Cenovus Energy’s oil sands production site at Christina Lake. Image: Cenovus Energy
(Bloomberg) – Alberta’s oil production rose to a record 4.32 million barrels a day (bpd) in July as oil sands companies boosted output from well sites to fill the expanded Trans Mountain pipeline.
Output from the oil sands also climbed to a record of 3.67 million bpd, according to Alberta Energy Regulator data released Tuesday, driven by a jump in production from wells that use steam to loosen and extract bitumen from underground. July’s output was the highest in data dating back to 2010.
Oil sands producers including Cenovus Energy Inc. and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. are increasing output after last year’s expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline added almost 600,000 bpd of export capacity and supported local crude prices.
Alberta’s oil sands are the top source of crude from Canada, the world’s fourth-largest producer. Total oil production in Alberta was up 154,000 bpd in the first seven months of the year versus a year earlier, the data show.
