Canada's Pipeline to the Pacific Hits Capacity Due to Asian Demand

The Trans Mountain pipeline, which carries oil from Alberta to the Pacific Ocean, is filling up due to increased demand from Asian buyers.

Since the Strait of Hormuz was disrupted in February, Asian buyers have been turning to Canada for oil instead of relying on Persian Gulf supplies.

Trans Mountain Corp., the federal Crown corporation that owns the pipeline, wants to reserve 90% of its capacity for companies with long-term contracts, up from 80%. This would leave only about 89,000 barrels a day available for other shippers.

The increased demand has been driven by uncertainty in global crude markets and the disruption to the Strait of Hormuz, which has made it harder to predict how full the pipeline will run.