Workers position pipe during construction of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion in Abbotsford, B.C., 2023. Photo by Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press files

The startup of the expanded Trans Mountain pipeline last year has given Canadian oil producers more export capacity than they’re using, according to a new report, complicating a government push to encourage even more shipping options.

Western Canadian pipeline capacity has exceeded the volume of oil exported by an average of about 400,000 barrels a day since the Trans Mountain expansion came online in May 2024, Canada Energy Regulator data released Wednesday show. That surplus swelled to a high of 574,000 barrels a day in June.

Trans Mountain nearly tripled the capacity of Canada’s sole oil pipeline system running from Alberta

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