Impact on Alberta Island Continues....

As Petro Canada tries to talk itself out of Oil Sands project.
The other day I was a reading a post somewhere that the recent fall in prices shouldn't impact most energy companies inasmuch as they base their investment decisions over long terms- 20 years or more. And then I suddenly wondered the giant rush to develop oil sands- an energy inefficient, economically risky and environmentally unfriendly way to make oil. All based on expectation that the prices will remain in high double digits or triple digits from here to infinity.

And since most new oil sands projects are based on the same expectations that Calgary condo projects are, the inimitable Warren Buffett in his recent visit to Fort McMurray said:
"Because you could be the world's greatest mining engineer, but if you were wrong about the price of oil in a big way, it would negate all that knowledge."

"So I can tell you that ... if you had $120 oil from now till, you know, 50 years from now, that the tar sands would work out very well. But I don't know the answer to that."

Finally, "The stage is set for Petrocan to walk away from this project. There are any number of deeper-pocketed, more visionary energy companies that will make $14-billion-plus bets on the 50-year potential of the oil sands. If control of Fort Hills comes up for grabs, watch EnCana, Canadian Natural Resources, Suncor or one of the foreign energy giants to step up."

Make that a $21 billion project (new cost), seriously impaired credit markets, slowing or contracting global economy, falling energy prices and we'll see how many brave company boards exist out there to venture into such a project.