Albian Sands

Albian Sands Energy Inc. is the operator of the Muskeg River Mine, an oil sands mining project located 75km north of Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada. It is a joint venture between Shell Canada (60%), Marathon Oil Canada (20%) and Chevron Canada (20%). The company's legal headquarters are located in the Shell Tower in Calgary, Alberta. Albian Sands got its name from the Albian Boreal Sea which, during the Albian stage of the Cretaceous (over 100 million years ago), moved over the McMurray sands and deposited a blanket of marine shale on its floor which trapped the hydrocarbons of the McMurray Formation. The oil sands resources of the Muskeg River Mine are a legacy of the Albian Sea.At full production, the Muskeg River Mine can produce 155000oilbbl/d of crude bitumen, a naturally occurring semi-solid form of crude oil. The mine product, diluted bitumen or dilbit, is sent to be upgraded at the Scotford Upgrader in Fort Saskatchewan. The Muskeg River Mine stands on a Shell Canada lease containing more than 5Goilbbl of mineable bitumen, of which it is expected to recover 1650Moilbbl of bitumen over the next 30 years. The Muskeg River Mine and the Scotford Upgrader together comprise the Athabasca Oil Sands Project (AOSP).