Bitumen upgrading concentrates 34–39 kt of vanadium a year into petcoke and boiler ash — ore-grade metal in a waste pile.
Alberta bitumen carries vanadium and nickel that upgrading concentrates into petroleum coke (1,000–1,900 ppm V) and, where coke is burned, into fly ash at 3.5–6.6 % V2O5. The AGS estimates stockpiles hold about 126 kt of contained vanadium with 34,000–39,000 t more concentrated every year. Roast-leach recovery from petcoke ash is proven elsewhere; the Alberta constraint is that most coke is stockpiled unburned.
1 subsurface asset priced by the Atlas engine: economic value $13T. Move the Scenario Laboratory sliders on the map to reprice.
McMurray Formation (Athabasca)2.25M MMbbl in place · recoverable $15T · economic $13T (87% clears break-even)
GEOLOGY: WHAT MAKES A DEPOSIT MORE LIKELY
Metals bound in bitumen porphyrins are rejected into coke during upgrading; combustion or gasification of coke further concentrates them into ash.
Host formations
Bitumen asphaltenes (porphyrin-bound V, Ni)
Depth range
0–20 m
Favourable conditions
Upgraders with fluid or delayed cokers
Coke combustion or gasification producing ash
Stockpile access and leach-residue disposal
Prospectivity envelopes on the map (0)
No envelope drawn yet — this commodity is screened through datasets rather than a regional polygon.
DATASETS THAT TEST THE TARGET
Stack these layers on the integrated map
Discriminating datasets first, then every catalogued public dataset tagged to this commodity. Verified endpoints draw directly; link-only entries open the publisher page.
Oil sands projects, schemes & development areas (OASIS)Alberta Energy and Minerals · Infrastructure · drawable · verifiedApproved project footprints — the mines and SAGD schemes whose tailings and produced water host by-product minerals.Source ↗
Oil sands agreementsAlberta Energy and Minerals · Mineral tenure · drawable · verifiedOil sands rights; nearly all of the Athabasca mineable area is leased.Source ↗
Pipelines & facilities (ERCB Geoview)Alberta Energy and Minerals · Infrastructure · drawable · verifiedEgress and processing infrastructure; H2S content flags sulphur and sour-gas plants.Source ↗
Strong growthCRU: vanadium demand ×2 by 2032; batteries a third of demand by 2030
Nickel
Nickel sulphate / hydroxide
—
GrowthBattery nickel ×2 by 2040 (IEA)
DEMAND & PRODUCTION PROJECTIONS
What the forecasts say
CRUVanadium demand doubles by 2032, >90 % of growth from batteriesStockhead / CRU ↗
Key risks
Operator access
Carbon cost of coke combustion
Price
DEVELOPMENT: TENURE, ROYALTY, PERMITTING
What a developer needs to know
Tenure
By-product of oil sands leases; metals recovery agreement with the upgrader operator.
Royalty
Metallic minerals: 1 % of mine-mouth revenue pre-payout; post-payout the greater of 1 % mine-mouth or 12 % of net revenue (AR 350/93 s.4). (application to upgrader by-products unverified).
Lead time
3–5 years
Permitting path
EPEA approval amendment
Hazardous residue management
Infrastructure needs
Roast-leach plant at upgrader
Residue disposal
Active players
Syncrude / SuncorCanadian NaturalAGS critical metals program
Recommended next steps
Pilot ash leach on Syncrude coke
Pair with gasification for hydrogen
MINES, PILOTS & PROJECTS (0)
Who is already working this commodity in Alberta
No operating mine, pilot or advanced project is tracked for this commodity in Alberta.