Pipe Power: The Backbone of Canada’s Energy Infrastructure

There is a lot that we take for granted everyday such as the heating in our homes, the fuel for our vehicles, and the electricity used for everyday products such as our phones, refrigerators, and lights. There is an endless list of energy demands that people have and it’s thanks to efficient and affordable transportation of our oil and gas that many of those demands are met. But how is oil getting transported in the first place?

When we think of the transportation of oil and gas, many of us instantly think of pipelines. How can we not? Pipelines are often at the center of media stories we are exposed to regarding oil and gas. However, there are many other ways that we are transporting oil and gas other than pipelines including rail, trucks, and tankers. The best transport options will let companies move the most amount of oil and gas they can while minimizing costs and impact to the environment. How do pipelines compare to other methods?

Out of all the crude oil transportation methods, 87.6% of Canada’s crude oil exports are being transported by pipelines, 7.8% by tanker, and 4.6% by rail. Is there merit to pipelines that justifies those numbers? Absolutely!

Pipelines are considered to be the safest and most efficient way to move large volumes of oil and natural gas from production areas to refineries, petrochemical plants and even to our home and businesses for use. 99.999% of oil that’s transported on federally regulated pipelines is transported safely to its destination.

Economically, it makes sense to use pipelines. The cost of transporting oil by pipeline is around $5 per barrel. Rail is two to three times more expensive than moving the same volume of oil by pipeline with transport costs of roughly $10 per barrel. Coming in at four times the costs of pipelines, truck transport costs around $20 per barrel.

Environmentally, pipelines also perform better. A study from the University of Alberta found that pipelines create 61 to 77% less greenhouse gas emissions than rail when transporting over 50,000 barrels per day. Pipelines safely export about 3 million barrels of oil per day in Canada, while only spilling an average spill volume of 77 barrels under regulated pipelines. Rail transports about 150,000 barrels of oil per day while spilling an average of 440 barrels of oil. Trucks are only capable of moving between 200-250 barrels of oil per movement with an average spill volume of 23 barrels. In short, pipelines transport the most amount of oil with the least number of spills.

When we look to other countries across the globe for oil, it’s getting transported by tankers. Comparing pipelines to rail, pipelines are 2.5 times safer than rail when transporting oil to tankers. Marine tankers have a spill rate of less than 0.001 per million barrels of oil shipped, making tankers the safest and most environmentally safest way to transport Canadian oil to global markets.

With this in mind, the development of pipelines in Canada and exporting oil would greatly benefit the country. Pipelines generate 16.4 billion in revenue in Canada. This revenue helps all Canadians as it supports government-funded initiatives such as our social programs, healthcare, and education.

Public opinion about pipelines has been heavily discredited by anti-development groups doing everything they can to stop our pipelines from being built or exporting oil and gas. This can end up doing more harm than good to people, planet, and prosperity. We are blessed to have an abundance of oil and gas in Canada and we should be proud that the vast majority of our industry is committed to providing prosperity for us all while caring for our people and planet.

In response to concerns about the ideal method of transporting oil & gas, each method has its own unique advantages and disadvantages. Each mode of transportation will be needed as long as we require oil and gas to fill the needs of industry. For example, we need trucks and rails to serve remote locations that aren’t accessible by pipeline, but for the large amounts of oil and gas we need for modern industry and trade, pipelines are a necessity. Given the benefits and safety of pipelines, doesn’t it make sense to use the cheapest method that transports the most oil and gas, with little environmental impact?