Category Archives: Tar Sands (Oil Sands)

Tar sands are a crude bitumen — a thick, sticky form of crude oil, so viscous that it will not flow unless heated or diluted with natural-gas. At room temperature, it is much like cold molasses.

Why Canadian oilsands will not help solve the energy crisis

Posted on July 16, 2022 by

Preface. I posted this back in 2011, but it is all still true, plus a lot more in my additional posts here. The Canadian oil sands are reputed to be the 3rd largest oil reserve (10%), but they are unconventional … Continue reading →

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Nafeez Ahmed: Venezuela’s collapse is a window into how the Oil Age will unravel

Posted on June 17, 2019 by

Preface. Ahmed is one of the best writers on the energy crisis and other biophysical calamities. He’s written about why many states are failing now in part due to peak oil, but also drought and other biophysical factors in his … Continue reading →

Posted in Peak Oil, Tar Sands (Oil Sands), Venezuela | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Why tar sands, a toxic ecosystem-destroying asphalt, can’t fill in for declining conventional oil

Posted on October 27, 2018 by

This is a book review of Tar Sands: Dirty Oil and the Future of a Continent by Andrew Nikiforuk. Many “energy experts” have said that a Manhattan tar sands project could prevent oil decline in the future.   But that’s not … Continue reading →

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How long will the marriage of fracked oil and tar sands last?

Posted on September 29, 2017 by

[ Below is a post by Art Berman which I found interesting because I’m concerned about whether enough diesel can be made in the future to keep trucks running.  Light tight “fracked” oil is better at making plastics and gasoline … Continue reading →

Posted in Oil & Gas Fracked, Tar Sands (Oil Sands) | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

House hearing on Canadian oil sands

Posted on December 14, 2016 by

House 112-128. March 20, 2012. The American Energy Initiative Part 17: A focus on the future of energy technology with an emphasis on Canadian oil sands. U.S. House of Representatives. [ Excerpts from the 203 page transcript ] President Obama … Continue reading →

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Over and under-cooked oil — tar sands, “fracked” tight oil & gas, oil shale

Posted on September 4, 2016 by

[ This article discusses why it’s so hard and expensive to extract difficult oils like tar sands, oil shale, and tight “fracked” oil, for reasons such as: These are at the bottom of the resource pyramid, so there may be … Continue reading →

Posted in Oil & Gas Fracked, Oil Shale, Tar Sands (Oil Sands) | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Tar sand EROI 2013 Poisson and Hall

Posted on May 21, 2016 by

Alexandre Poisson, Charles A. S. Hall. 2013. Time Series EROI for Canadian Oil and Gas. Energies 2013, 6, 5940-5959 [ This is an extract from this 20-page paper. Tar sands are the hope offered by techno-optimists that a great deal … Continue reading →

Posted in Charles A. S. Hall, EROEI Energy Returned on Energy Invested, Tar Sands (Oil Sands) | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Peak oil sands, low EROI, high debt, limited pipeline and refinery capacity

Posted on June 22, 2015 by

Peak tar sands, a.k.a. oil sands Techno-opmtimists claim that technology will enable nasty, sour, gunky, expensive, difficult unconventional oil to fill in the gap of declining conventional oil. Conventional oil is declining too quickly for unconventional to match But that’s … Continue reading →

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Mined Oil sands EROI 5, in-situ 2.9, or 1 if refinement, transportation, & environmental costs included

Posted on May 14, 2015 by

Nuwer, R. Feb 19, 2013. Oil Sands Mining Uses Up Almost as Much Energy as It Produces. InsideClimate News. EROI SURFACE MINED oil sands (20% of reserves) EROI 5  according to J. David Hughes research released Tuesday. EROI 5.5 to  … Continue reading →

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David Hughes: Peak oil sands in 2018

Posted on May 14, 2015 by

[ Tar sand production is peaking now in 2016 due to low oil prices, but even when oil prices go back up again, tar sands are one of the most expensive unconventional oil reserves to produce, and perhaps last in … Continue reading →

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