Connacher Oil & Gas Ltd CLLZF

U.S. is eyeing Alberta oilsands as key part

[righand99]

U.S. is eyeing Alberta oilsands as key part of supply, official says WASHINGTON (CP) - U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman says future energy from the Alberta oilsands is a "very important component" of the country's supply and he is hoping proximity will ensure most of it flows south. He's not concerned, he said, about Chinese investment in the rich resource, "I'm of the view that oil in the world is a commodity. It trades," he said following a speech at the Canadian Embassy. "We clearly have advantages of being close to Canada and therefore I would hope that the markets for Canadian oil would find their way to the United States in preference to other parts of the world, simply because it's going to be less expensive to get it here," said Bodman. "If the Chinese are buying oil in Canada, it will cost them something to get the oil from Canada to China." Bodman, who hasn't yet visited the oilsands facilities, said the United States is obviously interested in a resource where production is slated to increase from a million barrels a day to some three million. "Our country uses about 21 (or) 22 million barrels a day of oil. That's a big fraction of it, so it will be very important," he said. "We certainly are very anxious that the oilsands development be as swift as possible," but such a "gargantuan" undertaking is going to take time. "We're certainly pleased at the prospect. We have a very good relationship with our energy colleagues in Canada and we're very anxious to see them expand as much as is reasonable given the constraints on people and personnel and facilities. President George W. Bush, in his state of the union address in January, said the U.S. has to break its "addiction" to oil and reduce imports from unstable countries in the Middle East by 75 per cent by 2025. Foreign firms from France and China have recently invested in the oilsands and Japanese and Indian energy companies are also interested.