Conventional Crude Oil
In 2008, new drilling and enhanced recovery techniques added reserves of 22 million m3 (140 million bbl), which replaced about 77 per cent of 2008 production. Alberta’s remaining established crude oil reserves decreased by 3 per cent to 233 million m3 (1.5 billion bbl), resulting from revisions to existing pool reserves, new drilling, and production during 2008. Of remaining reserves, 74 per cent is classified as light-medium and 26 per cent as heavy crude.
Alberta’s production of conventional crude oil peaked in 1973 and has been in decline since then. In 2008, total crude oil production declined to about 80 000 m3/d (500 000 bbl/d), a decrease of 4 per cent from 2007.
As production of light-medium and heavy crude oil has decreased, nonupgraded bitumen and SCO production has increased. In 2008, total production of crude oil and equivalent decreased 1 per cent from 2007 levels.
In 2008, the price of light oil at the Alberta wellhead averaged $616.28/m3 in Canadian dollars ($97.93/bbl). This is a 35 per cent increase over the 2007 price of $456.75/m3 (72.58/bbl). For 2008, the price reached a record high in July, at $838.54/m3 ($133.25/bbl) and was lowest in December, at $240.70/m3 ($38.25/bbl).
In 2008, 80 per cent of Alberta’s crude oil, crude bitumen, SCO, condensate, and pentanes plus was delivered to other provinces, the U.S., and offshore.
