Oil Sands also have a problem Apparently.
There must be a growing number of nervous folks in Alberta.
https://opinions.caduceusx.com/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=8264
a snippit:
"Crude prices have now tumbled to a point where some oil sands plants are nearing break-even levels, and the likelihood that low prices will persist is a matter of serious concern for Alberta’s most important industry, international energy research firm Wood Mackenzie warned Monday.
The oil sands region is one of the costliest in the world to develop. And as oil prices tumble, it is vulnerable.
“Oil sands projects display some of the highest break-evens of all global upstream projects,” the firm said. “The potential for wide and volatile differentials could result in operators delaying or cancelling unsanctioned projects.”
New oil sands mines, for example, require prices of around $80 (U.S.) a barrel to break even, Wood Mackenzie found. Add an upgrader, the “pre-refinery” that transforms heavy oil into a lighter crude that can be further refined into diesel and gasoline, and the needed break-even rises to above $100. So-called “in situ” projects, which use wells and underground steam injection to extract oil sands crude, are less vulnerable, with a break even of about $60.
Falling oil prices are the latest setback for a sector already struggling with eroding investor confidence, fast-rising construction costs, strained labour availability and strident environmental criticism.
Benchmark North American oil prices currently around $84 are sharply below recent levels above $100. But many Alberta producers are exposed to even lower prices. They are currently fetching just $64 a barrel as they face competition from new oil supplies in the Bakken plays of North Dakota and a glut of supply into Midwestern U.S. refineries."