CALGARY, Alberta, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- Growth in U.S. shale oil production means the country will need less foreign crude oil, including that sourced from Canada, a regulator said.
The National Energy Board of Canada took note of the growth in U.S. oil production, eclipsing 9 million barrels per day in October 2014 for the highest level in nearly 30 years. During the last five years, the NEB said, growth in U.S. oil production is equal to the entire output from Canada.
Canada sends more than 95 percent of its exported crude oil to the U.S. market. Before the shale era began in the last decade, the NEB said the United States was expected to need more foreign-sourced crude oil.
"However, the growth in U.S. domestic production has changed that perception," the agency said in a Thursday report. "While Canadian crude oil can still increase its share of the U.S. market by displacing other foreign crude oils, the U.S. is expected to be significantly less reliant on imports for the foreseeable future."
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has courted European and Asian partners in an effort to tap overseas crude oil markets. Canadian Ambassador to the United States Gary Doer, meanwhile, is in Washington meeting with leaders there to discuss the Keystone XL oil pipeline.
Keystone XL, a TransCanada project proposed more than six years ago, would bring crude oil from Alberta to refineries along the southern U.S. coast. The pipeline has become a scapegoat for U.S. energy policies, with opponents expressing concern over the perceived environmental threats from the heavier grade of Canadian crude oil.
Tim McMillan, president of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, said in a short-term review more pipeline access to export markets was necessary for the durability of the country's energy sector.
"We continue to need all forms of transportation in all directions -- pipelines in particular," he said earlier this week.
The NEB noted the decline in global crude oil prices was in part a reflection of the increase in U.S. oil production. That means further strains on Canadian oil output, which is expensive to produce. CAPP said it expects Canadian oil production to decline by 65,000 bpd this year and 120,000 bpd in 2016.
