Field guide
The plumbing behind the numbers. Ten plain-language explainers on how the oil sands actually works: the plants, the pipes, the ownership, and the commercial logic. No forecasts, no model output, just the institutional knowledge that makes the numbers legible. Written for a new hire on a WCSB desk.
The plumbing behind the numbers. Ten plain-language explainers on how the oil sands actually works: the plants, the pipes, the ownership, and the commercial logic. No forecasts, no model output, just the institutional knowledge that makes the numbers legible. Written for a new hire on a WCSB desk.
Ten entries · written September 23, 2026.
- 1. The Scotford chain
Muskeg River and Jackpine mines, the Corridor pipeline, and a Shell-operated upgrader outside Edmonton. How CNRL's mined bitumen becomes synthetic crude.
- 2. The Sturgeon refinery
The government-backed bitumen refinery northeast of Edmonton. Fifty thousand barrels a day of bitumen that never sees an export pipe.
- 3. The upgrader interconnects
The bitumen lines between Suncor and Syncrude, and the outage playbook they make possible.
- 4. NFT vs PFT bitumen
Why some mined bitumen has to go through an upgrader, and some can go straight to a pipeline.
- 5. Diluent 101
The light oil that makes bitumen move, and the 30 percent of every dilbit barrel you are really buying.
- 6. Mine capacity vs upgrader capacity
Two plants, two numbers. Never blend them.
- 7. The synthetic grades
SYN, Premium Albian, and the other light barrels of the oil sands.
- 8. SAGD vs CSS vs mining
The three ways to get bitumen out of the ground.
- 9. How turnarounds move barrels
Planned shutdowns, the Horizon September 2026 example, and why the calendar beats the snapshot.
- 10. Egress 101
The pipes out of Alberta, apportionment, and why full pipes set the price.