Imperial Oil Limited

Who owns Imperial Oil?
Imperial Oil is majority-owned by ExxonMobil, which holds approximately 69.6 percent of outstanding shares. The remaining approximately 30.4 percent of shares are publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange and NYSE American under ticker symbol IMO. By virtue of ExxonMobil's majority ownership, Imperial Oil is considered an entity which is not controlled by Canadians under Canadian law.

Is Imperial Oil publicly traded?
Yes, Imperial Oil is publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange and NYSE American under ticker symbol IMO. While ExxonMobil holds a 69.6 percent majority ownership stake, the remaining shares are publicly traded. There are 509,044,963 common shares outstanding as of February 14, 2025.

Who is the CEO of Imperial Oil?
John Whelan is the Chairman, President, and CEO of Imperial Oil Limited. He succeeded Brad Corson on May 8, 2025, at the conclusion of the company's annual meeting of shareholders. Corson retired after a 42-year career at Imperial and ExxonMobil, having served as CEO since January 1, 2020.

Who founded Imperial Oil?
Imperial Oil was founded in 1880 by Jacob Englehart and Frederick Fitzgerald in London, Ontario, Canada. In 1898, Standard Oil of New Jersey (a predecessor to ExxonMobil) acquired a majority stake, establishing the ownership relationship that continues today.

What is Imperial Oil's revenue?
Imperial Oil reported revenue of CAD $46,918 million for fiscal year 2025, a decrease from CAD $51,359 million in FY2024. Net income for FY2025 was CAD $3,268 million, or $6.48 per diluted share, compared to CAD $4,790 million, or $9.03 per diluted share, in FY2024. The decline reflected lower commodity prices, partially offset by improved downstream margins.

How many people does Imperial Oil employ?
Imperial Oil employed approximately 5,000 regular employees at the end of 2025, down from 5,100 in 2024 and 5,300 in 2023. On September 29, 2025, the company announced a restructuring plan to reduce employee roles by approximately 20 percent, substantially completed by end of 2027, which would reduce the workforce to approximately 4,000.

What are the Kearl tailings leaks?
In May 2022, Imperial Oil detected tailings seepage at its Kearl oil sands mine that was not reported to the public for nine months. In January 2023, a separate berm overflow released 5.3 million litres of contaminated wastewater. The Alberta Energy Regulator fined Imperial $50,000 in August 2024 and laid nine charges in January 2025 under the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act and the Public Lands Act. Indigenous communities were not informed of the initial seepage for nine months, leading to a lawsuit by the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation against the regulator.

Imperial Oil was founded in 1880 in London, Ontario, by Jacob Englehart and Frederick Fitzgerald as a petroleum refining and marketing company. The company was established during the early development of Canada's petroleum industry, initially focusing on refining and distribution of petroleum products for the growing Canadian market.

In 1898, Standard Oil of New Jersey, a predecessor to ExxonMobil, acquired a majority stake in Imperial Oil, beginning a relationship that continues to this day with ExxonMobil holding 69.6 percent of shares. This strategic partnership provided Imperial Oil with access to American technology, capital, and management expertise while maintaining its Canadian identity and operations.

Throughout the 20th century, Imperial Oil developed extensive operations in petroleum exploration, production, refining, and marketing. The company played a significant role in developing Canada's oil industry, including early involvement in the Alberta oil sands and discovery of major oil fields in Western Canada. Imperial Oil was instrumental in establishing Canada's petroleum infrastructure and distribution networks.

In 2005, Imperial Oil moved its headquarters from Toronto to Calgary, Alberta, reflecting the growing importance of Western Canadian oil sands operations to its business strategy and the geographic shift in Canada's energy industry toward Alberta's vast oil resources.

In recent years, Imperial Oil has continued to expand its oil sands operations while investing in environmental technologies and lower-emission business opportunities. The company has pursued lower-emission initiatives including carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, lower-emission fuels, and lithium. Imperial is a founding member of the Pathways Alliance initiative to reduce emissions from oil sands operations.

Brad Corson served as Chairman, President, and CEO from January 1, 2020, until his retirement on May 8, 2025, after a 42-year career at Imperial and ExxonMobil. John Whelan succeeded Corson as Chairman, President, and CEO at the conclusion of the company's annual meeting of shareholders on May 8, 2025. Whelan previously held senior positions at Imperial and ExxonMobil.

On September 29, 2025, the company announced restructuring plans to improve performance by centralizing additional corporate and technical activities in global business and technology centres. The restructuring includes a program of targeted workforce reductions expected to reduce employee roles by approximately 20 percent, substantially completed by end of 2027.

