Oil Sands in Kazakhstan

Aktau, Kazakhstan - HPC has been appointed by a long standing client to manage the exploitation of bitumen deposits from one of the world's largest deposits of oil sands, in Kazakhstan near the Caspian Sea.

The main purpose of this extraction is to use the extracted and upgraded Bitumen as a raw material for road construction. Kazakhstan is the ninth largest country in the world, covering an area of 2,717,300km2 and government programs have been agreed for the improvement of infrastructure and road construction across the country. The successful extraction of this oil supply is fundamental to the implementation of this infrastructure project.

The bitumen sand deposit covers an area of approximately 25km2 and is situated in a vast, desert-like area, approximately 200km to the east of the city Aktau near the Caspian Sea. Environmental conditions in the area are challenging with rainfall occurring only in spring and winter and temperatures ranging from as high as 45oC in summer and minus 25oC in winter. Approximately 30km away from the site is the nearest settlement, which nomads use as grazing land for camels, is home to a very old nomad cemetery and the area is also used for some rare birds to breed and grazing for other wild animals. The environmental impacts of the project on this area must be taken into account throughout this project.

The brief for the project includes the following scope of works:

  • Preparation of a feasibility study for open pit mining
  • Preparation of a feasibility study for hydrocarbon extraction and treatment of bitumen sands
  • Assessment and investigation of Kazakh legal basis for the operation of an open pit
  • Preparation of a certified appraisal for the deposit according to international standards of evaluation
  • Detailed planning for the open pit for an operation time of approximately 25 years
  • Preparation of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

To ensure the successful delivery of the project, HPC has assembled a team of international experts for various stages of the project. The core planning tasks, open pit technology, geological models and raw material models are being managed by HPC's Merseburg office, which has a proven track record of experience in this sector.

HPC has called for specific support from Montan University, Leoben; The University of Alberta, Canada; and institutes in Salt Lake City, Utah; for their extensive knowledge of processing and extraction technologies. Detailed laboratory tests, investigations and large scale testing of sample material from the deposits are currently being carried out. HPC is also coordinating support from skilled experts in the crude oil sector for the support in preparing certified appraisals, and working with a major Kazakh engineering enterprise for access to existing documentation from the site, as well as support with legal compliance for the project.

Initial works on the project have included the analysis of data from bore holes advanced in the 1970's, 80's and 90's, with subsequent investigation undertaken more recently. Approximately 150,000 data records are currently being collated and analysed using specialist geology and mine planning program Surpac™. Analysis is being carried out to determine how the access slopes will be constructed to ensure safe progress, where excavated material will be deposited and how 100,000m3 of excavated sands, per day, will physically reach the processing stage.

A particularly complicated and challenging task is the separation of the bitumen from the sand. The biggest example of bitumen sand processing is in Canada, the world's second largest crude oil reservoir in Athabasca in the North state of Alberta, where a hot water extraction technology is employed. This extraction method can only be used for one particular bond of the bitumen with the grain of sand. Whether this bond exists in Kazakhstan is currently being analysed by a laboratory. Other extraction methods including solvents, electrolytes, heat and others are currently being investigated. In the case that the water extraction method is the most suitable method for the Kazakhstan deposit, another challenge will be to source the estimated 200m3 supply of water needed, per hour, in the existing climate.

Hydrogeological reports from the 1980's illustrate groundwater occurrences in the area of the deposit in Kazakhstan which could provide an appropriate water supply. An alternative source of water supply currently under investigation is developing a water pipeline from the Caspian Sea. All these technical and environmental influences are under investigation by HPC, and a comprehensive solution is being prepared for the client, to ensure that all are considered when providing a solution for this complex project.

For further information and updates on this project please contact Thomas Noack, tnoack@hpc-ag.de