Non-conventional recovery mining of the oil sands is accomplished in situ (in its original place) with limited surface disturbance.
According to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, 80% of the total oil sands reserves are too deep for conventional recoverable methods and 97% of current recovery operations rely on in situ technology. The availability of onsite resources, including the requisite chemicals for water treatment and costly energy consumption required to generate the ideal Steam Oil Ratio (SOR), are among the challenges the industry faces to reduce capital expenditures (CAPEX) and operational expenditures (OPEX), and increase net return on investment (NETBACK) for proven reserves.
