It was more of a burn and less of a brand kind of a year for energy Canadian energy companies in 2012, as all the big players saw their brands take a hit.
Rocked by demonstrations on both sides of the border denouncing proposed pipelines to the Gulf of Mexico and the B.C. coast, as well as black eyes garnered through pipeline spills, Canadian energy brands took a licking in 2012, according to numbers released on Wednesday by Brand Finance Canada.
Those numbers show that energy brands led the losers in 2012, with an average 14 per cent value loss year over year.
Brand Finance says its ranking showed that Enbridge, the only Canadian energy brand to crack the top 10, saw a decline of $550 million in its brand value. The decline translates into a 12 per cent drop, partly due to the company's controversial Northern Gateway proposal and its current pipeline projects in the U.S.
But Enbridge wasn't the worst of the lot.
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Canadian Energy Brands Lose Value In 2012
The Calgary-based energy giant behind the proposed and controversial Keystone XL pipeline, TransCanada, ranked 47th in Brand Finance Canada's most valuable Canadian brands after seeing a 30 percent devaluation of its brand in 2012.
Like Enbridge, Calgary-based Esso (Imperial Oil) also saw a 12 per cent drop in value, while Cenovus, which just barely cracked the top 50, suffered an eight per cent value loss last year.
Both Petro-Canada and Husky Energy saw a four per cent drop in brand value, according to Brand Finance Canada.
By contrast, there are other Calgary-based head offices that saw their brands grow in value last year. Unfortunately for the oil patch, none of them are in the energy sector.
Transportation company Viterra saw a massive increase of 21 per cent, while railway icon Canadian Pacific saw its brand grow by 11 per cent.
The list, released by Brand Finance Canada on Wednesday, analyzed brand performance of Canadian companies as of Jan. 1 and named the Toronto-Dominion Bank as the most valuable brand in Canada with a worth of $10.4 billion.
Banks led the way in the country, taking the one through four spots on the top 50 ranking.
-With files from CP.