Rope-a-dope: the oilsands are down for the count

摘要

AT 175 billion barrels of recoverable crude, the oilsandsnare the undisputed heavyweight of North America. Overnthe last several decades, oil companies have spent tens ofnbillions of dollars on both mining and in-situ projects, raisingnproduction of the tarry bitumen to current levels of 1.3nmillion b/d. But, suddenly, the oilsands find themselvesnsuffering a flurry of low blows.