Detailed Engineering of Creating Value from Waste (CVW™) Sustainable Technology at Canadian Natural Horizon

Lead Proponent

Titanium Corporation Inc.

Project Objectives

The objective of this project is to detail engineer a full-scale first-of-kind froth treatment tailings remediation and product recovery facility at Canadian Natural’s Horizon mine. This detailed engineering will support the demonstration phase of the project.

Titanium’s Creating Value from Waste (CVW™) Horizon project is a commercial scale prototype demonstration of a first-of-kind sustainable technology designed to remediate oil sands froth treatment tailings. The project will be jointly conducted and implemented with Titanium’s industry partner, Canadian Natural Resources Limited (“Canadian Natural”) at their Horizon oil sands site.

CVW™ is a clean technology that remediates oil sands froth treatment tailings, recovering contained hydrocarbons (bitumen, diluent) and preventing their release into tailings ponds and the atmosphere. The release of these hydrocarbons into ponds causes methane formation, a major source of fugitive emissions in the oil sands industry. CVW™ also recovers valuable minerals from these tailings, creating a new diversified export market for Canada.

Expected Results

The project will provide environmental benefits including avoidance of fugitive GHG and VOC emissions from oil sands tailings ponds. The project will create a new high-value minerals industry for western Canada through tailings recovery of up to 100,000 tonnes per year of valuable minerals (zircon and titanium-bearing HiTi) as well as approximately 2.5 million barrels of hydrocarbons (bitumen and diluent).

As well, partnerships will provide potential pathways for the further adoption of the CVW™ technology within the oil sands mining sector, and provide jobs in the local, provincial and national economies and local Indigenous communities.

Anticipated Environmental Benefits: Within 4 years following the project commissioning, net GHG emission reductions and avoidance is expected to stabilize at approximately 570 ktCO2e per year. Further, the remediated tailings will more efficiently integrate into tailings management activities.