Petro-Canada Putting Up To $1.7 Billion In Tar Sands Properties Up For Sale

[hatrack]

CALGARY - Petro-Canada is putting some oilsands properties on the auction block in a sale that could fetch as much as $1.7 billion, as the integrated oil and gas producer focuses on more developed or already producing leases.

The sale includes stakes in five in-situ properties -- meaning the tar-like bitumen must be recovered with underground thermal methods instead of mining -- estimated to contain 1.7 billion barrels of bitumen.

The properties, all located in the Fort McMurray region of northeastern Alberta, include the Chard, Stony Mountain, Liege, Thornbury and Ipiatik. The Petro-Canada assets are less well defined than two recent sales of in-situ properties that netted about $1.50 a barrel of bitumen, analysts said.

EDIT

Petro-Canada holds a 12-per-cent interest in Syncrude, the world's largest oilsands producer, as well as a 55-per-cent interest in Fort Hills with partners UTS Energy Corp. and mining giant Teck Cominco Ltd. The company, which also has international operations and a national chain of service stations, prefers to concentrate on oilsands properties where it holds a larger interest. Of those for sale, interests range from a 36-per-cent stake in the Chard property to a 10-per-cent holding in Itpiatik.

EDIT

http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/business/story.html?id=3a81ce89-40d8-4903-9880-f060293c7047

[Strelnikov_]

1. "Sale Includes Stakes In Five In-Situ Properties"

I'll take this as their vote regarding the potential of the yet-unproven in-situ processes.

[hatrack]

2. Or perhaps the costs of the yet-unproven in-situ process?

But . . . but . . . but . . 60 Minutes said it was gonna be cheap - and there wuz LOTS of it!!!!!

:eyes: