HOUSTON: US midcontinent refiners helped push Canadian crude imports to the US to a new record in August, according to the latest Energy Information Administration data.
Marathon Petroleum in particular increased deliveries of Canadian production as imports of the country’s crude reached 3.4mn b/d — roughly 44pc of the 7.6mn b/d total US imports for the month. The previous high-water mark for Canadian crude to the US was 3.3mn b/d in December 2014.
Medium and heavy Canadian imports to the midcontinent increased by 323,129 b/d compared to the previous month, more than offsetting overall declines to the US Gulf coast and the US west coast.
US Atlantic coast refiners also boosted imports of Canadian crude by 78,290 b/d in August. PBF Energy, the region’s only operator of coking capacity, increased heavy imports by 14,161 b/d, but Philadelphia Energy Solutions and Phillips 66 added most of the increase by pushing imports of Canadian light crudes higher by 66,677 b/d from the previous month.
Imports of Brazilian crude in August reached their highest level in more than three years, averaging 339,129 b/d. Venezuelan crude imports increased by 71,291 b/d.
