The Alberta government is working with industry on ways to diversify the markets for increasing oil sands output to include the export of gasoline, diesel and petrochemical products
Development of Alberta's oil sands (bitumen) reserves are now the center of international media attention. More importantly, the refining industry is seriously investigating the processing scenarios for utilizing oil sands as a refinery feedstock (Fig. 1). High prices for crude oil and security concerns on oil supplies provide more momentum for the industry to investigate and invest in the infrastructures and technology improvement to upgrade bitumen and refine it into transportation fuels and petroleum products.
Alberta's oil sands reserves are 174 billion barrels (Bbbl) of economically recoverable reserves—second only to Saudi Arabia. With the tightening global supply/demand balance for crude oil and the economic expansions of China and India, elevated demand and high oil prices could remain the norm over the long term. The government of Alberta, as owner of 97% of this resource, has a proprietary interest in developing its oil sands resources and maximizing the economic benefits from this hydrocarbon resource. Determining the optimum path for this resource is difficult and urgent. Oil sands reserves are changing from an economically challenged feedstock to a desired feed for several US refineries. Fig. 2 shows the available technologies and relative recovery rates to extract bitumen from different depths, ranging from near the surface for mining to deep underground for steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD).
Resource vision. The government of Alberta has a vision for its oil sands reserves. The explosive growth of oil sands development over the last five years has initiated a scramble for labor and materials, severely testing the capability of Alberta's current 3.3 million population base. To catch up with this new reality, the government is running crash programs to increase the flow of immigrants and temporary foreign workers, open new supply chains for materials,
fill infrastructure gaps, update royalty and fiscal regimes, and devise measures to ensure that citizens of Alberta participate in the economic boom of the energy industry.
For many years, oil sands projects were in the slow-growth mode; the first small plant started operations in 1967. The second unit came onstream in 1978, and the third oil sands unit started up in 1985. Over this period, prices were low and margins tight, and operators relied on continuous improvement to remain in business.
Current bitumen production is just over 1 million bpd (MMbpd). Many major expansion phases for existing plants and
new projects are under development. In the government's Vision for oil sands development, bitumen production is projected to reach 3.6 MMbpd by 2020 and 5 MMbpd by 2030 as shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 4 shows the mining operation at Syncrude's Fort McMurray operation. If the current pace for oil sands project announcements continues, production could substantially exceed these levels.
Role of the Hydrocarbon Upgrading Task Force.
The Vision began in 2001 and has progressed through a series of studies and conferences by a partnership of industry and government. Following a period of rapidly increasing prices for Alberta's natural gas production, a small group of three energy companies and three government departments began a collaborative effort to find an alternative feedstock that would sustain the viability of the local petrochemical industry.
A study of bitumen-derived feedstocks in 2002 demonstrated the technical feasibility of an integrated bitumen upgrading, refining and petrochemical facility in Alberta. This study concluded that successful integration required "commitment by different levels of government and industry to a common vision and a long-term strategic plan to facilitate profitable integration of the different plant complexes and infrastructure services."
Alberta's oil sands reserves are 174 billion barrels (Bbbl) of economically recoverable reserves—second only to Saudi Arabia. With the tightening global supply/demand balance for crude oil and the economic expansions of China and India, elevated demand and high oil prices could remain the norm over the long term. The government of Alberta, as owner of 97% of this resource, has a proprietary interest in developing its oil sands resources and maximizing the economic benefits from this hydrocarbon resource. Determining the optimum path for this resource is difficult and urgent. Oil sands reserves are changing from an economically challenged feedstock to a desired feed for several US refineries. Fig. 2 shows the available technologies and relative recovery rates to extract bitumen from different depths, ranging from near the surface for mining to deep underground for steam assisted gravity drainage (SAGD).
Resource vision. The government of Alberta has a vision for its oil sands reserves. The explosive growth of oil sands development over the last five years has initiated a scramble for labor and materials, severely testing the capability of Alberta's current 3.3 million population base. To catch up with this new reality, the government is running crash programs to increase the flow of immigrants and temporary foreign workers, open new supply chains for materials,
fill infrastructure gaps, update royalty and fiscal regimes, and devise measures to ensure that citizens of Alberta participate in the economic boom of the energy industry.
For many years, oil sands projects were in the slow-growth mode; the first small plant started operations in 1967. The second unit came onstream in 1978, and the third oil sands unit started up in 1985. Over this period, prices were low and margins tight, and operators relied on continuous improvement to remain in business.
Current bitumen production is just over 1 million bpd (MMbpd). Many major expansion phases for existing plants and
new projects are under development. In the government's Vision for oil sands development, bitumen production is projected to reach 3.6 MMbpd by 2020 and 5 MMbpd by 2030 as shown in Fig. 3. Fig. 4 shows the mining operation at Syncrude's Fort McMurray operation. If the current pace for oil sands project announcements continues, production could substantially exceed these levels.
Role of the Hydrocarbon Upgrading Task Force.
The Vision began in 2001 and has progressed through a series of studies and conferences by a partnership of industry and government. Following a period of rapidly increasing prices for Alberta's natural gas production, a small group of three energy companies and three government departments began a collaborative effort to find an alternative feedstock that would sustain the viability of the local petrochemical industry.
A study of bitumen-derived feedstocks in 2002 demonstrated the technical feasibility of an integrated bitumen upgrading, refining and petrochemical facility in Alberta. This study concluded that successful integration required "commitment by different levels of government and industry to a common vision and a long-term strategic plan to facilitate profitable integration of the different plant complexes and infrastructure services."
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