US EditionAlberta Projects $6.4 Billion Deficit Amid Lower Oil Prices and Trade Challenges
Alberta's $6.4 billion deficit stems from a 30% drop in natural resource revenue and $881 million spent on new labour agreements, despite record oil sands production.
- On Nov. 27, 2025, Alberta Finance Minister Nate Horner estimated a $6.4 billion deficit in the second‑quarter fiscal update, with the outlook largely unchanged from August.
- WTI is now forecast at US$61.50 per barrel, down from US$68, while natural resource revenue has declined 30 per cent since last year, the update says.
- About $881 million in contingency funding has been used for labour agreements with teachers, health‑care workers and public sector employees; $1.7 billion of the $4 billion emergency fund has been spent within overall spending of $79 billion.
- Taxpayer‑supported debt is expected to reach $82.9 billion by March, up from $82.5 billion, and the government projects more deficits while prioritizing health care and education amid `tough choices`.
- Having topped a population of five million earlier this year, Alberta reports record high oil sands production but global trends are "expected to keep a lid on demand and prices" for the rest of the fiscal year, the update says.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Alberta can’t fix its deficits with oil money: Lennie Kaplan
This article supplied by Troy Media. By Lennie Kaplan Alberta is banking on oil to erase rising deficits, but the province’s budget can’t hold without major fiscal changes Alberta is heading for a fiscal cliff, and no amount of oil revenue will save it this time. The province is facing ballooning deficits, rising debt and an addiction to resource revenues that rise and fall with global markets. As Budget 2026 consultations begin, the government …
Low oil prices and tariffs result in $6.4-billion projected second-quarter Alberta deficit
Oil prices are down, expenses are up, population’s still growing ahead of national rates — these are the downward pressures keeping the Alberta economy in check and the deficit up.
Global News
Alberta’s economy remains in the red with tweaked $6.4B deficit
This year's budget is a massive multibillion-dollar swing from an $8.3-billion surplus last year, and the biggest factor is a 30 per cent decline in natural resource revenue.
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