By 2009, the NEB pegged the break - even price for new
oilsands projects at a U.S. $ 55 - 70 / bbl WTI price, and the expected quantity had been
scaled back largely due to the financial crisis, to less than 3 million barrels per day by 2015.
Until now, Alberta's nine open - pit
oilsands mining
projects have endured far greater regulatory scrutiny than the more than 200 in situ
projects, which are typically smaller in
scale.