Suncor Energy: The Original In Canadian Oil Sands Production
Suncor Energy Incorporated is the original producer of the oil sands found in Alberta, Canada. This company was the first to mine the oil sands and produce the first barrel of crude oil. The company operates in the well-known Athabasca oil sands located in northern portions of the Alberta province. The company was first founded in 1967 and is still a major frontrunner in the production of oil products.
Suncor Energy is the second largest producers of oil sands crude oil, following just behind Syncrude Canada Ltd. Suncor Energy uses both methods of mining available for the oil sands, surface mining (much like a traditional mining operation) and in-situ methods, which are for deep extraction of oil sands product. Suncor Energy is actually the only company in the Canadian oil sands that does both types of mining currently.
This company also is a fully integrated company, which many of the oil sands producers are not. Suncor Energy works to remove the oil sands crude and then upgrades the product (removing the bitumen from the sands and other products) which transforms it into the conventional crude product mined in other areas of the world. To do this, the oil sands product extracted from the ground ships to the company’s upstream facilities. There, the upgraded product goes to the company’s refineries. Those refineries are located in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada as well as in Commerce City, Colorado. At those facilities, the crude is refined into the consumer products needed including petroleum products of all types including transportation fuel.
In addition to its Canadian oil sands production, Suncor also has a large natural gas operation in establishment located in Alberta as well as in British Columbia, Canada. This production of these natural gases is in use, in part, to help fuel the costs of operation at the Canadian oil sands locations. The oil sand production process requires extensive energy use, which is often one of the most complex processes for the producers because of the costs.
Suncor Energy was ranked at 254 of the Forbes Global 2000 list for is large corporation. The company is run by John T. Ferguson who serves are Chairman of the Board and Richard L. George who is CEO of the organization. In revenue, the company has in excess of CA $16 billion, which is a figure from 2006.
The company also runs a marketing of products from its organization and various service industries throughout the Ontario offices. Some 280 Sunoco branded retail outlets are available throughout the world, which provides gas, and diesel fuels. The expansiveness of this organization has made it highly attractive to investors. Because of its total size and integration, its costs are lower than other companies without such organization structures.
Oil Sands Investments Look Towards The Future
A look at oil sand production in Canada will floor you. As the United States is stressing about the $125 plus per barrel price of oil coming out of Saudi Arabia, and the country’s leaders letting everyone know that they are not likely to increase production or to provide more leverage, there is no doubt that there is a real concern about oil in the United States. Nevertheless, Canada, a country with a large consumer based economy like the United States, with just as large of a dependency on oil, is not worried. That is because; the future of Canada’s oil sands looks promising from any vantage point.
One of the most astonishing bits of information for investors considering investments into the Canadian oil sands is this. While the world is seeing a slow down or a steady amount of production of oil, especially in locations like the Middle East, Canada has the potential and likelihood of seeing a significant expansion of oil production. Canada’s oil sands are the only current area in the world where production is going to increase over the next years.
According to Canada’s National Energy Board, production will continue to move forward in significant ways. They did lower their estimates somewhat, but they still will likely see 3 million barrels of oil in play by 2015 as well as another 5 million barrels, or so, per day by 2020. That is a significant amount of oil and the raise will keep producing companies’ ideal investments for the next years to come. Currently, the Canadian oil sands are producing about one million barrels of oil per day.
There are locations in the world that will provide beneficial to the future of oil production in the world. In fact, in Colorado there is a large area that would be an ideal investment opportunity for the future with the Colorado oil shale formation located there. Yet, those investments are years off. The technology and the ease of investment are not readily available in this area just yet. Still, there are other opportunities including a large formation of oil in the Saskatchewan region.
In addition to the production ground of the Canadian oil sands and the later development of oil shale, there is a future for oil in the world. You can see this in the vast number of technologies developed each year to make oil production faster and safer. Mining methods are becoming more readily available; in addition, so new companies do have opportunities (just look at the Saskatchewan region’s recent booming area.) Investors who want to be in the business of oil investing will find Canadian oil sands one of the best routes to take for today and in the years to come.