Announcement - October 23, 2024

AER publishes 2023 State of Fluid Tailings Management for Mineable Oil Sands Report

Today, the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) published the 2023 State of Fluid Tailings Management for Mineable Oil Sands report.  

This report summarizes Alberta’s eight oil sands mine operator’s tailings management reports (TMRs) including fluid tailings volumes, water volumes stored in tailings facilities, tailings volumes reaching ready to reclaim (RTR) status, whether operators are within approved fluid tailings profiles, site wide tailings management activities, alignment with approved tailings management plans (TMPs), and continual improvement of tailings treatment technologies.

These operator TMRs were published on the AER website in their entirety on May 30, 2024. This annual reporting is a requirement under AER Directive 085: Fluid Tailings Management for Oil Sands Mining Projects. 

Report highlights include: 

  • The total volume of fluid tailings* (new and legacy tailings combined) on oil sands mine sites in the Athabasca oil sands region increased from 1441 million cubic metres (Mm3) in 2022 to 1486 Mm3 in 2023. The increase in the total regional volume of fluid tailings was expected based on approved tailings profiles.
  • The total volume of water in fluid tailings ponds in the region decreased from 417.5 Mm3 in 2022 to 391.1 Mm3 in 2023. 
  • The total volume of bitumen production increased from 93.86 Mm3 in 2022 to 95.60 Mm3 in 2023.

Between May and October each year, AER technical specialists conduct a comprehensive review of each operator’s TMR submission and then provide an evaluation of each operator’s tailings management, highlighting any regulatory actions taken, identifying the fluid tailings management level each approval holder is operating at as per the Lower Athabasca Region: Tailings Management Framework for the Mineable Athabasca Oil Sands (TMF) and Directive 085, and evaluating regional performance against the TMF outcomes and objectives..

For questions concerning the operator reports, contact the specific operator directly. 

For questions related to the AER report, contact inquiries@aer.ca. For media inquiries, contact media@aer.ca.  

* Fluid tailings are categorized as legacy fluid tailings (fluid tailings stored before January 1, 2015) and new fluid tailings (fluid tailings stored after January 1, 2015).