NORTH AMERICAN OIL SANDS: HISTORY OF DEVELOPMENT, PROSPECTS FOR THE FUTURE - Energy Research Developments: Tidal Energy, Energy Efficiency and Solar Energy - page 308

Appendix B

Table B1. Regional Distribution of Estimated Technically
Recoverable Heavy Oil and Natural Bitumen
(in billions of barrels)

Natural Bitumen
(oil sands)

Region Heavy Oil

Recovery
Factor a

Technically
Recoverable

Recovery
Factor a

Technically
Recoverable

North America 0.19 35.3 0.32 530.9

South America
(Venezuela)

0.13 265.7 0.09 0.1

W. Hemisphere 0.13 301.0 0.32 531.0
Africa 0.18 7.2 0.10 43.0
Europe 0.15 4.9 0.14 0.2
Middle East 0.12 78.2 0.10 0.0
Asia 0.14 29.6 0.16 42.8
Russia 0.13 13.4 0.13 33.7 b
E. Hemisphere 0.13 133.3 0.13 119.7
World 434.3 650.7
Source : U.S. Department of the Interior. U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet, FS 070-03 August 2003.
Note: Heavy oil and natural bitumen are resources in known accumulations.
a Recovery factors were based on published estimates of technically recoverable and in-place[79] oil or
bitumen by accumulation. Where unavailable, recovery factors of 10% and 5% of heavy oil or bitumen
in-place were assumed for sandstone and carbonate accumulations, respectively.
b In addition, 212.4 billion barrels of natural bitumen in-place is located in Russia but is either in small
deposits or in remote areas in eastern Siberia.

References

[1] DOE, EIA, International Energy Outlook, 2006, p. 29.

[2] U.S. Department of Energy, EIA, Annual Energy Outlook, 2006.

[3] Oil Sands Fever, The Environmental Implications of Canada's Oil Sand Rush, by Dan

Woynillowicz, et. al, The Pembina Institute, November 2005.

[4] Reserves are defined by the EIA as estimated quantities that geological and engineering

data demonstrate with reasonable certainty to be recoverable in future years from known
reservoirs under existing economic and operating conditions. Resources are defined
typically as undiscovered hydrocarbons estimated on the basis of geologic knowledge
and theory to exist outside of known accumulations. Technically recoverable resources
are those resources producible with current technology without consideration of
economic viability.

[5] In-situ mining extracts minerals from an orebody that is left in place.