Crude oil and liquids – pipeline flow and capacity

This report illustrates the utilization^Definition* of major CER-regulated liquids pipelines (which includes crude oil, natural gas liquids^Definition* and refined petroleum products (RPPs)^Definition*. Visitors can compare throughput and capacity data between pipelines and key points.^Definition*

This dataset is available on Open Government and contains daily data for liquids pipelines, as submitted to the CER by pipeline companies. It is the CER’s most frequently downloaded dataset.

See the Pipeline Profiles for more detailed information about each pipeline.

Throughput by product

Data Source and Description

Data Source: The dataset for this dashboard is available on Open Government; Digital Object Identifier (DOI): https://doi.org/10.35002/h579-7v23

Throughput and capacity data for Group 1 companies^Definition* is collected quarterly by the CER under the CER Filing Manual Guide BB.2 Traffic Data. Companies are required to file pipeline traffic data for the first three quarters of each year, no later than 45 days after the quarter. For the year-end report, companies are required to file the data no later than 60 days after the quarter. Oil pipelines must report monthly throughput data for key points on the system in cubic metres of oil flowed by product. Companies must also report the capacity of the system at each key point.

The goal of Guide BB is to collect information which enables the CER to monitor a pipeline’s financial performance and the basis for calculating tolls, and to monitor the results for each company over time. Interested parties, such as shippers, may also monitor these reports as they are publicly available on the CER’s website. In addition, the dataset is valuable for monitoring demand for pipeline transportation capacity as well as changes to Canada’s energy systems (i.e., supply and demand of natural gas, crude oil, and other hydrocarbons).

Data for Group 2 companies^Definition* is collected by the CER as part of other regulatory compliance processes.^Footnote 1

See the list of pipeline companies regulated by the CER.

Description: This dashboard displays the throughput by product type for major CER-regulated liquids pipelines at select key points. Product type refers to the commodity transported. Examples of product types can include refined petroleum products, heavy crude oil, medium crude oil, or light crude oil (which can contain natural gas liquids).

For pipeline capacity information, see the next dashboards.

Dashboard instructions

Dashboard instructions:

Hover over the graph to see additional details on each data point and a link to the Pipeline Profiles.
The data can be filtered by pipeline and key point using the selection buttons on the left-hand side.
The unit of measurement can be toggled between the imperial system (thousand barrels per day) or metric system (thousand cubic metres per day).

Major crude oil pipelines leaving western Canada

Data Source and Description

Data Source: The dataset for this dashboard is available on Open Government; Digital Object Identifier (DOI): https://doi.org/10.35002/h579-7v23

Data for Group 2 companies^Definition* is collected by the CER as part of other regulatory compliance processes.^Footnote 2

See the list of pipeline companies regulated by the CER.

Description: On the left-hand side of the dashboard, a donut graph illustrates the annual average throughput from the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin from the Enbridge Canadian Mainline (ex-Gretna), Keystone pipeline, and Trans Mountain pipeline.

On the right-hand side of the dashboard, there are three graphs that show the throughput and capacity of the Enbridge Canadian Mainline (ex-Gretna), Keystone pipeline, and Trans Mountain pipeline. See the “Pipeline capacity” description box below for more details on capacity.

What you should know

What you should know:

The Enbridge Canadian Mainline (ex-Gretna), the Keystone pipeline, the Trans Mountain pipeline, and the Express pipeline^Footnote 3 are the four major crude oil pipelines that carry oil out of Canada’s Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin (WCSB). The combined capacity of these four pipelines makes up 96% of all crude Pipeline capacity exiting the WCSB.^Footnote 4
In recent years, shippers have heavily utilized the available capacity on these four pipelines. As a result, new pipeline capacity from the WCSB is being added. For example:
- On the Enbridge Mainline, the Line 3 Replacement Program has increased capacity by a total of 370 thousand barrels per day. The Canadian portion of the replacement program went into service in December 2019^Footnote 5 and the U.S. portion entered service in October 2021, with each portion adding incremental capacity to the Enbridge Mainline system.
- The Trans Mountain Expansion, currently under construction, would increase Trans Mountain’s capacity from approximately 300 thousand barrels per day to approximately 890 thousand barrels per day.^Footnote 6

Dashboard instructions

Dashboard instructions:

Hover over the graph to see additional details on each data point and a link to the Pipeline Profiles.
The unit of measurement can be toggled between the imperial system (thousand barrels per day) or metric system (thousand cubic metres per day).
The y-axis range can be viewed as either uniform or independent.
- The uniform option sets the same maximum value on the y-axis of all three graphs. This makes it easier to visually compare the volumes on the three pipelines at once. The throughput and capacity volume of the Enbridge Mainline (ex-Gretna) is significantly larger compared to the Keystone and Trans Mountain pipelines.
- The independent option sets the maximum value of the y-axis uniquely on all three graphs, based on the maximum capacity of each pipeline. This allows monthly trends to be clearly visible.

