The Biggest Oil Opportunity in the World - And How You Can Profit From It


Where is the second biggest deposit of oil reserves in the world?

In the oil sands region of Alberta, Canada. Oil sands are a thick, viscid mixture of bitumen, sand, clay, and water. Alberta's oil sands is comprised of 3 regions with the Athabasca area being the largest and the closest to the surface. Underneath these gooey tar sands lie trillions of barrels of oil.

So then you may ask why have we been so dependent on Mideast oil. Why haven't we just stayed nearby and relied on Canada? In fact, Canada is the largest supplier of crude and refined oil to the United States, having supplied 2.1 million barrels per day in 2004. But the percentage supplied to the US and other parts of the world is about to grow much larger.

The big difference between oil sands and oil from the desert sands of the middle east is difficulty of extraction. The oil sands process essentially entails extracting bitumen from the sand, and upgrading it to light crude oils. Easier said than done because this is thick stuff and has been expensive to mine and extract. However new technologies are changing the equation and making it much more cost-efficient to mine and extract from the oil sands.

Mining operations are used to produce reserves close to the surface. For oil that is deeper under ground, Steam-Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) and Cyclic Steam Stimulation (CSS) are used. Other examples of new technology and extraction methods include burning bitumen instead of gas to produce steam, a solvent-assisted production technique called VAPEX and a system that injects air into the oil well and ignites it to stimulate oil flow.

In addition to improvements in technology, higher oil prices are fueling expansion in the oil sands, and a lot of people want in. The Chinese, for instance. In April, China National Offshore Oil Corp., predominantly owned by the Chinese government, bought nearly 17% of MEG Energy Corp. for $122 million. The company is developing a northern Alberta project estimated to pump 25,000 barrels of crude from the oil sands by 2008. And Canadian oil pipeline giant Enbridge has announced a preliminary deal with PetroChina to anchor a $2-billion oil pipeline to the West Coast.

So how can you benefit from the increased exploration, production and sales of crude oil from the oil Sands of Alberta? Choose among the stocks of companies that are investing in the area and applying new technology to extract oil more cost-efffectively.

Companies than can capitalize on the increasing role of Canada's oil sands in the world's energy needs include Suncor (NYSE: SU), Encana (NYSE:ECA), Canadian Natural Resources NYSE:CNQ) Deer Creek Energy (DCE.TO), Total S.A. (NYSE:TOT), Petro Canada NYSE: PCZ), and, with its acquisition of Terasen whose pipelines are well-positioned to transport growing production from the Alberta oil sands, Kinder Morgen (NYSE: KMI).

And while it may remain somewhat more expensive to extract oil from Alberta than from the Mideast, consider the effects of global politics, terrorism and turmoil, and the chilly wilds of Northwest Canada become very attractive indeed.

Leon Altman creates and runs websites that uncover opportunities for investors. To find more opportunities in oil and gas as well as other sectors, subscribe to his free Select Sectors letter at http://www.investingin.com/SL-Oilandgas.htm and check out his websites: http://www.InvestingIN.com and http://www.SmallcapRecap.com


MORE RESOURCES:

Investing in Maine children pays off in economic well-being
Central Maine Morning Sentinel, ME - 6 hours ago
Over those years, I've grown to appreciate the critical importance of investment. I've grown to understand that some investments are so fundamental to our ...


Boston Globe

Arab countries investing in educational revolution
Boise State University The Arbiter Online, ID - 5 hours ago
DOHA, Qatar – On a vast, half-built campus rising from the desert sands of this Arab emirate, the Medill School of Journalism’s newest freshman class is ...
Video: Fed Board Approves Wells Fargo's Wachovia Buy AssociatedPress
all 3,539 news articles


13-10-2008: Funds investing in Greater China badly hit
The Edge Daily, Malaysia - 4 hours ago
by Gan Yen Kuan PETALING JAYA: Local funds investing in equities in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan were worse hit compared with those investing in local assets ...


Course explores 'Investing for Income'
Independent Press, NJ - 15 hours ago
by Staff/Independent Press AREA -- "Investing for Income: 20 Do's and Don'ts" will be explored at a one-night course offered by the Summit Area Community ...


Start investing in strong manufacturing and services cos
Economic Times, India - 12 hours ago
In simple terms, it means that companies, especially investment banks and other financial institutions in North America and Europe, will have to reduce ...


AsiaOne

Buffett-style investing shines
Inquirer.net, Philippines - 21 hours ago
Salve Duplito VANDERMIR CT SAY started investing when he was 12 years old. That was 22 years ago. He recalls picking stocks the way he would play darts. ...
The Next Banking Bomb? CBS News
all 7 news articles


Wall Street Journal

Time to turn on other growth with engies as exports look set to be hit
Nation Multimedia, Thailand - 10 hours ago
But the effect on the stock exchange is inevitable since foreign investing institutions had to sell down their investments overseas to bring money back to ...
US gov't to buy shares in sinking banks: report CTV.ca
Paulson reveals bank rescue plan NEWS.com.au
Will Paulson's Bank Plan Finally Unfreeze Credit? TIME
AFP - Washington Post
all 3,183 news articles


Personal Finance: Investing with the best returns
Business Mirror, Philippines - 20 hours ago
Here’s one investment that will surely give you a very good yield, no risk and even limitless return on equity. It is such a good investment that, ...


CPI Financial

Investing Like Buffett
New York Times, United States - Oct 10, 2008
It’s easy in theory: Mr. Buffett accumulated his fortune by investing only in businesses he understands, buying shares when they were cheap and holding them ...
Want to be like Buffett? There are ways Newsday
Bargain shopper Buffett fills his basket with vintage deals guardian.co.uk
Buffett's company to buy $3B of GE preferred stock USA Today
RTT News - WELT ONLINE
all 64 news articles


FACTBOX: South Korea moves to loosen bank ownership
Reuters - 26 minutes ago
PENSION FUNDS - Infrastructure-investing companies, invested by pension funds, will be excluded from a review of whether or not they are financial investors ...

Investing - Google News

home | site map
© BullMarketData.com 2008