Heavy crude discount widens on supply buildup

The Canadian heavy oil discount widenedon Thursday against the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) benchmarkas the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned of globalinventory build ups and a lack of capacity to move heavy crudeout of Alberta continued to weigh.

* Western Canada Select (WCS) heavy blend crude for Aprildelivery in Hardisty, Alberta, settled at $26.85 a barrel belowthe WTI benchmark crude price , according to ShorcanEnergy brokers, compared with Wednesday's settle of $25.85.

* The IEA said that global oil demand was expected to pickup this year, but warned supply is growing at a faster pace,leading to a rise in inventories in the first quarter of 2018.

* That prompted upside movement on WTI, as OPEC ledproduction constraints mean that U.S. shale drillers will be theones raising production to meet the forecasted demands, saidIqbal Gill, head of hydrocarbon supply for BarrelTEX.

* A glut of stranded barrels in Western Canada was expectedto remain until a deal was reached between shippers and railcompanies to move more Canadian heavy crudes to the U.S. Gulf.

* An expected return of TransCanada Corp's Keystonepipeline to full pressure, following a November leak, would helpreduce the discount, traders have said.

(Reporting by Julie Gordon in Vancouver)