Energy in Canada: 35 Facts & Statistics

Energy in Canada: 35 Facts & Statistics

RECENT POSTS

Energy industry in Canada - Facts and Statistics-01

Did you know that Canada is one of the largest energy producers worldwide? As the second-largest country in the world, Canadians are blessed to have abundant energy resources such as oil, natural gas, metals, moving water, and sunny pastures, allowing our country to produce a ton of energy from various methods.

Today, Canada is the world's sixth-largest producer of primary energy (primary energy definition: the energy harvested directly from natural resources). We are also the world’s third-largest producer of hydropower, fourth-largest for oil, fifth-largest for natural gas, and the sixth-largest for nuclear power. In short, we are already a major global energy behemoth, but we have the potential to do way more, which would create prosperity in our country for generations to come.

Below we go over several facts on energy in Canada, showing just how many economic benefits the sector delivers for Canadians, and more! Also see:

Projected global energy demand in 2050

General Canadian Energy Facts

#1 - Canada is the sixth-largest producer of primary energy in the world (2022) [1]

#2 - Canada is the second-largest producer and second-largest exporter of uranium, and is home to the world’s third-largest reserves (2022) [1]

#3 - Canada is the world’s sixth-largest producer of nuclear power, accounting for 3% of global generation (2022) [1]

#4 - Canada is the fourth-largest producer and third-largest exporter of crude oil, and is home to the world’s fourth-largest reserves (2022) [1]

#5 - Canada is the third-largest producer of hydroelectricity, and is home to the world’s fourth-largest hydro generation capacity (2022) [1]

#6 - Canada is the world’s fifth-largest producer and sixth-largest exporter of natural gas, and is home to the world’s 15th largest reserves (2022) [1]

#7 - Canada is the world’s seventh-largest producer and second-largest exporter of electricity, and is home to the world’s eighth-largest power-generating capacity (2022) [1]

#8 - Canada is the world’s 13th largest producer of biofuels (2022) [1]

#9 - Canada is the world’s 15th largest producer and 8th largest exporter of coal, and is home to the world’s 18th largest reserves (2022) [1]

#10 - Canada’s primary energy production by source (2022) [1]:

  • Crude oil – 41%
  • Natural gas – 27%
  • Uranium – 16%
  • Hydro – 5%
  • Coal – 4%
  • Natural gas liquids – 4%
  • Other renewables – 3%

#11 - Canada’s total energy supply by source (2022) [1]:

  • Natural gas – 41%
  • Oil – 33%
  • Hydro – 11%
  • Nuclear – 8%
  • Biofuels and waste – 4%
  • Coal – 2%
  • Other renewables – 1%

#12 - Fossil fuels accounted for 77% of Canada’s total energy supply (TES) in 2022, defined as production + imports – exports + stock exchanges; comparatively, the world’s TES is made up of 81% fossil fuels [1]

#13 - Canada generated 61.6% of its electricity supply from hydro in 2022 [1]

#14 - Canada generated 12.9% of its electricity supply from nuclear in 2022 [1]

#15 - Canada generated 5.7% of its electricity supply from wind power in 2022 [1]

#16 - Canada generated more than 80% of its electricity supply from nuclear and renewable sources in 2022 [1]

#17 - Canada’s solar capacity in 2022 was 6.6x larger than in 2012 [1]

#18 - Canada’s solar generation capacity in 2022 was 16x larger than in 2012 [1]

#19 - Canada’s wind power capacity in 2022 was 3x larger than in 2011 [1]

#20 - Canada’s wind power generation in 2022 was 4x larger than in 2011 [1]

#21 - Across the world, there are currently nine CANDU (Canadian-tech) nuclear reactors in operation [1]

global primary energy consumption by source in 2023

Canadian Energy & the Economy

#22 - Canada’s oil and gas sector is projected to generate more than $1.1 trillion in government revenues between 2000 and 2032 [2]

#23 - Canada’s energy sector accounted for 10.3%, or $279 billion of nominal gross domestic product (GDP) in 2023 [1]

#24 - Canada’s energy sector directly employed 697,000 jobs nationwide in 2023, with jobs in every province and territory, accounting for 3.5% of employment nationwide [1]

#25 - Canadian energy exports totalled $199.1 billion in 2023, representing 28% of Canada’s total merchandise goods exports [1]

#26 - Of Canada’s energy exports in 2023, oil and gas accounted for the lion’s share in value at $177 billion, 95% of which was exported to the United States [1]

#27 - Canada exported energy products to 123 countries worldwide in 2023 [1]

#28 - The United States accounts for nearly 90% of all Canadian energy exports by value, at $177.3 billion in 2023 [1]

#29 - Canada imported nearly $58 billion in energy goods in 2023, 78% of which came from the U.S. [1]

#30 - Canada’s energy sector generated an average of $19.3 billion in direct government revenues between 2018-2022, including corporate income taxes, crown royalties, and land sales [1]

#31 - Fuel, energy and pipeline infrastructure investment and operations in Canada supported 140,100 jobs, generated $12.7 billion in employment income, and added $23.5 billion in GDP in 2023 [1]

#32 - Public and private investment in fuel, energy and pipeline infrastructure in 2023 was $30.6 billion [1]

#33 - Canada had approximately $474 billion of energy projects announced, under review, approved, or under construction in 2023, down from $600 billion in 2017 [1]

#34 - Canadian energy sector jobs paid an average of $121,435 per year, while the average job paid about half, at $62,459 [1]

#35 - Canada is home to 182 communities that are at least moderately reliant on the energy sector; of these communities, 80% are rural or remote [1]

Canada's total energy supply in 2022 by source

Canada is a Global Energy Leader

Energy - Canada Action

Want to know more about energy in Canada, and are interested in having balanced, non-partisan, and fact-based discussions around oil, natural gas, nuclear, renewables and everything else in between? We invite you to join us at Canada Action on X, Instagram and Facebook to learn more about Canadian energy on the world stage!

Canada's total electricity generation in 2022 by source

SOURCES:

1 - https://energy-information.canada.ca/sites/default/files/2024-10/energy-factbook-2024-2025.pdf

2 - https://www.canadaaction.ca/conventional-oil-gas-economic-impact-canada-2022-report