Alberta's oilsands are poised for growth, according to Ken Chapman, who spoke last Wednesday to members of St. Albert Chamber of Commerce.
"The world's need for energy is the key driver. Lifestyle expectations also continue to grow. By 2030 the capacity required (from the oilsands) will be 64 million barrels and by 2035 the oilsands will be directly linked to 905,000 jobs," said Chapman, executive director for the Oil Sands Developers Group.
When global oil reserves are measured, Canada is in third place behind Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, but Chapman said economic and political stability and the huge reserves in the oilsands, bode well for producers in the Athabasca region.
There is optimism in 2011 as well, Chapman said as he outlined current work by several oilsands companies as well as ongoing construction projects at the Imperial Kearl Mine, Jackfish and Christina Lake as well as other work in progress by companies such as Suncor, Husky, British Petroleum and Athabasca Oil Sands Company.
"There are $128 billion of approved projects ready to go," he said, adding that the he doesn't think environmental issues would hold back this work, but the lack of available labour could have a big impact.
"It's not the environment that will slow it down. It's not technology. It is a lack of skilled labour," he said.
Production technologies have evolved over three decades of development in the Athabasca region, he said, allowing new oilsands projects to be less invasive in the environment.
"Oilsands emissions have fallen by 29 per cent since 1990," Chapman said as he explained that experiments with new technologies such as solvent recovery technologies, geothermal technology and electro thermal dynamic stripping promise to reduce emissions even more.
As proof, Chapman invited chamber members to visit www.wbea.org to see the minute-by-minute measurements of air quality as it is monitored near Fort McMurray.
"There are more emissions and more pollution from trucks than from the oilsands themselves," he said, blaming daily traffic jams in the Fort McMurray area as a contributing factor to the increase of greenhouse gases in the region.
Chapman outlined other environmentally responsible steps taken by the Oilsands Developers Group including re-using the water from tailings ponds after the extraction of heavy metals, the reclamation of land and the collection of seeds from native plants to be used in reforestation projects.
"There is a long way to go, but I can tell you the seven major companies, who are highly competitive, are working together on this to share knowledge about the environmental concerns. Water management is a priority," he said.
But he also stressed that all the increased oilsands development will cause huge social changes in the Athabasca region and governments and the oilsands companies must work closely together to build the future. That too will lead to economic opportunities, Chapman told the chamber.
"Housing is a huge concern and will be as the population in Fort McMurray grows. At the rate it's growing a 1,600-square-foot house is estimated to increase in value to $1million three years from now."
Responsible oilsands development will require a balance in energy, the economy and the environment, he said as he invited the chamber members to visit www.oilsandsdevelopers.ca to add their voice to the conversation.
