Discount on Western Canada Select Widens Again

(Reuters) – The discount on Western Canada Select to North American benchmark West Texas Intermediate futures widened again on Monday.

WCS for January delivery in Hardisty, Alberta, settled at $13.15 a barrel below the U.S. benchmark WTI, according to brokerage CalRock, compared to $12.95 on Friday.

• After spending much of the year in the $9-$11 range, in large part due to the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion which has given Canadian oil producers additional export capacity, the WCS discount has recently widened.
• “We are attributing the wider differential primarily to seasonality,” said Enverus analyst Michael Berger. “Differentials tend to widen into year-end and remain wider through Q1.”
• A discount ranging between $12.50 and $13.50 below WTI is still considered strong pricing for Canadian heavy crude at this time of year, Berger said.
• Oil prices slipped 2% on Monday after Iraq restored production at one of its oilfields which accounts for 0.5% of world oil supply, while investors weighed ongoing talks to end the war in Ukraine.

Reporting by Amanda Stephenson in Calgary; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri

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