How Much Oil Does Canada Import? For the World's Third-Largest Reserve Holder, Too Much!

Canadian Oil Imports in 2023

In 2023, Canada imported approximately 490,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), costing Canadians $19.5 billion ^[2]. Canadian oil imports in 2023 from the following countries:

• United States – 355,000 bpd
• Nigeria – 63,000 bpd
• Saudi Arabia – 53,000 bpd
• Columbia – 10,000 bpd
• Ecuador – 5,000 bpd
• United Kingdom – 3,000 bpd

Canadian Oil Imports in 2022

In 2022, Canada imported roughly 470,000 bpd of oil, costing Canadians approximately $21.5 billion ^[3]. Canadian oil imports in 2022 came from the following countries:

• United States – 337,000 bpd
• Saudi Arabia – 79,600 bpd
• Nigeria – 30,900 bpd
• Norway – 5,200 bpd
• Angola – 900 bpd
• Other Countries – 12,300 bpd

Canadian Oil Imports in 2021

In 2021, Canada imported roughly 473,000 bpd of oil, costing Canadians approximately $14.7 billion ^[2]. Canadian oil imports in 2021 came from the following countries:

• United States – 311,000 bpd
• Saudi Arabia – 70,200 bpd
• Nigeria – 60,400 bpd
• Azerbaijan – 14,500 bpd
• Colombia – 10,900 bpd
• Norway – 2,800 bpd
• Other Countries – 5,400 bpd

How Much Oil Do Canadian Provinces Import?

How much oil does Canada import into different parts of the country? In other words, which provinces account for most of Canada's oil imports? If you’ve guessed Ontario, Quebec and the Atlantic provinces, you’re right.

The lack of pipeline infrastructure from west, where the world’s third-largest oil reserves are found in Alberta, to the eastern part of the country is apparent in the pipeline infrastructure map below.

Notice how the few pipelines heading east are sent south into the United States first before coming back into the country via the Sarnia region of Southwestern Ontario, a major refining hub of Canada.

Crude Oil & Rail Infrastructure - NRC

This lack of major pipeline infrastructure is why Canada continues to rely on massive quantities of foreign oil imports, despite the reversal/expansion of Enbridge’s Line 9 pipeline which has allowed Ontario and Quebec refineries to source more oil from North American suppliers ^[6].

Seafaring tankers must also do their fair share to fill the supply gap. Major oil tanker routes into Canada include the St. Lawrence River, which facilitates the transportation of more than 500,000 barrels of petroleum products to refineries in Quebec daily ^[5].

Without existing pipelines like Line 5, the number of tankers seen on the St. Lawrence River and Great Lakes Region transporting oil to refineries in both Canada and the U.S. would dramatically increase.

New Brunswick's Irving Refinery also relies almost entirely on foreign oil imports via tanker and railway. With a production capacity of around 320,000 barrels of crude oil per day, it is Canada’s largest refinery and produces finished products for wholesale and retail markets, including diesel, jet fuel, gasoline, heating oil, asphalt and propane ^[7]. Currently, more than half of these products are exported to the Northeastern U.S.

Foreign Oil Imports Into Canadian Provinces

When discussing provinces specifically, it's critical to note that not all oil imports into Canada are the same. You might be astonished that Alberta and Saskatchewan, accounting for over 90 per cent of Canada’s crude oil production, imported more than two billion dollars worth of foreign crude between 2016 and 2020.

Alberta’s oil imports, for example, are mainly condensate or diluent sourced from the United States, which is then mixed with bitumen to facilitate transportation by pipeline. Meanwhile, oil imports into the eastern and Atlantic provinces come mainly from the United States and Saudi Arabia. They are used to make everything from gasoline and jet fuel to medicine and plastic products.

Some eastern provinces like Prince Edward Island, for example, don't import foreign oil at all, but instead gets most of its oil and gas products from the Irving refinery.

Canada’s Energy Security is at Risk

With heavy reliance on foreign oil imports, about half of Canada’s population – in the eastern regions of the country – is not truly energy secure ^[8] – that is, having access to a stable, reliable, and uninterrupted energy supply at an affordable cost.

Rising trade challenges with the U.S. have highlighted this energy security risk. Despite Western Canada producing much of the oil consumed by eastern refineries, this feedstock is transported by pipelines than run through several U.S. states.

“It’s only energy secure if the Americans are our partners and friends,” ARC Energy Research Institute’s Executive Director Jackie Forrest said on her podcast, thanks to reporting by the Canadian Energy Centre ^[8].

