General view of the Imperial Oil refinery in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada March 20, 2021.
During a conference call with analysts, Imperial CEO John Whelan announced that the Strathcona plant, Canada’s largest renewable diesel facility, completed construction and commissioning in the second quarter. “The viability of further hydrogen supplies and blue hydrogen will impact the speed of the ramp-up of the asset,” Whelan said. The C$720-million plant is designed to process over 1 billion litres of renewable diesel annually using vegetable and agricultural oils to produce lower-emission fuels for Canada’s transportation sector. While the facility currently relies on grey hydrogen, produced from natural gas without carbon capture, Whelan noted that securing blue hydrogen—made with carbon capture and storage—remains critical for scaling production.
Imperial’s financial results reflected challenging market conditions. Net income for the April-June period fell to C$949 million (approximately US$684.31 million), or C$1.86 per share, down from C$1.13 billion, or C$2.11 per share, in the same quarter last year. Lower Brent crude prices, driven by reduced global demand and increased OPEC+ oil supply, contributed to the decline. Refinery throughput dropped to 376,000 barrels per day from 387,000 barrels per day a year earlier, with refinery utilization falling to 87% from 89%.
Despite the profit decline, Imperial’s upstream production rose to 427,000 gross barrels of oil equivalent per day in the second quarter, up from 404,000 barrels a year ago. The Strathcona facility’s launch underscores Imperial’s commitment to sustainable fuel production, though its full capacity depends on reliable hydrogen supplies.
