Canada’s oil sands fight for their future

A combination of material reductions in environmental footprint and better communication aims to safeguard the beleaguered industry for the long term

Major Canadian oil sands producers, with the support of the federal and Alberta government, are trying to put the pieces in place to give their industry a fighting chance of continuing to produce and export substantial volumes of oil as the world moves towards net-zero emissions—in defiance of gloomy prognoses for its long-term future such as the IEA’s most recent report on its outlook. The industry has, in the view of Kevin Birn, vice-president of North American crude oil markets at consultancy IHS Markit in Calgary, gone through three major stages of development since the turn of the millennium: a free-for-all for its first 10-15 years, characterised by cost overruns and process inefficien