Alberta is destroying the planet through fossil fuel production, said Yves-François Blanchet, leader of the Bloc Québécois, in a press conference on Thursday.
"Let's imagine that Quebec is an independent and free country," he said. "We will go on the world stage to say that Alberta is destroying the environment of the whole planet. So, I will say the same thing, either (a new pipeline) goes through Quebec or not."
"The idea of augmenting the volume of oil and gas which is extracted and then burned and consumed is irresponsible. I would agree with real measures to help Western Canada to transform, in time, progressively, its economy, in order to get all of us out of this economy which is destroying the planet slowly, but more and more clearly than ever."
Quebec does not produce any commercially viable crude oil domestically, relying entirely on imports for its refinery inputs. The province's two refineries (Suncor's in Montreal and Valero's in Lévis) process around 370,000 barrels per day, primarily for gasoline, diesel, and other petroleum products consumed in Quebec and exported to Ontario.
Western Canada, primarily Alberta, is now the largest source, supplying about 44–60% of Quebec's crude. This includes heavy oil from Alberta's oil sands, transported via Enbridge Line 9 (from Sarnia, Ontario) and supplemented by rail shipments. This shift began post-2013 and accelerated after 2015.
The United States accounts for 20–30% of supply, mainly light crude from the U.S. Midwest and Bakken formation (North Dakota). It arrives via pipelines (e.g., Enbridge and Portland-Montreal connections), rail, and some marine imports from U.S. Atlantic ports.
International Imports: Roughly 10–20% remains from overseas, down from over 90% in 2012. Key origins include Africa (e.g., Angola, Algeria), Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and residual volumes from Kazakhstan. These arrive by tanker via the St. Lawrence River.
Given its geography, Quebec generates over 94% of its electricity from hydroelectric power.