Major liquids pipelines entering eastern Canada

Data Source and Description

Data Source: The dataset for this dashboard is available on Open Government; Digital Object Identifier (DOI): https://doi.org/10.35002/h579-7v23

Data for Group 2 companies^Definition* is collected by the CER as part of other regulatory compliance processes.^Footnote 7

See the list of pipeline companies regulated by the CER.

Description: This dashboard shows the major liquids pipelines in eastern Canada and their throughput and capacity.^Footnote 8 See the “Pipeline capacity” description box below for more details on capacity.

What you should know

What you should know:

Ontario and Quebec are the most populous provinces of Canada and, therefore, have some of Canada’s highest demands for refined petroleum products (RPPs). These provinces do not produce crude oil, meaning that crude oil and some refined petroleum products must be shipped in by modes such as pipeline, rail, and marine vessel. Several pipelines carry crude oil and RPPs into and between the provinces.
One portion of the Enbridge Mainline runs through Sarnia, Ontario, transporting crude oil from western Canada and the U.S. to Ontario’s refineries^Definition*. In Sarnia, the Enbridge Mainline also interconnects with Enbridge Line 9, which carries crude oil onwards to refineries in Ontario and Quebec.
The Montreal Pipeline is part of a pipeline system that transports crude oil from Maine, U.S., to serve Suncor’s refinery in Montreal, Quebec. Utilization rates on the Montreal Pipeline have been very low since late 2015, when Quebec’s refineries started sourcing more of their crude oil from the newly-reversed Line 9 pipeline.
The bi-directional Trans-Northern pipeline transports RPPs within and between Ontario and Quebec. RPPs are transported eastward from a refinery in Nanticoke to Toronto, and westward from Montreal to Toronto. There are additional delivery points along both stretches, including Oakville, Ottawa and Kingston in Ontario and Dorval in Quebec.

Dashboard instructions

Dashboard instructions:

Hover over the graph to see additional details on each data point and a link to the Pipeline Profiles.
The data can be filtered by pipeline using the selection buttons on the left-hand side.
The unit of measurement can be toggled between the imperial system (thousand barrels per day) or metric system (thousand cubic metres per day).

Natural gas liquids import pipelines

Data Source and Description

Data Source: The dataset for this dashboard is available on Open Government; Digital Object Identifier (DOI): https://doi.org/10.35002/h579-7v23

Data for Group 2 companies^Definition* is collected by the CER as part of other regulatory compliance processes.^Footnote 9

See the list of pipeline companies regulated by the CER.

Description: his dashboard shows throughput and capacity on western Canada’s two main condensate^Definition* import pipelines, Southern Lights and Cochin. See the “Pipeline capacity” description box below for more details on capacity.

What you should know

What you should know:

Southern Lights pipeline and Cochin pipeline transport condensate from the United States to be used as diluent^Definition* for crude oil production and transportation.

Dashboard instructions

Dashboard instructions:

Hover over the graph to see additional details on each data point and a link to the Pipeline Profiles.
The unit of measurement can be toggled between the imperial system (thousand barrels per day) or metric system (thousand cubic metres per day).

Pipeline capacity

The term “capacity” refers to the maximum amount of product that can flow through a pipeline. A pipeline’s capacity can be estimated in different ways, based on assumptions about the pipeline’s operating conditions and the time period being considered. Two common calculations are nameplate capacity and available capacity.

Nameplate capacity is the design capacity of the pipeline based on assumed operating conditions. Available capacity, on the other hand, refers to the actual amount of product that can flow through a pipeline at any given time, based on the operating conditions present at that time. The available capacity of a pipeline usually differs from its nameplate capacity and may vary on a monthly basis. This difference may be due to the direction of flow, outside temperature, product temperature, pipeline compression or available pumping capacity, duration of flow, season, the types of products being transported, unplanned outages, downstream constraints, and maintenance work or other pressure restrictions, among other factors.

