Introduction to Oil Sands
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© EnergyBusinessReports.com Oil Sands, Gas and Oil Shales Table of Contents Executive Summary ................................................................................................................. 9 Section 1: Analysis of Oil Sands......................................................................................... 11 Introduction to Oil Sands .................................................................................................... 12 What are Oil Sands? ........................................................................................................................... 12 History of Oil Sands ........................................................................................................................... 13 Extraction of Oil Sands ..................................................................................................................... 14 Surface Mining ................................................................................................................................ 14 Cold Flow .......................................................................................................................................... 15 Combustion Overhead Gravity Drainage ............................................................................ 16 Cyclic Steam Stimulation ............................................................................................................ 16 Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage ........................................................................................... 16 Vapor Extraction Process ........................................................................................................... 17 Toe to Heel Air Injection ............................................................................................................ 18 Environmental Issues Facing Oil Sands ......................................................................... 19 Overview ................................................................................................................................................ 19 Air Pollution .......................................................................................................................................... 19 Impact of Mining on Land ............................................................................................................... 20 Impact on Water Resources ........................................................................................................... 20 Emission of Greenhouse Gases ..................................................................................................... 21 Impact on Aquatic Life ..................................................................................................................... 23 Other Environmental Concerns ................................................................................................... 23 Energy Requirement for Oil Sand Extraction .............................................................. 24 Analysis of Canada’s Oil Sands Industry ........................................................................ 25 Industry Overview ............................................................................................................................. 25 Global Impact of the Industry ....................................................................................................... 28 Make‐up of the Bitumen Resources ........................................................................................... 30 No material contained in this report may be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written permission of Energy Business Reports. 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Oil Sands, Gas and Oil Shales © EnergyBusinessReports.com Challenges Facing the Industry .................................................................................................... 31 Market Opportunities ....................................................................................................................... 33 Mining the Oil Sands ......................................................................................................................... 35 Extraction ......................................................................................................................................... 37 In‐situ Bitumen ............................................................................................................................... 38 Cyclic Steam Stimulation ............................................................................................................ 39 Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage ........................................................................................... 40 Generating Steam .......................................................................................................................... 42 VAPEX ................................................................................................................................................. 42 Firefloods .......................................................................................................................................... 42 “Cold” Production .......................................................................................................................... 43 Processing ......................................................................................................................................... 44 Upgrading ......................................................................................................................................... 44 Transportation ............................................................................................................................... 46 Economics of the Industry .............................................................................................................. 47 Energy Balance for Oil Sands Mining‐Upgrading Projects ............................................... 49 Products of the Industry ................................................................................................................. 50 Sustaining the Environment .......................................................................................................... 51 Regulatory Framework .................................................................................................................... 52 Ongoing R&D ........................................................................................................................................ 54 Oil Sands Production Primer ......................................................................................................... 55 Future of the Industry ...................................................................................................................... 56 Analysis of the Athabasca Oil Sands ................................................................................ 59 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 59 History of the Athabasca Oil Sands ............................................................................................. 59 Development of the Athabasca Deposits .................................................................................. 60 Extracting Bitumen from the Deposits ..................................................................................... 61 Commercial Production from Athabasca Oil Sands ............................................................. 63 Production Forecast from Athabasca Oil Sands .................................................................... 63 Overall Estimation of Oil Reserves in the Athabasca Deposits ....................................... 64 Economics of Oil Extraction from the Athabasca Deposits .............................................. 65 Political Significance of the Deposit ........................................................................................... 67 Environmental Issues with the Athabasca Oil Sands .......................................................... 68 Impact on Land ............................................................................................................................... 68 Impact on Water Resources .....................................................................................................