News & views - Facts about oil and natural gas

Facts

Oil is abundant. Canada has the third largest oil reserve base in the world.
The majority (79%) of world oil reserves are owned or controlled by national governments. Only 21% of total world oil reserves are accessible for private sector investment, 56% of which are found in Canada’s oil sands.
As energy demand continues to grow the world has moved to heavier sources of oil. About 80% of the entire oil reserves is the heavier oil, like that in northern Alberta, that can only be accessed using enhanced oil recovery methods, such as SAGD.
The need for oil isn't going away. Global demand for energy is expected to increase 47% by 2035 as economies in both developed and emerging countries continue to grow and standards of living improve. As conventional oil resources are depleted, the world will rely more on unconventional sources of oil such as the oil in the Athabasca region.
Oil plays a part in practically every product a person uses in their everyday lives: made from oil, made by machinery dependant on oil, or transported by oil as either gasoline or diesel fuel.

Sources: CERA, CAPP, Canadian Centre for Energy

Canada's natural gas reserves rank 20th in the world.
Canada is the third largest natural gas producer in the world.
Approximately 90 percent of all natural gas imported into the United States comes from Canada.
A total of 5,879 natural gas wells were drilled in Canada in 2010.
There are over 120,000 natural gas vehicles operating on American roads.

Sources: API, BP Statistical Review, CAPP, US Department of Energy