“The concern is that in the worst-case scenario where the Americans want to really hurt our country, they have the ability to stop all crude oil flows to Ontario,” said Forrest.

Stopping these pipeline flows would also cut off most of Quebec’s oil supply.

Isn’t it time that Canada took control of its energy security and built a new east-west pipeline to supply eastern Canadians with Canadian-made oil and gas?

Replacing Imported Foreign Oil in Eastern Canada: Study

So, the question remains: how much of the oil imported by the eastern and Atlantic provinces could be replaced by Canadian oil if a pipeline were built, such as the now-defunct Energy East project?

The Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI) perhaps answers this question best with its 2018 report: Study #167 – An Economic Assessment of Eastern Canadian Crude Oil Imports.

The study found that by replacing foreign oil imports with domestic supply, some eastern refineries could turn a higher profit while allowing Canada to export its sustainably produced oil to the world and obtain more market share as global demand continues to grow.

CERI's findings are based on four scenarios:

Made in Canada – where all foreign oil imported into Canada is replaced with domestic oil, regardless of the cost. This scenario considers the effect of expanded pipeline infrastructure in Eastern Canada.

Expanded Access – where less expensive Canadian crude is substituted for imported foreign oil, with a new pipeline connecting the eastern and western parts of the country for new domestic supply.

Current Reality – where existing pipeline infrastructure is used but Canadian crude replaces foreign oil in central and eastern Canadian refineries, but not the full amount relative to commodity prices and the associated economic feasibility.

International Social Concerns – where Canadian crude is substituted for imported oil from nations that have serious social concerns i.e. poor living standards, low food security, tarnished human rights, and other abhorrent conditions.

Please note that CERI’s study is quite complex, and for further understanding of the scenarios mentioned above, it’s recommended to read the report.

CERI's Four Scenarios, a Win for Canadians

Key Conclusions under the Four Scenarios - CERI

Three of the four given scenarios above show positive economic results ranging from savings of $23 million to $317 million. Two of the three positive scenarios call for a new pipeline, while the third (without new infrastructure) takes into account Canadian crude supplies that are cheaper than imported counterparts.

We should all be enlightened by the fact that if we replaced foreign oil entering eastern and Atlantic Canada with that from the western provinces, we would give ourselves a huge economic boost by keeping the tens of billions of dollars spent on imports in our country.

How Much Oil Does Canada Import? Way Too Much!

Polls show that across the country, a majority of Canadians support the construction of new pipelines to take control of our economic security. Even in Quebec, a majority of Quebecers support the revival of two oil and natural gas pipelines that would help Canada become economically independent from the U.S.

Given that Canada has the reserves to supply itself with all the oil it will ever need and that doing so would also be in the best interests of Canadians, why then are we still importing oil into the eastern and Atlantic provinces? It just doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

Canada needs a new east-west pipeline that will help Canadians create jobs, secure our energy supply, and aid in the diversification of our trade markets. It’s a win-win-win across the board, so what are we waiting for?

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It's time to start supporting local Canadian oil and gas. pic.twitter.com/jesBySfRtl

— Oil Sands Action (@OilsandsAction) April 30, 2025

SOURCES:

_{1 - https://www.canadianenergycentre.ca/foreign-oil-imports-to-canada-488-billion-between-1988-and-2020/}

_{2 - https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/data-analysis/energy-markets/market-snapshots/2022/market-snapshot-crude-oil-imports-declined-in-2021-while-refined-petroleum-product-imports-rose-modestly.html}

_{3 - https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/data-analysis/energy-markets/market-snapshots/2023/market-snapshot-crude-oil-imports-declined-2022-while-share-from-us-increased.html}

_{4 - https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/data-analysis/energy-markets/market-snapshots/2024/market-snapshot-crude-oil-imports-rose-slightly-2023-first-time-since-2019.html}

_{5 - https://www.cossd.com/articles/17/alberta-oil-imports}

_{6 - https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/applications-hearings/view-applications-projects/line-9b-reversal/enbridge-line-9b-reversal-line-9-capacity-expansion-project-backgrounder.html}

_{7 - https://www.irvingoil.com/en-CA/discover-irving/operations}

_{8 - https://www.canadianenergycentre.ca/big-vulnerability-how-ontario-and-quebec-became-reliant-on-u-s-oil-and-gas/}

_{9 - https://www.law.georgetown.edu/environmental-law-review/blog/cybersecurity-policy-responses-to-the-colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack/}