Article content

CALGARY – As Venezuela’s economy continues its “death spiral,” Canadian oil producers have capitalized on the South American country’s misery by increasing its share of the world’s largest refining market.

Venezuelan heavy oil production competes directly with Canadian oilsands barrels for space at refineries specially calibrated to process heavy blends.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Canadian oil flows into U.S. Gulf Coast market as Venezuela continues 'death spiral' Back to video

“In January, it was the first month in history — as far as we are aware — that Canadian exports to the U.S. Gulf Coast outstripped Venezuelan exports, by a very small amount,” Scotiabank commodity economist Rory Johnston said. “That’s a fairly considerable shift in the balance.”

U.S. Department of Energy data shows Canadian producers sent 463,000 barrels of oil per day in January to the U.S. Gulf Coast, which is slightly higher than the 455,000 bpd Venezuela shipped to the region.

In February, data shows Canadian shipments to the region continued to beat out Venezuelan shipments, rising to 471,000 bpd, while Venezuelan shipments to the U.S. Gulf coast fell to 416,000 bpd.