Venezuela Shock Threatens to Deepen Alberta’s Budget Woes
The Alberta Legislature building in Edmonton.
Photographer: Geoff Robins/AFP/Getty ImagesAlberta is facing its toughest fiscal situation since the pandemic as a possible flood of Venezuelan oil depresses the price of heavy crude, one of the Canadian province’s largest sources of revenue.
US President Donald Trump said on Jan. 6 that Venezuela would release as many as 50 million barrels of oil after US forces captured President Nicolas Maduro. Venezuelan crude is similar to the dense, high-sulfur product produced in Alberta’s oil sands, and the prospect of millions of barrels being made available to Gulf Coast refineries has widened the discount for Canadian crude.