Trans Mountain HITS Full Capacity — Asia Is Buying Every Barrel Canada Can Ship

For the first time in its history, the Trans Mountain pipeline has hit apportionment — meaning more shippers want to move oil through it than the pipeline can carry. As of June 2026, the 890,000-barrel-per-day system is full. As recently as last summer it was running at 84% capacity. The change was driven by one factor above all others: Asian buyers, locked out of Middle East supply by Iran's repeated closures of the Strait of Hormuz, turned to Canadian oil as their most reliable alternative. In this video, James Carter explains what Trans Mountain apportionment actually means, why the Hormuz crisis sent Asian demand to Alberta, and what the confirmed expansion to 1.19 million barrels per day by end of 2028 means in dollars for Canadian producers, royalties, pension funds, and the long-running argument about whether building Trans Mountain was worth $34 billion. Topics covered: What apportionment means and why it is a historic milestone How Iran's Hormuz disruption drove Asian buyers to Canadian tidewater oil The two expansion projects: DRA (90,000 bpd by 2027) and MOP (210,000 bpd by 2028) The WCS differential and what tidewater access means for Alberta royalties and pension returns The honest complications: price volatility, government ownership, expansion timeline gap Why this milestone is the strongest argument yet for the Northwest Coast pipeline — due at the Major Projects Office in 20 days AI DISCLOSURE James Carter is a real person who has created a digital clone of himself using AI voice cloning (text-to-speech) and AI-generated visuals to deliver the news. All scripts are researched and fact-checked using verified sources. This channel uses AI tools for production — not for fabricating information. DISCLAIMER Canada Current is an independent commentary channel. We are not affiliated with any government, political party, energy company, or organisation. Content is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be taken as professional financial, legal, or investment advice. #TransMountain #TMX #CanadaPipeline #AlbertaOil #CanadaEnergy #JamesCarter #CanadaCurrent #PipelineNews #MarkCarney #FullCapacity #AsiaOil #Hormuz #OilPipeline #WCSPrice #CanadaEconomy #RetirementSavings #EnergyNews #TidewaterAccess #CanadaEnergySovereignty #OilSands #NaturalResources #CanadaOilExports #PipelineCapacity #AlbertaEnergy #CanadaEnergySuperpowers