Purvin & Gertz Introduces Crude Oil & Oil Sands Market Outlook Service

Purvin & Gertz announces the release of the Crude Oil & Oil Sands Market Outlook. This new service addresses important issues concerning North American crude oil markets and pricing while focusing on the relative dynamics of the upstream and downstream industries. The service provides a timely analysis of long-range trends in North American crude oil production and imports, refinery demand for many regions of the U.S. and Canada, pipeline movements, prices and refining margins with an emphasis on the Canadian oil sands crudes, such as synthetic crude and bitumen blends. A feature report, entitled the "Diluent Dilemma", outlines the major diluent alternatives available for pipelining bitumen blends and analyzes their impact on prices for oil sands producers, upgraders, and refiners.

Mr. Tom Wise, Vice President, said, "The decline in conventional crude oil production in North America should be largely offset by growing production from the Canadian oil sands, but additional imports will also be needed to satisfy growing petroleum demand. There will have to be major changes in the distribution of Canadian crudes as more production finds its way to more distant markets. Access to Gulf Coast refineries is gaining interest, particularly with concerns about supplies from Latin America. The need to ship oil sands crudes further will likely reduce netback prices for oil sands crudes in Alberta, impacting producers and refiners. Refiners in the U.S. Midwest, the traditional market for Canadian crude, are positioning themselves to take more of the oil sands crudes. Oil sands producers are deliberating about marketing bitumen blend directly to refiners or upgrading to synthetic crude. High oil prices are positive for producers, but high project costs and resource limitations are major challenges, along with environmental pressures for sustainable development. We at Purvin & Gertz have analyzed these developments to better understand their likely impact on the North American crude oil markets."

About Purvin & Gertz

Purvin & Gertz is an independent energy consulting firm providing technical, commercial, and strategic advice. Purvin & Gertz specializes in servicing clients involved in the production, processing, transportation, and marketing of oil, natural gas and gas liquids, and petroleum products. Headquartered in Houston, the firm consists of an international network of offices in Calgary, Buenos Aires, Dubai, Long Beach, London, Moscow, and Singapore. Purvin & Gertz is an employee-owned consulting company, independent of any parent company, engineering firm, equipment manufacturer or process licensor.

Visit our website at http://www.purvingertz.com for more information on the Crude Oil & Oil Sands Market Outlook service. For expert commentary contact Tom Wise at thwise@purvingertz.com or by phone +1 403 266-7086 ext.