Fort McMurray, Alberta, the town at the centre of Canada’s tar sands/oil sands boom, is bracing for the impact of an extended period of low oil prices.
The boom town formerly known as Fort McMoney “has weathered many a bust, only to recover and continue its frenzied growth,” CBC reports. “But this time there are projections that the price drop could be deep and sustained. That’s bad news for the oilsands, where the cost of production is higher than for conventional oil.”
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While the subtle, early signs of a slowdown are emerging, it may be several months before the full impact becomes clear, Reith writes. “The vast majority of Fort McMurray’s approximately 75,000 residents make their living from the energy industry, as do a so-called shadow population of about 40,000 who live and work in nearby camps.”
