BlackRock gets regulatory clearance for Hilda Lake oil sands project

Gary Park

Having gone through a seven-year work-up of its technology, oil sands junior BlackRock Ventures is ready to enter the commercial phase.

It said Oct. 20 that the Alberta Energy and Utilities Board has approved a 20,000 barrel per day project at Hilda Lake, near Imperial Oil’s 140,000 bpd Cold Lake heavy oil operation.

If the BlackRock board of directors gives the final green light next month, the company will start detailed engineering of the 10,000 bpd first phase which is expected to cost C$150 million.

As sole owner of a lease covering 5,120 acres, BlackRock has access to an estimated 190 million barrels of recoverable oil, enough to support its Orion project over a 25-year operating life.

Following its start-up in 1996, BlackRock launched a 500 bpd pilot project at Hilda Lake, using steam-assisted gravity drainage technology.

No timetable for completion of the two phases has been set.

Meanwhile, BlackRock has been generating cash flow from its 50 percent working interest in the Seal heavy oil property in the Peace River area of northwestern Alberta.

Despite a C$500,000 fire that shut down production for most of September, it is again pumping about 6,000 bpd of conventional oil and anticipated reaching its target of 10,000 bpd by year’s end.

The company also started deliveries in the summer on a 55-mile, 58,000 bpd pipeline from Seal to the Rainbow pipeline system.