Re: Why I may never sell.
- From: "Jerry" <NoSpam@???.??.com>
- Date: Mon, 03 Jul 2006 20:17:33 GMT
I don't know of another similar technology. This investment should be
considered speculative. It's not proven in a production environment,
someone else could come up with something similar, and it's still a long
time before it will be tested in a production environment. That said, IMO
it's worth investing a few bucks into - just don't bet the farm.
--
Jerry
"DirtBag©" <jhill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:44a9769b$0$96203$742ec2ed@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Is there anyway besides (IVAN) to invest into to ark a long term
investment ointo this process. Or is this the purest lay.. (IVAN) II
heard IVAN hold exclusive rights to the rocess.. If so and if it is indeed
as stated this would be the best $100M investment since Gates bought
DOS-1.5 for $55k and leased it to IBM.
-DirtBag
"Jerry" <NoSpam@???.??.com> wrote in message
news:aSBpg.7897$Eh1.5730@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I've been considering it as long term also. I believe it'll be at least
3 years before the first unit is deployed into production.
--
Jerry
<bartonmj@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:29424-44A6E39D-321@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Two Canadian chemical engineers working in the forestry sector have
invented what may become the oil industry's "holy grail." At least that
is what the TSX's Ivanhoe Energy Inc. is betting on, as are the world's
three biggest oil corporations.
The inventors are Dr. Robert Graham and Barry Freel, two Ottawa-based
chemical engineers, who founded Ensyn Group Inc. of Ottawa.
They have devised a process that converts wood into fuels and chemical
feedstocks, which is being applied to upgrading heavy oil into valuable
light crude at a reduced cost of US$12 to US$20 per barrel.
Ivanhoe paid $100-million to buy the rights to Ensyn's technology for
use in the oil business worldwide. The first commercial plant to
demonstrate this technology began operation in one of California's most
prolific oil fields this January.
That facility can convert up to 15,000 barrels a day of heavy oil into
light crude and involves Ivanhoe/Ensyn with a partnership that includes
ExxonMobil Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell.
"I came across the Ensyn technology while running a UK investment bank
specializing in environmental technology," said Ian Barnett,
vice-president of corporate development for Ivanhoe Energy, in a recent
interview.
"They had found the only commercial way to convert woods to fuel. We
bought it in 1996 and in April, 2005, Ivanhoe bought the rights for the
oil application."
Ensyn's technology promises to eliminate the need for natural gas as a
fuel and the high cost of carbon waste disposal, which could reduce
oilsands and heavy oil upgrading costs by between US$12 and US$20 a
barrel.
In other words, if Ensyn's technology works on a commercial scale, it
will change the economics of oil production around the world.
"Applied to the oil industry, it means upgrading without using natural
gas, creating waste products or emissions,'' said Mr. Barnett.
The Ensyn process involves sand and uses byproducts as fuel.
"The heavy oil is vaporized by a blast of hot sand and separates carbon
and hydrogen molecules. There are too many carbons in heavy oil," he
said.
The excess carbon is transferred to a reheater where it is burned off,
the heat recaptured and used as a fuel source.
"We turn a low-value byproduct into high-value energy," he said. "We
produce two products -- light crude liquids and onsite energy that
replaces natural gas as a fuel. And it's a self-perpetuating process."
"Current methods involve big upgraders, solvents, gasifying, emissions,
burial of waste," said Mr. Barnett. "We are using the bottom of the
barrel as fuel."
That's why Ivanhoe has gotten the attention of the world's biggest oil
companies.
Besides ExxonMobil and Shell, Conoco-Phillips has licensed the exclusive
rights to the process throughout Canada until 2010.
British-Petroleum and several national oil companies around the world
are studying the process and it's been licensed for use in Iraq.
What's important to oil producers is that the Ivanhoe-Ensyn process can
upgrade oil onsite, or in the field. "We have mini upgraders at or near
the wellhead," he said. "These are turnkey and transferable to other
locations."
This portability and localization eliminates the huge cost of gigantic
facilities and the accompanying transportation costs required to bring
raw materials and fuels to the centralized site.
Another huge potential advantage derived from this process (trademarked
"RTP" for "Rapid Thermal Processing") is that production continues 24/7.
By contrast, traditional upgrading is in batches, requiring equipment to
be shut down, carbon waste removed from the upgraders, and then huge
amounts of energy deployed to restart then use the process.
The California project is the first commercialized application of the
Ivanhoe-Ensyn technology. The first pilot plant, producing only 1,000
barrels a day, was built in Ottawa in 1998 by Gulf Canada Resources and
Ensyn Group.
While definitive results from the commercial plant may be two years
away, the technology is exciting some big players. If it proves to be
effective, the process will liberate billions of barrels of oil for
production around the world in oilsands and remote or depleted fields.
"This will allow companies to book stranded assets that are too
expensive to upgrade," said Mr. Barnett.
Even more fascinating is Ivanhoe's business plan. It will only license
the process to oil producers in return for a piece of the action.
In other words, it's the first "tech farm-in."
.
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