Canadian Oil Sands: An Introduction and Context

摘要

Based on these comparisons, many geologists have distinguished the Venezuelan deposits as consisting not of crude bitumen, as in Western Canada, but of extra-heavy oil. The distinction is potentially important, as it suggests recovery methods will continue to differ for the two regions, at least in the near- and mid-term, and that techniques developed in one area might need adaptation to the other. Overall, as noted by Dusseault (2001), the Faja de Orinoco reservoirs are significantly higher in quality and productive potential than are the Canadian reservoirs. The Venezuelan oil sands, that is, generally have higher porosities and permeabilities, higher net pay, somewhat higher oil saturations, larger amounts of dissolved gas, lower viscosities, and smaller clay content. Such factors, contributing to much higher oil mobility than in most of Western Canada, have allowed development thus far to employ horizontal drilling techniques and to avoid the added expense of thermal or chemical stimulation or other advanced methods of recovery.