Archived - Monthly Natural Gas Storage Survey 2021

Archived information

Archived information is provided for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It is not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards and has not been altered or updated since it was archived. Please contact us to request a format other than those available.

Why are we conducting this survey?

This survey is conducted by Statistics Canada in order to collect the necessary information to support the Integrated Business Statistics Program (IBSP). This program combines various survey and administrative data to develop comprehensive measures of the Canadian economy.

The statistical information from the IBSP serves many purposes, including:

  • Obtaining information on the supply of and/or demand for energy in Canada
  • Enabling governmental agencies to fulfill their regulatory responsibilities in regards to public utilities
  • Enabling all levels of government to establish informed policies in the energy area
  • Assisting the business community in the corporate decision-making process.

Your information may also be used by Statistics Canada for other statistical and research purposes.

Your participation in this survey is required under the authority of the Statistics Act.

Other important information

Authorization to collect this information

Data are collected under the authority of the Statistics Act, Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985, Chapter S-19.

Confidentiality

By law, Statistics Canada is prohibited from releasing any information it collects that could identify any person, business, or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent, or as permitted by the Statistics Act. Statistics Canada will use the information from this survey for statistical purposes only.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey and to reduce the reporting burden, Statistics Canada may combine the acquired data with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data-sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which have agreed to keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial and territorial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Québec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia and the Yukon. The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations. Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician, specifying the organizations with which you do not want Statistics Canada to share your data and mailing it to the following address:

Chief Statistician of Canada
Statistics Canada
Attention of Director, Enterprise Statistics Division
150 Tunney's Pasture Driveway
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0T6

You may also contact us by email at statcan.esdhelpdesk-dsebureaudedepannage.statcan@statcan.gc.ca or by fax at 613-951-6583.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the statistical agencies of Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut as well as with the Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Natural Resources, the New Brunswick Department of Environment and Local Government, the ministère des Finances du Québec, the ministère de l'Environnement et de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques du Québec,the ministère de l'Energie et des Ressources naturelles du Québec, the Manitoba Department of Growth, Enterprise and Trade, the British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, the Canada Energy Regulator, Natural Resources Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Business or organization and contact information

1. Verify or provide the business or organization's legal and operating name and correct where needed.

Note: Legal name modifications should only be done to correct a spelling error or typo.

Legal Name

The legal name is one recognized by law, thus it is the name liable for pursuit or for debts incurred by the business or organization. In the case of a corporation, it is the legal name as fixed by its charter or the statute by which the corporation was created.

Modifications to the legal name should only be done to correct a spelling error or typo.

To indicate a legal name of another legal entity you should instead indicate it in question 3 by selecting 'Not currently operational' and then choosing the applicable reason and providing the legal name of this other entity along with any other requested information.

Operating Name

The operating name is a name the business or organization is commonly known as if different from its legal name. The operating name is synonymous with trade name.

  • Legal name
  • Operating name (if applicable)

2. Verify or provide the contact information of the designated business or organization contact person for this questionnaire and correct where needed.

Note: The designated contact person is the person who should receive this questionnaire. The designated contact person may not always be the one who actually completes the questionnaire.

  • First name
  • Last name
  • Title
  • Preferred language of communication
    • English
    • French
  • Mailing address (number and street)
  • City
  • Province, territory or state
  • Postal code or ZIP code
  • Country
    • Canada
    • United States
  • Email address
  • Telephone number (including area code)
  • Extension number (if applicable)
    The maximum number of characters is 10.
  • Fax number (including area code)

3. Verify or provide the current operational status of the business or organization identified by the legal and operating name above.

  • Operational
  • Not currently operational (e.g., temporarily or permanently closed, change of ownership)
    Why is this business or organization not currently operational?
    • Seasonal operations
      • When did this business or organization close for the season?
        • Date
      • When does this business or organization expect to resume operations?
        • Date
    • Ceased operations
      • When did this business or organization cease operations?
        • Date
      • Why did this business or organization cease operations?
        • Bankruptcy
        • Liquidation
        • Dissolution
        • Other - Specify the other reasons why the operations ceased
    • Sold operations
      • When was this business or organization sold?
        • Date
      • What is the legal name of the buyer?
    • Amalgamated with other businesses or organizations
      • When did this business or organization amalgamate?
        • Date
      • What is the legal name of the resulting or continuing business or organization?
      • What are the legal names of the other amalgamated businesses or organizations?
    • Temporarily inactive but will re-open
      • When did this business or organization become temporarily inactive?
        • Date
      • When does this business or organization expect to resume operations?
        • Date
      • Why is this business or organization temporarily inactive?
    • No longer operating due to other reasons
      • When did this business or organization cease operations?
        • Date
      • Why did this business or organization cease operations?

