Parkland-Sunoco deal comes amid fraught U.S.-Canada relations, resource nationalism

Ottawa is weighing the proposed takeover of Calgary-based Parkland Corp. by American fuel distributor Sunoco LP at a time of fraught Canada-U. S. relations and amped-up resource nationalism.

The $9.1-billion US friendly deal announced last week is subject to a review under the Investment Canada Act, which considers whether it will be a net benefit to the country and unlikely to harm national security.

Parkland sells fuel under the Ultramar, Chevron and Pioneer gas station brands in Canada and also owns a refinery in Burnaby, B.C.

In March, Ottawa updated the national security guidelines under the Investment Canada Act to account for potential harms to Canada's economic security through enhanced integration between the Canadian company and a foreign economy.

Late last week, the president of the union representing 150 workers at Parkland's Burnaby refinery said critical energy infrastructure should not be handed over to a foreign multinational in the middle of a trade war.

Jennifer Quaid, who teaches corporate law at the University of Ottawa, says the timing of the bid could be unlucky for Parkland and Sunoco as heightened attention is being paid to U.S. President Donald Trump.

The flurry of tariff and annexation threats coming from Trump have intensified calls for Canada to develop its own resources and build infrastructure allowing access to markets outside of the United States.

"Rightly or wrongly, there will be more attention focused on it because it's an American acquisition in a sector that we are paying a lot of attention to right now in terms of Canadian capacity," Quaid said.

Parkland said Sunoco has committed to safeguarding Canadian jobs, retaining its Calgary head office and investing in Canada.