Imperial Oil's sustainability strategy includes investments in lower-emission technologies and participation in industry initiatives. The company is a founding member of the Pathways Alliance, an initiative by Canada's six largest oil sands producers to achieve net zero emissions from oil sands operations by 2050.

The company has invested in a renewable diesel facility at Strathcona and has pursued lower-emission business opportunities including carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, lower-emission fuels, and lithium. However, Imperial Oil does not hold B Corp certification or comparable third-party sustainability credentials, and its sustainability claims are based on its own reporting.

On social responsibility, Imperial Oil maintains community engagement programs and indigenous partnerships. However, the company's relationship with Indigenous communities has been strained by the Kearl tailings leak controversy, in which downstream First Nations were not informed of seepage for nine months.

Imperial Oil's environmental record has been the subject of significant regulatory action and public scrutiny, particularly regarding the Kearl oil sands operations. Readers should note that corporate sustainability reports represent first-party sources and should be evaluated alongside independent assessments and regulatory findings.

Imperial Oil has received recognition for operational excellence and environmental performance in the Canadian energy industry. Specific recognition includes:

• Founding member of the Pathways Alliance initiative to reduce emissions from oil sands operations
• Investment in Strathcona renewable diesel facility
• Pursuit of lower-emission business opportunities including carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, and lithium
• Over 145 years of continuous operation since 1880

Imperial Oil has faced significant controversy and regulatory action, primarily related to the Kearl oil sands tailings leaks.

Kearl Tailings Leaks
In May 2022, Imperial Oil detected discoloured water pooling near the boundary of its Kearl oil sands lease, approximately 70 kilometers north of Fort McMurray, Alberta. The seepage contained tailings-contaminated wastewater with levels exceeding guidelines for sulphates, iron, dissolved metals, hydrocarbons, and arsenic. Neither Imperial Oil nor the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) informed local First Nations, provincial and federal environment officials, or downstream communities including the Northwest Territories government about the seepage for nine months.

The public learned about the first leak in February 2023, when information about the tailings seepage was disclosed along with news of a second release. On January 30, 2023, a berm overflow released 5.3 million litres of contaminated wastewater from a catchment pond at the northern edge of the Kearl mine. This second leak was not discovered until days later when snow around the drainage pond began to stain, and was reported to the AER on February 4, 2023.

Indigenous communities, including the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation, were angered that their members had been harvesting in the area for nine months without being told of possible contamination. The Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation filed a lawsuit against the AER for failing to keep it informed of the release.

Regulatory Charges and Penalties
In August 2024, the AER imposed a CAD $50,000 administrative penalty on Imperial Oil, the maximum base penalty permissible under the regulation, for two contraventions of its approval conditions. The AER also required Imperial to submit plans for sharing lessons learned with other oil sands operators and for studying the environmental impacts of industrial wastewater releases.

In January 2025, the AER laid nine charges against Imperial Oil Resources Limited in relation to the Kearl berm overflow. Six charges were laid under the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, including releasing a substance that caused or may have caused a significant adverse effect, failing to report a release, and failing to take reasonable measures to remediate the effects. Three charges were laid under the Public Lands Act, including accumulation of waste material on public land, causing loss or damage to public land, and causing activities likely to result in loss or damage to public land. The company's first court appearance was on February 26, 2025, at the Alberta Court of Justice in Fort McMurray. Environmental groups criticized the $50,000 fine as inadequate given that Imperial reported $1.1 billion in income in the second quarter of 2024 alone.

Imperial Oil stated it was aware of the charges and was assessing next steps. The company said it recognized the incident caused concern in the community and deeply regretted it happened. Imperial maintains the release has caused no damage to local wildlife, fish, or nearby rivers, though the AER investigation found that seepage exceeded guidelines for multiple contaminants.

A federal investigation into the Kearl leaks remains underway. An internal investigation by Deloitte found that both the company and the regulator followed the rules on disclosing the incident, but concluded those rules were weak and undefined.

Ongoing Seepage
Imperial Oil continues to detect tailings seepage at Kearl. The company reports that shallow groundwater exceeding guidelines has been found up to 150 meters off-site and contaminated deeper groundwater has been found a kilometer past the lease boundary.

Workforce Restructuring
On September 29, 2025, Imperial Oil announced restructuring plans to centralize corporate and technical activities in global business and technology centres, resulting in approximately 20 percent workforce reductions. The restructuring is expected to be substantially completed by end of 2027 and will reduce the workforce from approximately 5,000 to approximately 4,000 employees.

Foreign Ownership Considerations
By virtue of ExxonMobil's 69.6 percent majority ownership, Imperial Oil is considered an entity which is not controlled by Canadians under Canadian law. This designation has implications for Canadian energy policy and has been a subject of public debate regarding Canadian energy independence.