4. Verify or provide the current main activity of the business or organization identified by the legal and operating name above.

Note: The described activity was assigned using the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).

This question verifies the business or organization's current main activity as classified by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is an industry classification system developed by the statistical agencies of Canada, Mexico and the United States. Created against the background of the North American Free Trade Agreement, it is designed to provide common definitions of the industrial structure of the three countries and a common statistical framework to facilitate the analysis of the three economies. NAICS is based on supply-side or production-oriented principles, to ensure that industrial data, classified to NAICS , are suitable for the analysis of production-related issues such as industrial performance.

The target entity for which NAICS is designed are businesses and other organizations engaged in the production of goods and services. They include farms, incorporated and unincorporated businesses and government business enterprises. They also include government institutions and agencies engaged in the production of marketed and non-marketed services, as well as organizations such as professional associations and unions and charitable or non-profit organizations and the employees of households.

The associated NAICS should reflect those activities conducted by the business or organizational units targeted by this questionnaire only, as identified in the 'Answering this questionnaire' section and which can be identified by the specified legal and operating name. The main activity is the activity which most defines the targeted business or organization's main purpose or reason for existence. For a business or organization that is for-profit, it is normally the activity that generates the majority of the revenue for the entity.

The NAICS classification contains a limited number of activity classifications; the associated classification might be applicable for this business or organization even if it is not exactly how you would describe this business or organization's main activity.

Please note that any modifications to the main activity through your response to this question might not necessarily be reflected prior to the transmitting of subsequent questionnaires and as a result they may not contain this updated information.

The following is the detailed description including any applicable examples or exclusions for the classification currently associated with this business or organization.

Description and examples

  • This is the current main activity
  • This is not the current main activity

Provide a brief but precise description of this business or organization's main activity

e.g., breakfast cereal manufacturing, shoe store, software development

Main activity

5. You indicated that is not the current main activity. Was this business or organization's main activity ever classified as: ?

  • Yes
    • When did the main activity change?
      Date
  • No

6. Search and select the industry classification code that best corresponds to this business or organization's main activity.

Select this business or organization's activity sector (optional)

  • Farming or logging operation
  • Construction company or general contractor
  • Manufacturer
  • Wholesaler
  • Retailer
  • Provider of passenger or freight transportation
  • Provider of investment, savings or insurance products
  • Real estate agency, real estate brokerage or leasing company
  • Provider of professional, scientific or technical services
  • Provider of health care or social services
  • Restaurant, bar, hotel, motel or other lodging establishment
  • Other sector

Method of collection

1. Indicate whether you will be answering the remaining questions or attaching files with the required information.

  • Answering the remaining questions
  • Attaching files

Inventory of natural gas

1. For the reference month, what were the opening inventories in gigajoules (GJ) of cushion gas and working gas stored at your Canadian facilities?

Report all natural gas stored at your Canadian facilities, whether owned by this business or by a third party. Do not include natural gas that is stored elsewhere, but owned by this business.

For your convenience, last month's closing inventory is being used as this month's opening inventory. Please correct if necessary and provide any missing values.

Opening inventory of natural gas

Opening inventory of base or cushion gas

Report total amount of base or cushion gas held by the establishment on the first day of the month under review. This should equal the closing inventory of the previous month.

Base gas, also referred to as cushion gas, is the amount of gas that must be present in storage at all times to maintain a storage facility's pressure.

Opening inventory of working gas

Report total amount of working gas held by the establishment on the first day of the month under review. This should equal the closing inventory of the previous month.

Working gas is the amount of gas that can be withdrawn from storage while maintaining a storage facility's minimum operating pressure.

Total opening inventory of natural gas

Report total amount of natural gas held by the establishment on the first day of the month under review. This should equal the sum of the base/cushion gas and working gas.

