PEAK OIL - The New Y2K or The Beginning of the Real End? Message Board

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Gold/Mining/Energy : PEAK OIL - The New Y2K or The Beginning of the Real End?

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To: kryptonic6 who wrote (658)	5/31/2005 8:33:24 PM
From: wherry	Read Replies (1) of 1183

Most of the methods I refer to are those that use the extracted bitumen itself to generate a form of gas and/or steam and/or electricity which the process then uses to extract more bitumen. For one particularly well documented and pilot tested integrated system refer to www.longlake.com and opticanada.com. This joint venture between Nexen and Opti is going to use bitumen bottoms to produce gas, which will then generate steam and electricity. The steam is used in its SAGD operations, and surplus power beyond the process plant's needs will be sold to the grid. The upgraded low-sulphur end product (39 degrees API) will attract a good premium over WTI. Another well tested route uses Orimulsion or equivalent (a water cut bitumen which is air atomised as a fuel, I think) to generate steam for SAGD. Less developed, but currently under test is the THAI process (Toe-Heel Air Injection) which burns bitumen in-situ, and melts and upgrades it underground. I have reservations about this, but some authorities are enthusiastic. Vapex (Vapour Extraction Process) is another tested bitumen extraction method. I do not pretend to be an expert, but these are easy to research, and I am sure there are other no-NG methods under study and/or in use. Syncrude has stated plainly that when and if NG becomes too expensive, they will use another method to produce heat for their low-temperature process. It is also evident that hydrogen can be produced for product upgrading purposes directly from the bitumen itself, and I understand that there are various ways to "crack" the mined product to achieve this. All in all, it does seem that neither nuclear power nor cheap NG are essential for oil sands mining and processing. NG is certainly desirable (as a very nice, clean burning fuel), but not essential. It is all a matter of price and comparative process efficiency. Tony.

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