian energy producers, and it means greater long-term security of demand."

Ottawa estimates the project will create 140,000 jobs, generate over $30 billion in GDP a year and deliver $100 billion in government revenue by 2060 ^[8].

Analysis by one prominent energy investment specialist found that a pipeline with such capacity as the Pacific Link could generate $5 billion in annual royalties for Canadian governments, enough revenue to hire 13,000 doctors who could then provide healthcare to 17 million Canadians.

Who could be against this project, and its economic benefits?

If Canada wants a strong and prosperous economy, major projects like the Pacific Link pipeline are the kind we must build – supporting good jobs, generating government revenues, helping diversify trade, and maximizing the value of our energy resources all at once.

If we're being honest, new oil and natural gas pipelines are among the most economically impactful projects Canada can undertake to kickstart our economy back onto a path toward sustained prosperity for generations to come.

Let's Get Pipelines Built

To be clear, the work is not done. The Major Projects Office aims to finalize the pipeline's conditions by September 2027 ^[8]. Early construction activities may start as early as then, once Indigenous consultation is complete and all approvals and permits are in place ^[10].

The pipeline's preliminary timeline forecasts service in 2032, contingent on regulatory decisions, consultation outcomes, and project milestones ^[10].

These timelines must hold.

Every day Canada waits to build a new oil pipeline to the West Coast is another day of selling our most valuable export at a steep discount to the U.S. – losing billions of dollars in revenues every year while being beholden almost entirely to a single market. It just doesn't make sense.

If we truly want a stronger, more independent, and more prosperous future for our families, building the Pacific Link pipeline – and other major projects like it – is just the smart thing to do.

Let’s make Canada stronger. https://t.co/XnpF70xOsx

— Oil Sands Action (@OilsandsAction) November 1, 2026

SOURCES:

_{1 - https://www.spglobal.com/energy/en/news-research/blog/crude-oil/102026-ctracker-canada-pacific-propane-pacific-aluminum-uk-clean-power-china-saf}

_{2 - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-10-26/asia-pays-top-dollar-for-canadian-oil-amid-slump-in-us-prices}

_{3 - https://www.investing.com/news/economy-news/canadian-crude-discount-with-us-at-widest-level-since-2018-4996314}

_{4 - https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/data-analysis/energy-markets/market-snapshots/2026/market-snapshot-overview-of-2025-canada-us-energy-trade.html}

_{5 - https://www.linkedin.com/posts/abdaniellesmith_alberta-supports-conservative-mp-david-mckenzie-activity-7520521160481218560-JiPH}

_{6 – https://energynow.ca/2026/06/canadian-pipeline-industry-seen-on-edge-of-something-really-big-as-more-projects-advance/}

_{7 - https://albertacentral.com/intelligence-centre/economic-news/year-one-of-tmx-increased-export-diversification-disappearing-oil-discount-and-c13bn-in-extra-revenues/}

_{8 - https://www.pacificlinkpipeline.ca/}

_{9 - https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/speeches/2026/10/01/prime-minister-carney-lists-west-coast-oil-pipeline-now-known-pacific-link}

_{10 - https://www.pacificlinkpipeline.ca/timeline}