Energy Return on Investment of Canadian Oil Sands Extraction from 2009 to 2015

Ke Wang, Harrie Vredenburg, Jianliang Wang, Yi Xiong and Lianyong Feng
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Ke Wang: School of Business Administration, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing 102249, China
Harrie Vredenburg: Haskayne School of Business, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N1N4, Canada
Jianliang Wang: School of Business Administration, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing 102249, China
Yi Xiong: School of Business Administration, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing 102249, China
Lianyong Feng: School of Business Administration, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing 102249, China

Energies, 2017, vol. 10, issue 5, 1-13

Abstract: Oil sands, as unconventional oil, are so essential to both Canada and the world that special attention should be paid to their extraction status, especially their energy efficiency. One of the most commonly used methods to evaluate energy efficiency is the Energy Return on Investment (EROI) analysis. This paper focuses on EROI analysis for both in situ oil sands and mining oil sands over the period of 2009 to 2015. This time period represents an extension to periods previously considered by other analyses. An extended Input-Output model is used to quantify indirect energy input, which has been ignored by previous analyses of oil sands extraction. Results of this paper show that EROI of both mining oil sands (range of value: 3.9–8) and in situ oil sands (range of value: 3.2–5.4) display an upward trend over the past 7 years; EROI of mining oil sands is generally higher, but is more fluctuating than the EROI of in situ oil sands. Compared with EROI of other hydrocarbons, the EROI of oil sands is still quite low, despite the fact that it is increasing gradually.

Keywords: energy return on investment (EROI); Canadian oil sands; mining; in situ (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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