In general, the capacity numbers reported in these dashboards reflect either a pipeline’s nameplate capacity or the available capacity that the operator was expecting at the beginning of the reporting period. Actual available capacity may have been higher or lower than these estimates due to many of the same factors listed above. When the actual available capacity was higher than the operator’s estimate, throughputs may exceed the capacity numbers in the graphs. When the actual available capacity was lower than the operator’s estimate, throughputs may fall considerably below the capacity numbers. This means that the utilization rates in the graphs should not necessarily be used to draw conclusions regarding potential spare capacity. For clarity, throughput will always be less than or equal to the capacity chosen by pipeline operators.

Footnotes

Footnote 1

Enbridge Southern Lights GP Inc. files throughput data for the Southern Lights pipeline as per a condition from OH-3-2007 [Filing A17747] [Folder 502640]. Kingston Midstream Westspur Limited files throughput data for the Westspur pipeline under Financial Resource Requirements compliance [Folder 3815508]. Montreal Pipe Line Limited files throughput data for the Montreal pipeline under Financial Resource Requirements compliance [Folder 2949727].

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Footnote 2

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Footnote 3

Express Pipeline Ltd. is a CER Group 2 company and, therefore, is not required to file pipeline throughput and capacity data for the Express Pipeline. See the Data Source description for more details.

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Footnote 4

See the Crude Oil Pipeline Transportation System section of the CER’s Canada’s Pipeline System 2021: Economics of CER-Regulated Infrastructure. Note that capacity on the Enbridge Canadian Mainline has increased since the publication of this report due to the completion of the Line 3 Replacement Program in October 2021.

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Footnote 5

See the project page of the Line 3 Replacement Program for more details.

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Footnote 6

See the project page for the Trans Mountain Expansion Project for more details.

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Footnote 7

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Footnote 8

Unlike the other pipelines, there is no capacity data reported for the entire Trans-Northern pipeline. Capacity varies across each segment of the pipeline due to the differences in pipe sizes and pumping pressure along various parts of the system.

Return to footnote 8 referrer

Footnote 9

Return to footnote 9 referrer

Contact Us

Please send comments or questions to Pipeline.Info@cer-rec.gc.ca.

Definition 1: System throughput divided by pipeline design capacity.
Definition 2: Hydrocarbons recovered from natural gas or condensate as liquids when they are under slightly higher pressures and slightly lower temperatures. These liquids include, but are not limited to, ethane, propane, butanes and pentanes plus.
Definition 3: A wide range of products refined from crude oil, such as gasoline, diesel, heating oil, and jet fuel, among others.
Definition 4: An important point along a CER-regulated pipeline system for which a company reports the throughput and capacity data that appears in the Pipeline Throughput and Capacity Data dataset. A key point can include either a major pipeline receipt or delivery point, a major point of interconnection with another pipeline, or a border point along the Canada/U.S. border.
Definition 5: In general, Group 1 companies regulated by the CER are those with more extensive systems and as such are subject to a greater degree of regulatory oversight than Group 2 companies.
Definition 6: Group 2 companies regulated by the CER tend to be smaller, have fewer shippers and are subject to a lighter degree of regulatory oversight since they are regulated on a complaint basis.
Definition 7: In general, Group 1 companies regulated by the CER are those with more extensive systems and as such are subject to a greater degree of regulatory oversight than Group 2 companies.
Definition 8: Group 2 companies regulated by the CER tend to be smaller, have fewer shippers and are subject to a lighter degree of regulatory oversight since they are regulated on a complaint basis.
Definition 9: In general, Group 1 companies regulated by the CER are those with more extensive systems and as such are subject to a greater degree of regulatory oversight than Group 2 companies.
Definition 10: Group 2 companies regulated by the CER tend to be smaller, have fewer shippers and are subject to a lighter degree of regulatory oversight since they are regulated on a complaint basis.
Definition 11: A refinery processes crude oil into refined petroleum products such as gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, and heating oil, as well as liquid petroleum gases (LPGs) such as propane and butanes.
Definition 12: In general, Group 1 companies regulated by the CER are those with more extensive systems and as such are subject to a greater degree of regulatory oversight than Group 2 companies.
Definition 13: Group 2 companies regulated by the CER tend to be smaller, have fewer shippers and are subject to a lighter degree of regulatory oversight since they are regulated on a complaint basis.
Definition 14: A liquid like a very light oil, but extracted from natural gas production. Condensate can be produced at gas wells and at natural gas processing plants (where it is also known as pentanes plus).
Definition 15: Any lighter hydrocarbon (usually pentanes plus) added to heavy crude oil or bitumen to decrease its viscosity for transport in crude oil pipelines or in rail cars.

Date modified:: 2023-11-26

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Crude oil and liquids – pipeline flow and capacity

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