For the reference month, what were the opening inventories in gigajoules (GJ) of cushion gas and working gas stored at your Canadian facilities?
  Quantity in GJ
Base or cushion gas  
Working gas  
Total opening inventory of natural gas  

2. For the reference month, what were the closing inventories in gigajoules (GJ) of cushion gas and working gas stored at your Canadian facilities?

Report all natural gas stored at your Canadian facilities, whether owned by this business or by a third party. Do not include natural gas that is stored elsewhere, but owned by this business.

Closing inventory of natural gas

Closing inventory of base or cushion gas

Report total amount of base or cushion gas held by the establishment on the last day of the month under review.

Base gas, also referred to as cushion gas, is the amount of gas that must be present in storage at all times to maintain a storage facility's pressure.

Closing inventory of working gas

Report total amount of working gas held by the establishment on the last day of the month under review.

Working gas is the amount of gas that can be withdrawn from storage while maintaining a storage facility's minimum operating pressure.

Total closing inventory of natural gas

Report total amount of natural gas held by the establishment on the last day of the month under review. This should equal the sum of the base/cushion gas and working gas.

For the reference month, what were the closing inventories in gigajoules (GJ) of cushion gas and working gas stored at your Canadian facilities?
  Quantity in GJ
Base or cushion gas  
Working gas  
Total closing inventory of natural gas  

Heating value of stored natural gas

3. At the end of the reference month, what was the heating value of stored natural gas in gigajoules per thousand cubic metres (equivalent to megajoules per cubic metre)?

Heat value of stored natural gas

Heating value of stored natural gas in gigajoules per thousand cubic metres.

Report heat content of your natural gas held in storage for the month under review.

Heating value on last day of month ( GJ per thousand cubic metres)

Injections, withdrawals and inventory adjustments for natural gas storage

4. For the reference month, what were the following quantities in gigajoules (GJ) of natural gas?

Injections, withdrawals and other adjustments for natural gas storage

Injected into storage

Report total amount of natural gas received by the establishment for month under review.

Withdrawn from storage

Report total amount of natural gas delivered by the establishment for month under review.

Other adjustments

This calculated amount is the difference between (1) opening and closing inventories and (2) injections and withdrawals. This difference includes discrepancies due to meter inaccuracies and/or leakage or other losses. Inventory adjustments can be a positive or negative value.

Inventory adjustments = (closing - opening inventories) - (injections - withdrawals)

Net change in inventory

The net change in inventory is calculated as: injections - withdrawals + other adjustments.

The net change in inventory should be equal to closing inventory minus opening inventory.

For the reference month, what were the following quantities in gigajoules (GJ) of natural gas?
  Quantity in GJ
Injected into storage  
Withdrawn from storage  
Other adjustments  
Net change in inventory  

Natural gas held in the United States

5. Does this business hold natural gas in storage facilities in the United States for eventual use in Canada?

Natural gas held in the United States

Natural gas in storage facilities in the United States

Report total amount of natural gas held by the establishment in storage facilities located in the United States for eventual use in Canada.

  • Yes
  • No

6. At the start of the reference month, what was the quantity in gigajoules (GJ) of natural gas held in storage facilities in the United States for eventual use in Canada?

Quantity in GJ

7. At the end of the reference month, what was the quantity in gigajoules (GJ) of natural gas held in storage facilities in the United States for eventual use in Canada?

Quantity in GJ

Changes or events

1. Indicate any changes or events that affected the reported values for this business or organization, compared with the last reporting period.

Select all that apply.

  • Strike or lock-out
  • Exchange rate impact
  • Price changes in goods or services sold
  • Contracting out
  • Organizational change
  • Price changes in labour or raw materials
  • Natural disaster
  • Recession
  • Change in product line
  • Sold business or business units
  • Expansion
  • New or lost contract
  • Plant closures
  • Acquisition of business or business units
  • Other
    Specify the other changes or events:
  • No changes or events

Contact person

1. Statistics Canada may need to contact the person who completed this questionnaire for further information. Is the provided given names and the provided family name the best person to contact?

  • Yes
  • No

Who is the best person to contact about this questionnaire?

  • First name:
  • Last name:
  • Title:
  • Email address:
  • Telephone number (including area code):
  • Extension number (if applicable):
    The maximum number of characters is 5.
  • Fax number (including area code):

Feedback

1. How long did it take to complete this questionnaire?

Include the time spent gathering the necessary information.

  • Hours:
  • Minutes:

2. Do you have any comments about this questionnaire?

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