It wasn’t that long ago that Western Canada was awash in propane, sending the vast surplus for export by railcar to the U.S. That has changed in the past two years as direct exports to Asia opened up and Canada’s domestic demand for propane rose. With supplies becoming tighter, the combined effect with increasing demand spells trouble for higher exports to the U.S. this winter, a time when they are desperately needed. In today’s RBN blog, we explore the current Western Canadian propane market and what might be next in store.
Western Canada is being pulled deeper into the incredible frenzy surrounding U.S. and global propane markets. Driven by an expanding connection to overseas customers, domestic demand that continues to increase, and supplies which have struggled to keep up, Canada’s propane situation is looking eerily similar to that of its southern neighbor. The U.S. market has been under increasing stress to satisfy its domestic and export customers against tight supplies, resulting in some regionally below-average propane inventories only weeks before the onset of the next heating season. Our blog What’s Price Got to Do With It provides a perspective on the current tightness in the U.S. propane market. Western Canada’s propane production has usually been a reliable backstop when U.S. market conditions are as on the edge as they are now, but things may be ominously different this winter, and maybe next year too.
The RBN Energy U.S. Propane Infrastructure map provides a comprehensive view of the propane supply network in the lower 48 states.
This is not the first time that we’ve blogged about what’s been an ongoing transformation of the Western Canada propane market. Last year, in our three-part series Hold on to Your Hat, we laid out the evolving state of propane balances in Western Canada, and how it pointed to a reduction in railed exports to the U.S., especially into the all-important Midwest (PADD 2), a region reliant on Canadian supplies to backfill winter heating needs. Those railed exports did not turn out to be quite as constrained as we feared last winter, but we think last year’s developments may have just been a warm-up.
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About the song
“Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” was written by Boy George, Mikey Craig, Roy Hay and Jon Moss. It appears as the fourth song on side two of Culture Club’s debut album, Kissing to be Clever. Released as the first single off the album in the U.S. in September 1982, it went to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart. The song is a ballad that is a throwback to American Songbook torch songs of the past. Personnel on the record were: Boy George (vocals), Roy Hay (guitar, keyboards, electric sitar). Mikey Craig (bass), and Jon Moss (drums, percussion).
Kissing to be Clever was the debut album of Culture Club, the new wave British R&B/pop band that features the vocals of androgynous singer Boy George. The album was recorded in 1982 at Red Bus Studios in London and produced by Steve Levine. Released in the U.S. in December 1982, it went to #14 on the Billboard 200 Albums charts and has been certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Five singles were released from the LP.
Culture Club is an English new wave R&B/pop band formed in London in 1981 by vocalist Boy George (George Alan O'Dowd), guitarist and keyboardist Roy Hay, bassist Mikey Craig, and drummer Jon Moss. They have released six studio albums, four live albums, 14 compilation albums, three EPs and 29 singles and have sold more than 50 million records worldwide. The band has won two ASCAP Awards, a Billboard Music Award, three Brit Awards, a Grammy Award and two Ivor Novello Awards. Nine members have passed through the group since its formation. Original members George, Craig and Hay are joined by touring members Meryl-Anne Evanson on drums and Darren Lewis on keyboards for live dates. The band will be playing several festivals in Europe this summer. Boy George has a successful solo career as an artist and DJ that includes the release of nine studio albums, a soundtrack album, five compilation albums, three EPs, and 48 singles.
