Publications

Survey of Energy Resources 2007

Natural Gas Country Notes

Canada's gas reserves are the third largest in the Western Hemisphere. The proved recoverable reserves correspond with 'remaining established reserves' of marketable natural gas at 31 December, 2005, as assessed by the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) in its 2006 Statistical Handbook.

The recoverable established reserves are estimated to be 1 633 bcm. Western Canada is estimated to have an additional 2 700 bcm of natural gas. The provinces with the largest gas resources are Alberta (with 71% of remaining established reserves), British Columbia (21%) and Saskatchewan (6%).

The East Coast Offshore has about 15 bcm of proven reserves, with a potential for a further 500 bcm.

As with crude oil, the National Energy Board (NEB) undertook probabilistic estimates for the Mackenzie-Beaufort region, and it estimates that there could be 255 bcm of marketable natural gas at the mean probability. Additional resources in excess of 3 000 bcm could exist in Canada's north. At this time the Mackenzie Valley gas pipeline project, which would carry approximately 35 million m³/d to southern markets, is in the regulatory hearing phase.

Coal-bed methane has recently received a great deal of interest; production from Alberta was almost 2 million m³/d in 2004. Estimates of the recoverable resource are notoriously difficult to obtain. Figures of up to 7 000 bcm have been published, although there is no consensus.

Gross production of Canadian natural gas is the third highest in the world. Marketed gas output in 2005 was 176 bcm. Over 50% was exported to the United States. The largest users of gas within Canada are the industrial, residential and commercial sectors. A relatively small proportion is consumed in electricity generation.