Trans Mountain Pipeline Hits Record Throughput as Alberta Producers Ramp Up Exports

The expanded Trans Mountain Pipeline system has reached its design capacity of 890,000 barrels per day for the first time since completing its $34-billion expansion last year, operator Trans Mountain Corporation confirmed Tuesday.

A Milestone for Canadian Energy

The achievement represents a turning point for Alberta's oil sands producers, who have long struggled with pipeline constraints that depressed the price of Western Canadian Select relative to global benchmarks. The expanded system triples the original pipeline's capacity of 300,000 barrels per day.

"This is the infrastructure moment Canada's energy sector has been waiting for," said Lisa Fong, Trans Mountain's VP of Operations. "We're now moving Canadian crude to tidewater at scale, opening up markets in Asia, India, and the U.S. West Coast that were previously inaccessible."

WCS Discount Narrows

The impact on pricing has been significant. The Western Canadian Select discount to WTI has narrowed to $14.20 per barrel from over $25 a year ago, translating to billions in additional revenue for producers including Suncor Energy, Canadian Natural Resources, Cenovus Energy, and Imperial Oil.

RBC Capital Markets estimates the narrower differential adds approximately $8 billion annually in revenue to Canada's oil sands sector, with direct benefits flowing to provincial royalty revenues in Alberta.

Export Destinations Diversify

Shipments from the Westridge Marine Terminal in Burnaby, B.C., have loaded 47 Aframax tankers since the expansion came online, with cargoes destined for refineries in China, South Korea, Japan, India, and California. March volumes are on pace to set a monthly record.

"The diversification of export markets is exactly what the National Energy Board envisioned when it approved this project," said energy analyst Kevin Birn of S&P Global Commodity Insights. "Canada is no longer a captive supplier to U.S. Midwest refiners."

Alberta Producers Respond

Several major producers have announced production increases in response to improved netbacks. Canadian Natural Resources raised its 2026 guidance by 15,000 barrels per day last week, while Suncor confirmed it would restart a previously idled upgrader unit at Fort McMurray.

The Alberta Energy Regulator reported 127 new well licenses issued in the first two weeks of March, up 18% year-over-year, signalling continued investment confidence in the province's upstream sector.