Going back to the future for C$1 trillion

Study estimates C$1 trillion in oil and gas could be extracted over next 15 years in western Canada with investment of C$15 billion

Gary Park

For Petroleum News

A joint industry-government study estimates that an investment of up to C$1 billion a year for 15 years could apply new technology to retrieve 6 billion barrels of oil and 22.5 trillion cubic feet of non-associated natural gas that has been left in the ground by earlier generations of Western Canadian producers.

The C$1 trillion treasure trove (based on today’s commodity prices) doesn’t need rocket science to raise production of discovered reserves in the region to 36 percent from 27 percent, says a study by Petroleum Technology Alliance Canada and EnergyINet, a joint partnership that is working to accelerate the development and deployment of advanced energy systems and technologies.

Technology alliance chief executive officer Michael Raymont told reporters the answer lies in applying technology that is already available.

The report, Ramping Up Recovery: A Business Case for Increased Recovery of Conventional Oil and Gas, cost C$960,000, including contributions from the Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan governments and many firms.

As the title conveys, the focus was on the mainstay of Canada’s production for the past 60 years and paid no attention to the oil sands or coalbed methane.

EnergyINet president Eric Lloyd said the potential bonanza can be exploited without any royalty or tax incentives, but some help might be needed to reduce the risk of testing new recovery methods.

He said technology has the potential to “significantly increase our energy production to meet the world’s growing demand for energy.”

Raymont said the research has generated important information “that can help us better target our activities and research and development technology so that we can all share significant benefits from energy sources we have been unable to recover.”

Lloyd said the key lies more in engineering than basic discovery, with a reliance on the use of advances in mapping geological reservoirs, the handling and management of “produce water” from wells (currently about 12 barrels of brackish water for every barrel of oil produced), drilling methods and the injection of carbon dioxide into reservoirs.

He said a steering committee will be established to press for action of squeezing more from wells that date to the beginnings of the Western Canadian industry in the 1950s.

The proprietary information is available only to companies who participate in the two-year research effort.