@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe "The US benchmark crude is West Texas Intermediate (WTI). WTI is very light and low in sulfur (sweet), and is actually lighter and sweeter than the international benchmark, North Sea Brent.
Canada produces a wide variety of crude oils, but much of the growth in recent years
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Canada produces a wide variety of crude oils, but much of the growth in recent years
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@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe been heavy sour crude from the oil sands. Bitumen from the Athabasca region is very heavy and high in sulphur, comparable in quality to Venezuelan Boscan crude. About 50% of Alberta's bitumen is upgraded into synthetic sweet crude oil
@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe The remaining 50% is blended and sold to market (primarily the US) as heavy sour crude streams.
Outside of the US, the world's oil supply is becoming increasingly heavy and sour while transportation fuels are becoming increasingly light, high-quality and ultra-low in sulfur.
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Outside of the US, the world's oil supply is becoming increasingly heavy and sour while transportation fuels are becoming increasingly light, high-quality and ultra-low in sulfur.
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@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe So how have refineries responded? They've added expensive secondary upgrading units such as catalytic crackers, hydrocrackers and fluid cokers. These units crack and coke the heavy crude "bottoms" into high-value products, removing all traces of sulfur to produce expensive
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@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe low-sulfur gasoline and diesel that meet the tightest environmental standards. These highly complex facilities are known as "high-conversion" refineries and are specifically designed to process heavy sour feedstock."
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@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe The industry has squeezed itself into a bottle neck, yes environmental regulations are a piece of it, however profit motive made companies invest and expand into areas for making more money. Having to buy upgraders for refineries and putting in more up front doesn't make enough
@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe straight cash anymore. The Saudis, Russians and many other countries have access to infinitely sweeter high end crude than us.
For every barrel of quality they send out (nearly) unprocessed, we have to double or triple process for that same quality. It is extremely difficult.
For every barrel of quality they send out (nearly) unprocessed, we have to double or triple process for that same quality. It is extremely difficult.
@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe "Shipping crude oil from Mexico or the Middle-East to the US by tanker is only a few dollars a barrel. Shipping oil from Alberta to the Gulf Coast by rail or pipeline ranges from $10 to $20/bbl. Guess who eats that transport cost? It's the oil producer, not the refinery.
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@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe That's because the refinery located in Houston or Philadelphia has over 350 types of crude streams to choose from, and they'll always pick the cheaper one.
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@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe And that means Canadian heavy oil producers need to sell their oil at a discount in order to be competitively priced with oil coming from Mexico or Iraq."
#gasprices
#gasprices
@MikeCox86177818 @anonfmresident @PremierScottMoe And that means Canadian heavy oil producers need to sell their oil at a discount in order to be competitively priced with oil coming from Mexico or Iraq."
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#gasprices, #Oilprices, #oilandgas, #oilandgasindustry, #Cdnpoli
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#gasprices, #Oilprices, #oilandgas, #oilandgasindustry, #Cdnpoli
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