1. An Overview of Alberta Oil Sands and Recovery Technologies
XVIII Latin American Petroleum Show
Maracaibo, Venezuela
June 11-14, 2007
Eugene Dembicki
Director, Canadian Heavy Oil Association
Manager, Suncor Energy Inc.
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2. Introduction Oil Resources Heavy Oil Properties
Global
Canadian
Heavy Oil Properties
Geology of the Athabasca Oil Sands Deposit
McMurray Formation - largest oil resource in Canada
Recovery Methods
Surface Mining
Truck & Shovel
In-situ
CHOP (Cold Heavy Oil Production)
CHOPS (Cold Heavy Oil Production with Sand)
CSS (Cyclic Steam Stimulation)
SAGD (Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage)
VAPEX (Vapor Extraction)
THAI (Toe-to-Heel Air Injection)
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3. Resources
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4. Resources RSX Saudi Arabia Canada Iraq Iran Abu Dhabi Kuwait Venezuela
Russia
Libya
Nigeria
USA
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5. Production
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6. Production 60% production from mining (121,000 m3/day; 760,000 bpd)
40% production from in-situ (78,500 m3/day; 490,000 bpd)
Source: AEUB
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7. Production
Source: AEUB
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8. Heavy Oil Properties Athabasca Oil Sands
Thick, sticky mixture of sand, water, and bitumen
About 7 degrees API
Immobile at reservoir conditions (8-9 deg. C)
Unconsolidated – very porous & permeable
Exploited by mining & in-situ techniques
Photo courtesy of Suncor Energy Inc.
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9. Bitumen Viscosity – heat or diluent will reduce viscosity
Heavy Oil Properties
Bitumen Viscosity – heat or diluent will reduce viscosity
10°C
90°C
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10. Heavy Oil Properties Location
Oil sands production now exceeds one million barrels per day.
Forecast 4.5 million bpd by 2015
$45 billion spent from
$60 billion in new oil sands projects expected between 2006 & 2010.
Exploited by mining & in-situ techniques
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11. Heavy Oil Properties
Alberta Bitumen Volumes in billion m3 (AEUB, June 2004)
Category
Mineable
In Situ
Total
Initial volume in place
18.0
240.9
258.90
Initial established
5.59
22.80
28.39
Initial established under development
1.74
0.65
2.39
Cumulative production
0.46
0.21
0.67
Remaining established
5.13
22.60
27.73
Remaining established under development
1.28
0.44
1.72
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12. Heavy Oil Properties
Challenge
Bitumen
Synthetic Crude Oil
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13. Geology
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14. Athabasca Oil Sands McMurray Formation - Athabasca River
Geology
Athabasca Oil Sands McMurray Formation - Athabasca River
Photo courtesy of Suncor Energy Inc.
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15. Athabasca Oil Sands McMurray Formation - Shale Plug
Geology
Athabasca Oil Sands McMurray Formation - Shale Plug
Next Slide
Photo courtesy of Suncor Energy Inc.
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16. Athabasca Oil Sands McMurray Formation - Shale Plug
Geology
Athabasca Oil Sands McMurray Formation - Shale Plug
Shale Plug (Non-Reservoir)
Rich Oil Sand
Channel Margin (Interbedded/Mixed Oil Sand)
Photo courtesy of Suncor Energy Inc.
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17. McMurray Fm. – Depositional Model
Geology
McMurray Fm. – Depositional Model
Overbank: Non-reservoir
Pond Mud
Crevasse Splay
Photo courtesy of Suncor Energy Inc.
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18. Geology McMurray Fm. – Depositional Model Bank Collapse - breccia
Channel – Oil Sand
Photo courtesy of Suncor Energy Inc.
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19. Geology McMurray Fm. – Depositional Model Marine mud - Non reservoir
Tidal Flat – Non reservoir
Photo courtesy of Suncor Energy Inc.
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20. Surface Mining Athabasca Oil Sands Deposit McMurray Formation
Source: AEUB
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21. Surface Mining 10% of the Athabasca Deposit is mineable
18 billion m3 in place
0.46 billion m3 produced
3 mines in operation
Syncrude, Suncor, Shell
121,000 m3/day
760,000 bpd
Photo courtesy of Nexen Inc.
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22. Surface Mining
Athabasca Oil Sands Deposit
McMurray Formation
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23. Surface Mining Truck & Shovel 400 ton truck = 100 barrels of bitumen
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24. Oil Sands Truck & Operator
Surface Mining
Oil Sands Truck & Operator
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25. Surface Mining Company Project Size (bpd) On Production
Albian/Shell Muskeg/Jackpine , now
Suncor Base Plant , now
Syncrude Base Plant , now
CNRL Horizon 110,
Imperial Kearl Like ,
PetroCan Fort Hills 50,
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26. In-Situ Recovery Methods
Cold HO Production (CHOP)
Primary
Conventional
Horwells & Multilaterals
Waterfloods
High WOR Operations
Solvent Flooding
CHOPS
Primary with Sand Production
Infill drilling for by-passed oil
Post CHOPS EOR
Cyclical Steam Stimulation
Conventional CSS
CSS with non-conventional wells (Multi-laterals & U)
CSS with solvent
Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD)
Immobile Bitumen
Excellent pay zones
Solvent AGD (VAPEX – Nsolv)
In-situ Combustion
Conventional (Shut-down)
Toe to Heel Air Injection (THAI) Pilot
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27. In-Situ Cold Heavy Oil Production (CHOP)
Rod Pumps & Sand Control Technology
Slow rod fall rates
Long stoke units
Low pump rates
Gas locking problems
Problems with sand
Wear of pump
Stuck pumps
Stuck tubing
Fill in casing
Low rates; rapid declines; & high water-cuts
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28. In-Situ Cold Heavy Oil Production with Sand (CHOPS) ALBERTA Edmonton
Canada
U.S.A.
Calgary
Edmonton
PEACE
RIVER
COLD LAKE
ATHABASCA
LLOYDMINSTER
100 mile
125 km
WABASCA
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29. In-Situ Cold Heavy Oil Production with Sand (CHOPS) Depth ~400-600 m
Thickness 2-7 m
High Permeability Channels Developed – “wormholes”
much greater reservoir contact
Large Local Drawdown at End of Channels
high pressure gradients which moves the sand
5-20% sand production
Substantial Increase in Oil rates (10X)
Successful Commercial Process
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30. In-Situ Cold Heavy Oil Production with Sand (CHOPS)
Progressive Cavity Pump (PCP) or Screw
Tech. transfer from mining & food processing in ‘80’s
Rotate rods to drive downhole pump.
Molded rubber stator & spiral stainless steel rotor.
Capable of pumping a slurry & handling sand.
Wells that produced sand had better oil rates & recoveries.
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31. In-Situ Cold Lake Oil Sands Deposit Clearwater Formation (CSS, SAGD)
Canada
U.S.A.
Calgary
Edmonton
PEACE
RIVER
COLD LAKE
ATHABASCA
LLOYDMINSTER
100 mile
125 km
WABASCA
ALBERTA
Source: AEUB

