The purpose of this survey is to obtain information on the volume of refined petroleum products distributed by secondary distributors in Canada. It supplements energy consumption data collected from the refineries in the Annual Survey on End-Use of Refined Petroleum Product.
Your information may also be used by Statistics Canada for other statistical and research purposes. In addition, information from partially completed or unsaved questionnaires may be retained and used.
Collection period:
From February 2 to April 4, 2024
Collection methods:
Electronic questionnaire
Survey participation:
Mandatory under the Statistics Act
Confidentiality
Data are collected under the authority of the Statistics Act, Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985, Chapter S-19.
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.
Data sharing agreements and record linkage
Data sharing agreements
To reduce response 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 for statistical purposes only. Statistics Canada will share data from this survey only 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 include 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, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia and the Yukon. The data shared 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 following provincial/territorial ministries and federal organizations:
- Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Industry, Energy and Technology
- New Brunswick Department of Environment and Local Government
- Ministère de l'Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs du Québec
- Ministère des Finances du Québec
- Ministère de l’Économie, de l’Innovation et de l’Énergie du Québec
- British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation
- Canada Energy Regulator
- Natural Resources Canada
- Environment and Climate Change Canada
For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the data shared will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.
Record linkage
To enhance the data from this survey and reduce response burden, Statistics Canada may combine the information you provide with data from other surveys or administrative sources.
Topics covered in the survey
The survey asks questions about
- energy
- petroleum products.
Published data
Statistics Canada publishes the results of its surveys in many formats. To find all the documents related to this survey, follow the links below and type the name of the survey in the search engine located at the left of your screen to filter the results.
Data: You will find tables, profiles of a community or region, thematic maps, public use microdata files, and data visualization tools.
Analysis: You will have direct access to Stats in brief (e.g., releases from The Daily, fact sheets), articles and reports, and journals and periodicals.
Survey-specific questions
- What is the purpose of the Annual Survey of Secondary Distributors of Refined Petroleum Products?
- Who is surveyed?
- I'm a small business. Why can you not just survey the big companies?
- Who uses this information? Why is it important?
What is the purpose of the Annual Survey of Secondary Distributors of Refined Petroleum Products?
The purpose of this survey is to collects sales, in litres, by province and territory and by major economic sectors, for five types of refined petroleum products: propane, motor gasoline, heating oil, diesel fuel and heavy fuel. The information is collected from all main secondary distributors of refined petroleum products.
Who is surveyed?
The survey population is comprised of all establishments engaged in the resale of motor gasoline, diesel fuel, propane, heating fuel and heavy fuel. Under the North American Industry Classification (NAICS), these establishments are classified as either fuel resellers (code 4572) or petroleum wholesalers (code 412). The observed population is comprised of those establishments in the target population for which business information is available on Statistics Canada's Business Register and whose revenue exceeds a minimum threshold or cut-off.
I'm a small business. Why can you not just survey the big companies?
Although Statistics Canada always collects information from large businesses, we cannot overlook the importance of smaller businesses. Small businesses, like yours, have different characteristics from large businesses and make a significant contribution to the economy, particularly at the provincial and territorial level.
Who uses this information? Why is it important?
This survey will improve demand statistics of refined petroleum products for the Report on Energy Supply and Demand (RESD) which presents a comprehensive picture of Canada's energy supply and demand by each major sector of the economy and by province and territory. This Statistics Canada publication is used by all levels of government in establishing informed policies to encourage efficient use of energy and to monitor levels of pollutants released into the atmosphere.