Alberta regulator drops $243.2 million tab on industry tableThe Alberta Energy Regulator has dropped a $243.2 million bill onto the province's oil, gas and coal companies for services rendered in the past year, $35.9 million more than expected due to what it said were higher administration costs. The first levy of $207.3 million was approved on April 15, while a second $35.9 million was authorized on October 16. Oil and gas operators will see the biggest increase of $26.1 million to $176.5 million while oil sands companies will see a $9.3 million hike...
Nov 21, 2014
ERCB to forgives tailings penalties against oil sands operatorsThe Energy Resources Conservation Board said it won't fine oil sands operators over their failure to comply with tailings reduction standards laid out in 2009's Directive 074. The directive required companies to cut the amount of fine particles in liquid tailings by 50% by this year and said tailings ponds should be ready to be reclaimed five years after they were no longer being used. The directive was issued in the wake of a 2008 incident when more than 1,600 migrating ducks died in a...
Jun 12, 2013
ERCB releases fracking directive to be effective in AugustThe Energy Resources Conservation Board has issued Directive 083 on hydraulic fracturing and subsurface integrity following a two-month stakeholder consultation period. The directive goes into effect in August.Additional modifications to the directive following stakeholder input include additional requirements for wellbore integrity, design and testing, with the option for single- and dual-barrier design. The ERCB sees an emerging trend toward the use of single-barrier wellbore...
May 21, 2013
ERCB denies Bernum application for Lochend wellsAlberta's Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board has denied an application from Bernum Petroleum Ltd. to drill two Cardium oil wells and to build a multi-well battery in the Lochend area of Alberta about 4.7 km east of Cochrane. The ERCB had received objections from the landowners as well as several residents of nearby communities. Bernum had applied to drill a single well from that location in 2011 but that application had been denied as well.The multi-well battery would have...
Apr 04, 2013
Kallisto faces hearing over well objectionsCrossAlta Gas Storage & Services, TransCanada Pipelines and TransCanada Energy, which collectively own a gas storage facility at Crossfield, Alberta, have filed an objection to Kallisto Energy's application for an Elkton oil test well due to proximity concerns, The Energy Resources Conservation Board will hold a public hearing on the application on February 12. This is the second Kallisto drilling license application to which TransCanada has objected in the past two years. The company...
Jan 17, 2013
Alberta Oilsands advances Clearwater applicationAlberta Oilsands Inc. submitted to the Energy Resources Conservation Board its response to the remaining question in the third Supplemental Information Request and an updated geo-mechanical reservoir model simulation for its proposed Clearwater West SLP-SAGD project.The company initially filed an application to the ERCB for a Solvent Co-Injection Low Pressure SAGD pilot project at Clearwater with a design production capacity of 4,350 bpd of bitumen through six well pairs. The...
Jan 07, 2013
ERCB looking for input on unconventional developmentThe Energy Resources Conservation Board is accepting feedback on the regulation of future unconventional resource development. A discussion paper available on the agency's web site outlines a new approach to oil and gas regulation."Alberta has a long history of regulating safe and responsible oil and gas development," said ERCB Chairman Dan McFadyen. "The discussion paper continues that strong record by describing a proposed regulatory approach that is innovative and progressive. We...
Dec 17, 2012
ERCB blames Midway for release from Wild Stream wellAn Energy Resources Conservation Board investigation into a Midway Energy fracking incident near Innisfail, Alberta, in January concluded that Midway's fracking operation increased pressure in a nearby Wild Stream Exploration well, causing a release of fluid to surface at the Wild Stream wellhead. Communication between the two wells occurred within the same formation at ~5,550 ft. The wellbores were ~387 ft apart at their closest point. The fracturing1 created by Midway's operation...
Dec 12, 2012
Shell's carbon capture plan wins conditional approvalShell Canada's Quest plan to pump greenhouse gas emissions from its Scotford upgrader underground has received conditional approval from Alberta's Energy Resources Conservation Board. The ERCB says the project, located northeast of Edmonton, is in the public interest.The $1.35-billion carbon capture project involves the permanent storage of ~1.2 million tons of CO2 annually. Liquefied CO2 will be transported by pipe to injection wells and pumped about 2 km underground. The site could be...
Jul 26, 2012
ERCB projects bitumen production to double by 2021Alberta's annual raw bitumen production will reach 3.7 MMbpd by 2021, more than doubling the 2011 amount, the province's Energy Resources Conservation Board predicted in its annual energy forecast. The projections follow those released at the beginning of June by the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, which predicted oil sands production would reach 3.1 MMbpd by 2020. The 1.7 MMbpd of bitumen produced in 2011 was up 8.0% vs. 2010 oil sands production.The ERCB report said that...
Jun 30, 2012
ERCB gives conditional approval to Koch SAGD projectKoch Oil Sands Operating ULC, a subsidiary of Wichita, Kan.-based Koch Industries, has received conditional approval from Alberta's Energy Resources Conservation Board to build and operate the Gemini thermal oil sands project near Beaverdam in the Cold Lake area. The ERCB approved a two-stage SAGD recovery scheme to produce as much as 10,000 bpd of bitumen. Gemini would be Koch Oil Sands' first working oil sands project.Approval is conditional on the company's plan to mitigate its impact on...
Mar 15, 2012
Kaiser suspends plan to drill in NW CalgaryKaiser Exploration won't begin drilling a sweet oil well near the Royal Oak neighborhood in NW Calgary until the Energy Resources Conservation Board considers applications to halt the project.The ERCB had granted a license to drill the well, ~0.5 km from the neighborhood, in December but residents have complained about a lack of input on the site.Kaiser could still begin drilling while the review is ongoing, but the company said it won't begin work at the site until the review...
Mar 02, 2012
Cougar gains creditor protection after failed asset saleCougar Oil and Gas Canada Inc. obtained an order from the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench providing creditor protection under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (Canada). Cougar will continue day-to-day operations while under CCAA protection.
In November, the potential purchaser, under a Binding Letter of Intent to acquire some of the company's non-core assets, defaulted on its agreements. The sale would have removed a requirement for Cougar to increase the amount of the long term well...
Feb 10, 2012
Production Briefs - January 17, 2013• As a result of a January 2009 surface release of bitumen emulsion at the Primrose East development area of Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.'s Primrose and Wolf Lake project, Alberta's Energy Resources Conservation Board says it has set limits on the steam injection volumes the company is allowed to inject per cycle. High steam volumes and reduce well spacing likely contributed to the release, the ERCB said.• A reserves estimate ascribed 2P reserves of 93 MMbbl to Cavalier Energy Inc.'s...
Jan 17, 2013
Production Briefs - July 26, 2012• Gulf Shores Resources' 9-16-15-32W1 well in the Welwyn area of southeast Saskatchewan swab tested at 25 bopd from the Bakken formation while cleaning up after fracking. The well is awaiting the installation of a pumpjack.• The Energy Resources Conservation Board is requesting input on a draft directive covering water disposal limits and measurement and reporting requirements for thermal in situ oil sands projects. The ERCB is taking comments on the proposal until September...
Jul 26, 2012