Canada is now the fourth producer in the world as well as the fourth exporter. Despite being in the fourth position in this sense, you should ask yourself which other superpower in the oil sector is so politically stable and can rely on free market and rule of law. The answer is no one! The magnitude generated by the combination of the different elements gives as an outcome that of a unique superpower.

What’s more, along with the United States, many other countries are becoming part of the customers for Canadian petrol reserves, and most of them are developing countries, such as China and India. What’s important to highlight is that Canada is successfully trying to diversify its market; such a factor is important because it provides Canada with a safer panorama, for it can rely on many countries which, by the way, have a much higher rate of growth vis-à-vis the United States. The policies undertaken by Canada in this sense suggest that it has also been able to pave the way for a promising future both in the short and in the long-run.

Why do we place so much importance on oil? Well, essentially because it is one of the main sources of revenue for the country and much depends on it. In order to have a more precise idea, recent studies declared that oil extraction represents roughly the 3% of Canadian GDP, while crude oil is about 14% of total exports. Oil is widely considered as a commodity and its demand is inelastic, which means that its sales will not be affected whatever the general situation. In addition, the price of oil has increased constantly over the last decade providing very high revenues. The economy itself has taken great advantage from such factor.

Even though there are some specific people who have most profited from the situation, the economy has been definitely kept alive by the role played by oil. Such people are exactly those owning big empires of oil reserves, especially in the western part of the country. Here are some of them:

  • The Irving brothers, who inherited a great empire and managed to make the most out of it thanks to huge investments. They’re now recognized as the second richest family in Canada, whose net worth rounds up to 4 billion dollars.
  • Murray Edwards, currently owner of the consulting firm Edco Financial Holdings. His fortune stems from the possession of an important role at the Canadian Natural Resources, a company that wisely decided to bet on the Horizon Oil Sands Project in Alberta. Further investments were made by Murray Edwards on the Penn West Energy Trust and the Ensign Energy, adding even more revenue to the rich cashes of the entrepreneur.
  • Clayton Riddel, founder of Paramount Resouces. As a former geologist, he was able to discover reserves of oil in remote areas of the country, a process that is still a pillar of his company. He is estimated to have a net worth of 1.3 billion dollars.

Even though such people seem to have benefited most from the oil market, it is also true that the whole economy enjoyed huge revenues from it and was able to form an isolation bubble, which prevented it from entering the global recession.