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The Athabasca oil sands in Alberta, Canada, are a very large source of bitumen, which can be upgraded to synthetic crude heavy oil, Western Canadian Select (WCS)Tar sandstone from California, United States
Oil sands, tar sands, crude bitumen, or bituminous sands, are a type of unconventional petroleum deposit. Oil sands are either loose sands or partially consolidated sandstone containing a naturally occurring mixture of sand, clay, and water, soaked with bitumen, a dense and extremely viscous form of petroleum.
Significant bitumen deposits are reported in Canada,[1][2] Kazakhstan, Russia, and Venezuela. The estimated worldwide deposits of oil are more than 2 trillion barrels (320 billion cubic metres);[3] Proven reserves of bitumen contain approximately 100 billion barrels,[4] and total natural bitumen reserves are estimated at 249.67 Gbbl (39.694×10^9 m3) worldwide, of which 176.8 Gbbl (28.11×10^9 m3), or 70.8%, are in Alberta, Canada.[1]
Crude bitumen is a thick, sticky form of crude oil, and is so viscous that it will not flow unless heated or diluted with lighter hydrocarbons such as light crude oil or natural-gas condensate. At room temperature, it is much like cold molasses.[5] The Orinoco Belt in Venezuela is sometimes described as oil sands, but these deposits are non-bituminous, falling instead into the category of heavy or extra-heavy oil due to their lower viscosity.[6] Natural bitumen and extra-heavy oil differ in the degree by which they have been degraded from the original conventional oils by bacteria.
The 1973 and 1979 oil price increases, and the development of improved extraction technology enabled profitable extraction and processing of the oil sands. Together with other so-called unconventional oil extraction practices, oil sands are implicated in the unburnable carbon debate but also contribute to energy security and counteract the international price cartel OPEC. According to the Oil Climate Index, carbon emissions from oil-sand crude are 31% higher than from conventional oil.[7] In Canada, oil sands production in general, and in-situ extraction, in particular, are the largest contributors to the increase in the nation's greenhouse gas emissions from 2005 to 2017, according to Natural Resources Canada (NRCan).[8]
^ abCite error: The named reference wec was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Alberta's Oil Sands: Opportunity, Balance. Government of Alberta. March 2008. ISBN 978-0-7785-7348-7. Retrieved 13 May 2008.
^"About Tar Sands". Archived from the original on 4 September 2014. Retrieved 14 May 2008.
^"Bitumen and heavy crudes: The energy security problem solved?". Oil and Energy Trends. 31 (6): 3–5. 2006. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7992.2006.310603.x.
^"What Are The Oil Sands?". Canada's Oil Sands. Calgary, AB: Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers. Retrieved 28 February 2016. Oil sands are a mixture of sand, water, clay and bitumen. Bitumen is oil that is too heavy or thick to flow or be pumped without being diluted or heated. *** Bitumen is so viscous that at room temperature it acts much like cold molasses.
^Dusseault, M. B. (12–14 June 2001). "Comparing Venezuelan and Canadian Heavy Oil and Tar Sands" (PDF). Canadian International Petroleum Conference. Proceedings of Petroleum Society's Canadian International Conference. Vol. 61. doi:10.2118/2001-061. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 October 2011. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
^"The Real GHG trend". Pembina. 4 October 2017.
^"Energy and Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG)s". Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). 6 October 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
Oilsands, tar sands, crude bitumen, or bituminous sands, are a type of unconventional petroleum deposit. Oilsands are either loose sands or partially...
The Athabasca oilsands, also known as the Athabasca tar sands, are large deposits of bitumen, a heavy and viscous form of petroleum, located in northeastern...
2007, Marathon acquired Western OilSands for $6.6 billion and gained ownership of its 20% stake in the Athabasca oilsands in northern Alberta, Canada and...
estimates may or may not include oil shale, mined oilsands or natural gas liquids. Because proven reserves include oil recoverable under current economic...
characterisation. Unconventional reserves such as oilsands and oil shale exist. Once extracted, oil is refined and separated, most easily by distillation...
of crude oil and equivalent. Of that amount, 64% was upgraded from unconventional oilsands, and the remainder light crude oil, heavy crude oil and natural-gas...
the United States a large supply of oilsands are found in Eastern Utah. These deposits of bitumen or heavy crude oil have the ability to generate about...
The Kearl OilSands Project is an oilsands mine in the Athabasca OilSands region at the Kearl Lake area, about 70 kilometres (43 mi) north of Fort McMurray...
formations occur in the Peace River oilsands and the Cold Lake oilsands, to the west and southeast of the Athabasca oilsands, respectively. Of the Alberta...
Heavy crude oil is closely related to natural bitumen from oilsands. Petroleum geologists categorize bitumen from oilsands as 'extra-heavy oil' due to its...
largest oilsands operations. It also has holdings in the Alberta OilSands, and operates an oilsands mining operation with ExxonMobil, called Kearl Oil Sands...
OilSands Limited was a Canadian company that generates income from its oilsands investment in the Syncrude Joint Venture. Syncrude operated an oil sands...
conventional oil refinery. The material found in oilsands is an extra-heavy and viscous form of oil known as bitumen. Other less common unconventional oil sources...
from oilsands. In the 2020 Forbes Global 2000, Suncor Energy was ranked as the 48th-largest public company in the world. Suncor was created by Sun Oil in...
5% of its oilsands, and its remaining oilsands reserves represent 98% of Canada's established oil reserves. The issue of the control of oil has been...
Canadian OilSands Trust Oilsands Bitumen Heavy crude oil This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Canadian oilsands. If an internal...
focused on oilsands assets. In 2017, Cenovus purchased ConocoPhillips' 50 percent share of their Foster Creek Christina Lake (FCCL) oilsands projects...
Canada. It is located in northeast Alberta, in the middle of the Athabasca oilsands, surrounded by boreal forest. It has played a significant role in the...
Oil reserves in Canada were estimated at 172 billion barrels (27×10^9 m3) as of the start of 2015 . This figure includes the oilsands reserves that are...
world's reserves of conventional oil. Venezuela's Orinoco oilsands are less viscous than Canada's Athabasca oilsands – meaning they can be produced by...
and into Saskatchewan, consuming forested areas and impacting Athabasca oilsands operations. With an estimated damage cost of C$9.9 billion, it was the...
such as oilsands and petroleum reservoir rocks), humic coals and carbonaceous shale. While oilsands do originate from the biodegradation of oil, heat...
creating the province of Alberta. Massive oil reserves were discovered in 1947. The exploitation of oilsands began in 1967. Alberta is renowned for its...
developed an energy-efficient technology, OrCrude, for extracting crude oil from oilsands. The process is claimed to be more efficient than other technologies...
Pew's support, Sun Oil's majority-owned subsidiary, Great Canadian OilSands (GCOS), filed an application for a commercial oilsands project in Canada...
the main source of helium. Heavy crude oil, which is much more viscous than conventional crude oil, and oilsands, where bitumen is found mixed with sand...
Cominco in 2001. In 2018, Teck Resources opened the C$17 billion Fort Hills oilsands project. In 2020, Teck abandoned plans for a second, larger C$20 billion...
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