32. In-Situ Cyclic Steam Stimulation (CSS)
CSS –Well established & most universally applicable EOR process
California
Venezuela
Indonesia
China
Canada
Inject: 14 – 60 days
Soak: 1- 7 days
Prod: 90 – 180 days
Requires some oil mobility (20,000 to 500,000 cp)
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33. In-Situ Cyclic Steam Stimulation (CSS) ALBERTA
Canada
U.S.A.
Calgary
Edmonton
PEACE
RIVER
COLD LAKE
ATHABASCA
LLOYDMINSTER
100 mile
125 km
WABASCA
ALBERTA
Imperial Oil Cold Lake Project Production

34. In-Situ Peace River Oil Sands Deposit
Bluesky Formation (CSS, SAGD, CHOP)
Canada
U.S.A.
Calgary
Edmonton
PEACE
RIVER
COLD LAKE
ATHABASCA
LLOYDMINSTER
100 mile
125 km
WABASCA
ALBERTA

35. In-Situ Cyclic Steam Stimulation (CSS) ALBERTA Edmonton Calgary
Canada
U.S.A.
Calgary
Edmonton
PEACE
RIVER
COLD LAKE
ATHABASCA
LLOYDMINSTER
100 mile
125 km
WABASCA
ALBERTA

36. AOSTRA Dover UTF Project
In-Situ
Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD)
Canada
U.S.A.
Calgary
Edmonton
PEACE
RIVER
COLD LAKE
ATHABASCA
LLOYDMINSTER
100 mile
125 km
WABASCA
ALBERTA
AOSTRA Dover UTF Project
1st SAGD Wells in Canada (1997)
3 well pairs – 60 m
Drill horizontal wells into the oil from tunnels in the limestone below the oil sand
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37. In-Situ Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD)
Horizontal length: 750 – 1200 m
Vertical separation: 5 – 6 m
TVD: 90 – 400 m
Rate: 100 – 400 m3/day (700 – 2500 bpd)
Steam Oil Ratio: 2 – 4
Current Production: 20,000 m3/day (125,000 bpd)
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38. In-Situ Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) Example of SAGD Pads
Photo courtesy of Suncor Energy Inc.
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39. In-Situ Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) SAGD Well Pad
Photo courtesy of Suncor Energy Inc.
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40. In-Situ Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD)
SAGD Well Pad – Slant Wellheads
Photo Courtesy of Nexen from Long Lake
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41. In-Situ Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) Alberta Projects
Company Project Size (mbopd) On Production
ConocoPhillips Surmont
Total Joslyn
Devon Jackfish
Encana Christina Lake
Encana Foster Creek now
Husky Sunrise
Husky Tucker Lake
JACOS Hangingstone now
MEG Energy Christina Lake
North American Kai Kos Dehseh
Petro Canada MacKay River now
OPTI/Nexen Long Lake
Suncor Firebag I & now
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42. In-Situ Vapor Extraction Process (VAPEX)
Large scale lab & field pilots are under-way.
Results are generally classified as confidential
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43. In-Situ Toe to Heel Air Injection (THAI) Petrobank Whitesands Project
3 well pilot
started mid-2006
> 160 m3/day
>1000 bpd
Photo Courtesy of Petrobank
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44. Bitumen Recovery Summary
Grade
API
Gravity
Viscosity
(CP)
Production
Method
Recovery
Percent 1)
Transportation A
18 – 25
10 – 100
4) Cold
5 – 10
Flows B 2)
7 – 20
100 – 104
Cold
3 – 8
Diluent may
be needed C
7 – 12
> 104
(1) CSS
Huff / Puff
15 – 20
Diluent
(2) SAGD
40 – 80 D
< 4
Mining 3)
80 – 90
N/A
1) Lower gravity equates to higher cost of diluent. Cost of this step can be up to $4/bbl.
2) The lower gravity range is cold producible only when thermal gradients are high, as in the Orinoco.
3) Recoveries are high but only about 10% of the reserves are accessible to normal mining.
4) In rare instances steam sweeps are used simply to increase recoveries to the 60% level.
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45. Supply Costs
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46. Alberta Heavy Oil Industry
Conclusion
Alberta Heavy Oil Industry
Large Resource
Production is Increasing
Mining
In-situ (CSS & SAGD)
Modern Technology & Research
Service & Suppliers

47. Gracias!
Questions?