The Canadian heavy oil discount narrowedon Friday against the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) benchmark,as the market slowly corrected from its widest level in morethan four years, reached last month.
* Expanding oil production in Alberta, coupled with tightpipeline and rail capacity to move it, has increased thediscount since late last year. * The differential, which has historically hovered around$15 per barrel, is more likely to narrow to between $19-$20 in2018, according to Tudor Pickering Holt & Co analyst MattMurphy. * Western Canada Select (WCS) heavy blend crude for Aprildelivery in Hardisty, Alberta, settled at $24.35 a barrel belowthe WTI benchmark crude price , according to ShorcanEnergy brokers, compared with Thursday's settle of $24.75. * The Alberta government on Wednesday estimated that thedifferential was costing the province's heavy oil producers C$30million to C$40 million in revenue per day. * Light synthetic crude from the oil sands for Aprildelivery last traded at $2.10 over WTI, a bigger premium thanThursday's settle of $1.75 over WTI. (Reporting by Rod Nickel in Winnipeg, Manitoba; editing by GCrosse)