Extracting the bitumen from the clay and sand and upgrading it into crude oil--by breaking its big hydrocarbon molecules into smaller, less viscous ones--is an expensive, energy-intensive process that consumes 650 cubic feet of natural gas for every barrel.

FORBES: On The Cover/Top Stories

Record-breaking world oil prices mean prospects are bright for Halliburton's oil field services business, which had profit margins of 14.2% in the three months to June 2004, up 1% on year-earlier.

BBC: NEWS | Business | Halliburton hopes for better days

On March 6th the Pentagon, breaking its previous silence on the matter, announced that a division of Halliburton, the oil-services firm previously headed by Vice-President Dick Cheney, will co-ordinate the oil-fire fighting efforts if they are needed.

ECONOMIST: Will Saddam Hussein sabotage his own oil wells?