The Athabasca oil sands, also known as the Athabasca tar sands, are large deposits of oil sands rich in bitumen, a heavy and viscous form of petroleum, in northeastern Alberta, Canada. These reserves are one of the largest sources of unconventional oil in the world, making Canada a significant player in the global energy market.

The Athabasca oil sands in Alberta, Canada, are a very large source of bitumen, which can be upgraded to synthetic crude heavy oil, Western Canadian Select (WCS) Tar sandstone from California, United States. Oil sands [a] are a type of unconventional petroleum deposit.

Apr 11, 2019 · Can Canada develop its climate leadership and its lucrative oil sands too? Large enough to be seen from space, tailings ponds in Alberta’s oil sands region are some of the biggest...

Jul 28, 2020 · The oil sands are the third-largest proven oil reserve in the world, representing 166.3 billion barrels (or 97%) of Canada’s 171 billion barrels of proven oil reserves (technical overview). In 2014, oil sands production was 2.2 million barrels per day.

Mar 20, 2014 · The Canadian oil sands (or tar sands) are a large area of petroleum extraction from bitumen, located primarily along the Athabasca River with its centre of activity close to Fort McMurray in Alberta, approximately 400 km northeast of the provincial capital, Edmonton.

Total Canadian proven oil reserves are estimated at 171.0 billion barrels, of which 166.3 billion barrels are found in Alberta's oil sands and an additional 4.7 billion barrels in conventional, offshore, and tight oil formations. Canada accounts for 10% of the world’s proven oil reserves.

The oil sands are a strategic resource that contributes to economic opportunity and energy security for Canada, North America and the global market. The oil sands comprise more than 98 percent of Canada’s 173 billion barrels of proven oil reserves.

Alberta's oil sands has the fourth-largest proven oil reserves in the world, after Venezuela, Saudi Arabia and Iran. Sources: Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) ST98 report and Oil & Gas Journal. Alberta's oil sands’ proven reserves are equal to about 158.9 billion barrels (bbl).

The Geological Survey of Canada initiates exploration of the oil sands of the Athabasca region on the part of the federal government. Tar Sands, Athabasca River, Alberta, n.d. Source: Geological Survey of Canada/Library and Archives Canada, PA-038166.

Canada’s oil sands are primarily in northeastern Alberta (Athabasca), with additional heavy oil deposits in northwestern Alberta (Peace River) and the Cold Lake / Lloydminster region in Alberta and Saskatchewan. The main oil sands region covers an …