No, the current system fully complies with market rules. There is no problem in that regard. However, the warning contained in the O'Farrell report which, in the fall of 2005, made it clear to the government that Esso's system of publishing the price of its refined products ran the risk of reducing, and possibly even eliminating, competition in the refining sector, was a serious one. Those recommendations were not acknowledged at the time. Now we are suffering the full consequences of that.
Even at the time, the then Minister of Natural Resources, Ms. Pat Carney, was still talking about the price of oil and gasoline in the newspapers. As I already explained, the advent of the new system of publishing the prices of refined products introduced a new element: the refinery margin. That margin did not fluctuate at that time, but began to do so to a considerable degree in 1999, when demand grew and exceeded capacity.
There is some competition when it comes to refining capacity. So, how is it that at a parliamentary committee in Quebec City, some three years ago, Mr. Perez, of the Canadian Petroleum Products Institute, and Mr. Montreuil representing Quebec, stated that a production level below 85 per cent meant a refinery was not profitable, and that in order to make a minimal level of profit, production had to be at about 93 per cent? Suddenly, in April of 2007, approximately six weeks ago, we noted that refining capacity is now 88 per cent. It is no longer 93 per cent, and companies are still making very healthy profits.