How much does the oil and gas industry spend in B.C.?

Oil and gas spent $2.5 billion in Fort St. John

A new report from the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers is proving Fort St. John to be the centre of oil and gas spending in British Columbia. The city attracted more than half of the $4.

The oil and gas industry spent on $448 million on drilling and completion services in Fort St. John between 2018 and 2021, according to a new study from the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers. (File)

A new report from the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers is proving Fort St. John to be the centre of oil and gas spending in British Columbia.

The city attracted more than half of the $4.7-billion spent by industry between 2018 and 2021 — $2.5 billion, to be precise, according to CAPP’s Our Communities Care report released today.

The study was conducted with iTOTEM Analytics over 10 months to analyze industry spending on goods, materials, and services for natural gas operations in the province, and the economic impacts in communities.

According to the study, more than $4.7-billion in expenditures were paid to 2,400-plus B.C. businesses in 140 municipalities and First Nation communities.

That included 870 businesses based in Fort St. John, 50 of them Indigenous owned, “the greatest number of businesses active in B.C. natural gas operations,” according to the study.

And of the industry’s $2.5-billion spend with city-based businesses, $524 million was spent on equipment services, $448 million on drilling and completion, $351 million on construction, $199 million on transportation, and $140 million on environmental and industrial waste services.

“We are very proud of Fort St. John’s role as a major economic engine for the province,” Mayor Lilia Hansen said in a provided statement.

“Also important is that the work done in the Northeast benefits businesses across the province from Creston to Bamfield to Vancouver. While the report shows the benefits being created today, it also demonstrates the opportunity that liquified natural gas (LNG) exports present as a long-term opportunity for our region to grow.”

But it’s not just Fort St. John where industry spending is being concentrated.

The study found that $632 million was spent in Dawson Creek between 2018 and 2021, where "health and safety services had a high level of supply chain participation,” the study noted.

In Vancouver, $337 million was spent, with the city outperforming others in chemical supply to industry, the study said.

Rounding out the top five communities that saw the most industry spending were Pouce Coupe and Wonowon.

Industry overall spent $1 billion on construction between 2018 and 2021, as well as $705 million on drilling and completion services, and $778 million on equipment services and maintenance.

Industry also spent $260 million on reclamation and $16.8 million on sponsorships, donations, and other community investments, according to the report.

“British Columbia is on the cusp of becoming one of the most important energy export hubs in the world,” said CAPP President and CEO Lisa Baiton in a statement.“As the iTotem study shows, the industry has been built on a foundation of respectful partnerships with Indigenous Nations and local municipalities, benefiting citizens right across the province.

"The emerging liquified natural gas industry on the West coast is a generational opportunity that will help reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by providing some of the lowest emission natural gas on the planet, while being a source of prosperity for British Columbians and Indigenous Nations for decades to come,” Baiton said.