Dondon:

Due to its current highest marginal cost position , oil sands production remains at the top of the petroleum cost mix. Such situation will continue until at the margin some other production process needs to be used to supply the marginal demand dictated by supply/demand and what the consumer is willing to pay. Therefore, we are in the position of supplying product produced by a process which is at the far end of the cost profile. at the top end of the cost profile. In event that for economic reasons, consumption dips below the threshold requiring production from bitumen in the total petroleum consumption profile, all oil sands continue at risk from the threat of reduced petroleum consumption. Such is a basic and current market place weakness which can only be removed by even more expensive processes to be required to produce petroleum from more expensive processes in the future due to demand levels requiring even more expensive production processess. Until we become not the production source at the marginal cost extreme oil sands production remains at risk!

Brian