Total heads for the Hills

As it bids for UTS Energy, which has a 20% stake in the Fort Hills tar sand project.

also

Total said it may delay start-up of its Joslyn oil sands project in Canada

Total's move for UTS is interesting as the costs of the Fort Hills project have been sky rocketing and the break-even level for the synthetic crude oil or bitumen to be produced is estimated to be between 45 and 100 dollars per barrel. The only advantage that the tar sands have in the current economic and political environment is their location on soil where property rights are respected. It seems that this single advantage outweighs the large number of disadvantages associated with tar sands(high costs, low yielding products, significant environmental impact etc.).