Potential Energy Resources of Alberta and Their Strategic Position Within the Circular Mosaic

Abstract

ABSTRACT Landlocked Alberta, which is flanked on its western side by the majestic Rockies, bounded to the south by the international border and is the gateway tothe north, has vast hydrocarbon resources. In this regard, it is the presentcentroid of Canada's oil and gas industry. Despite a continuing upward mobility, it is observed that the province issurrounded – even up into the Arctic and as far south as Texas and Louisiana -by potential or new sources of oil supply. Subjectively speaking, Alberta is described as a high- value energy areawhich is geographically encircled. It is, indeed, within the circular mosaic ofa highly competitive energy environment. Objectively, the province will becomean energy supplier of strategic significance by assisting to meet anever-increasing U.S. oil deficiency situation. Three particular aspects of Alberta are considered:Pattern of the liquids supply, namely, thecircular mosaic, in 1968, and the achievement of fluidity through optimizationof supply between the U.S. and Canada before the 1980's.Ultimate marketable reserves andproduction rates of the hydrocarbons by means of the logistic-curveapproach.Distribution of the alreadydiscovered oil reserves according to reservoir classification. INTRODUCTION EVEN IN THE JET AGE, or the atomic era, if so preferred, or the globalvillage psychedelic concept of Marshall McLuhan, the enormous expanse of Canadais bewildering. Our national emblem emblazons the subscript "A mari usque admare," and so it is, from sea to sea from Halifax on the Atlantic to Vancouveron the Pacific land distance of 3,000 longitudinal miles; and from the Canada-U.S.A. border to the most northerly of the Arctic Islands on the105-degree meridian -2,200 miles of latitude Alberta holds a predominating position in the known accumulation ofhydrocarbons in Canada at the present time. Transportation of the products tomarkets across Canada and into the U.S.A. becomes an important economic factor.This is particularly so for the liquids, as Alberta has no seaboard which mightpermit a lower cost of movement. Net imports into Eastern Canada amount to200,000 bbls of liquids per day, which is equivalent to 26 per cent of Alberta's daily crude oil and pentane production. Alberta could easily producethis net imports volume without any difficulty whatsoever. The absoluteprovincial oil deliverability is now around 2 million barrels per day.Allowing, say, a 70 per cent efficiency factor, the daily production could be1.4 million barrels, or a doubling of the prevailing rate. The projection ofthe logistic curve shows that oil production lags the discovery cycle by 14years; similarly, for natural gas the lag is 16 years.