Alberta Tory decries raw bitumen exports

By Dave Ebner
Globe and Mail
27-Sep-2006

Jim Dinning, the front-runner to become Alberta's next premier, says raw oil sands crude shouldn't be shipped to the United States for processing, a statement made even as the vast majority of the oil is set to be processed in the province. Mr. Dinning made his comments in a campaign speech in Edmonton yesterday. "It concerns me when I hear companies planning to ship more of our raw resources [bitumen] for refining in the United States," Mr. Dinning said. "I believe that if you mine it here, you upgrade it here." BP PLC last week said it plans to spend $3-billion (U.S.) at its Chicago-area refinery to increase its ability to handle raw oil sands output to 350,000 barrels in 2011 from about 85,000 currently. There is capacity to produce 800,000 barrels a day of synthetic oil in Alberta right now - using almost all of the bitumen output - and more than two million more daily barrels of capacity are under development.