Lower crude oil prices and reduced demand resulting from a global economic downturn could reduce Canadian oil sands capital expenditures through 2017, the Canadian Energy Research Institute said. Production and capital outlays still are expected to increase well into the future, it emphasized in its latest Oil Sands Supply Update . Production from Canada’s oil sands reached 2.34 million b/d in 2014, 11% higher than 2013’s 2.08 million b/d, CERI’s 10th annual oil sands update said. “Production from oil sands includes an increasing share of Alberta’s and Canada’s crude oil production,” it noted. “In 2014, non-upgraded bitumen and [synthetic crude oil] production made up 58% of total Canadian crude production and 74% of Alberta’s total production.” CERI expects oil sands production to reach 3 million b/d by 2020, despite increased production and what it termed “market access challenges.” In addition to several in-situ projects or phases currently under way […]