Still Going Strong

I often refer to the results of The Energy Resources
Conservation Boards (ERCB) findings in my presentations and I was
happy to see this year that the results highlighted another solid
year and a bright futurefor our industry. The report, Albertas
Reserves 2010 and Supply/Demand Outlook 2011-2020, showed over
2,300 successful oil wells were drilled in 2010 more than double
from 2009. Furthermore, according to the report, the total amount
of oil sands produced represents an 8 per cent increase since 2009
with 589 million barrels being the 2010 yearly total (i.e., on
average, 1.61 MBbl/d). These are great numbers. This means that our
industry is continuing to deliver economic benefits for the
province and across the country. And, the expectation is that these
numbers will just continue to grow. The ERCB forecasts a total of
1.3 billion barrels per year (i.e., on average, 3.56 MBbl/d) by
2020. The results underline the need for our resource to meet
growing energy demands. Since 1967 when the industry began, Alberta
has produced 7.5 billion barrels of raw crude bitumen from the oil
sands and crude oil production has produced 16 billion barrels. I
know that our industry will continue to play a key role as an
economic driver through the development of this great resource. For
more information on the report and other highlights, please visit
www.ercb.ca.