Incitec Pivot Ltd T.IPL

RE:RE:RE:Energy East

[Dapper1]

Uprgrading heavy oil in Alberta is a great vission but has a few major technical difficulties which few are a aware of. That is, fresh water supply which Dryland Alberta is in short supply.  These heavy oil feed refineries require a lot of fresh water for use as a coolant and a source of hydrogen. Heavy oil has a low hydrogen to carbon ratio and refined product such a mogas and diesel has a high ratio. You can achieve the requied raio by adding hydrogen or rejecting excess carbon as petcoke. Economics and governments encourage minimization of reject coke.   
So--- where do you have a sufficient fresh water supply?  The Athabasca and Ells rivers are essentially totaly commited.  BP's proposed SAGD development on the ELls, for example, where required to install a large water reservior to supply the required water in winter and low flow periods. The North Sask  river is reserved for population demands (eg cities).  
The Sturgeon upgrader did not have sufficient water sources and where required to install air cooling which increases CAPEX by about 25%.

In many of our enginering studies this proved to be a major obsticle in locating a refinery.  Interesting though,the only river in  Alberta which has sufficient fresh water surplus is the mighty Peace River in NW Albera. What intregues me, is that with these proposed propane export projects originate is NW Albertta and NE BC. and an existing transportation corridor is is existance and will be expanded to handle the eventual capacities. Perhaps an eventual match can be made with locating heavy oil refinies here and using this corridor.  Shades of the Northern Gateway???