Here’s a figure to keep in mind when discussing the latest billion-dollar bid for an oil sands developer: 84 per cent of the world’s remaining oil reserves are either state-owned or controlled.

Of the freely accessible leftovers, 62 per cent reside in Canada’s oil sands.

That’s the conclusion from BP’s latest Statistical Review of World Energy, which was graphically displayed in a research note from AltaCorp Capital.

“Given how significant a portion the oil sands make up of currently accessible reserves, it is hard to envision any meaningful growth in global oil output without significant development of the oil sands,” AltaCorp noted.

Having skimmed the BP report, there are a few questions. For instance, Brazil’s reserves barely register in its review, comprising only about 1 per cent of total global reserves even though the offshore exploration there is rampant. If Brazil’s, or another country’s, probable reserves become proven in the next few years, the figures will surely change.

But either way, the numbers tell a pretty clear story: Canada is where the oil’s at.