Pipeline News May 2011 by Pipeline News

PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

May 2011

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Volume 3 Issue 12

Potash Corp. Gives $27 Million To STARS Page A3 Oil Patch Sculpture Page B1 Becker: Cement & Tool Man Page D1 Jeff Jopp has been working as a mechanic for 50 years, and doesn’t feel like retiring any time soon. Here he’s working on safety inspections at Estevan’s Frontier Peterbuilt. See story on Page C26. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

News

Workers shortfall a fact for next 10 years

Notes

Western Plains buys Maidstone land Western Plains Petroleum Ltd. has closed its previously announced arm’s-length acquisition of a 100 per cent interest in 320 acres of petroleum and natural gas rights located in the Maidstone area of west-central Saskatchewan from Petrostar Petroleum Corporation. The purchase price for the Maidstone asset was $750,000, subject to standard industry adjustments, based on an eﬀective date of Dec. 1, 2010, and was paid by Western Plains through (i) the payment and/or assumption of approximately $529,000 of Petrostar’s trade payables, and (ii) the cash payment to Petrostar of approximately $182,000 (inclusive of applicable sales tax). Western Plains previously paid Petrostar a $50,000 cash deposit. The Maidstone asset has nine shut-in wells and one well producing heavy oil at an average rate of 15 bbls a day. The property also has one horizontal water injection/pressure maintenance well. Western Plains intends to re-activate all nine shut-in wells as soon as practicable and complete a workover on the producing well to maximize production from this property. The Maidstone asset lies adjacent to the company’s existing Maidstone interests and will increase its land holdings in this area to 480 gross acres (400 net acres).

Anglo Canadian licensing Sask. wells Anglo Canadian Oil Corp. says it is in the ﬁnal stages of licensing two wells in its Kindersley/ Dodsland area of southwest Saskatchewan. Targeting both the Bakken and Mannville formations, these potential oil wells are expected to spud in early summer, pending the necessary approval and equipment availability. With the successful outcome of these wells, a 3D seismic survey will be conducted upon which a horizontal drilling program will be implemented. Anglo also announced that at recent Alberta Crown sales it purchased an additional 86,144 acres (34,456 hectares) of petroleum and natural gas mineral rights. These lands principally target oil prone formations in central Alberta, both from conventional reservoirs and source rock formations. Briefs courtesy Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin

Cheryl Knight, executive director of the Petroleum Human Resources Council of Canada, Àelded a ton of media questions in Calgary on the Council’s 2011 oil and gas labour market report that projects industry shortages for the next 10 years. Photo submitted

By Geoff Lee Pipeline News Lloydminster – Go west young man or woman, and don’t worry if it’s a boom or bust year in the oil and gas industry. Job openings are guaranteed in Western Canada regardless of future energy prices and industry activity during the next 10 years. This is one of the key findings of the second annual labour market report to 2020 released by Petroleum Human Resources Council of Canada on March 29. “There’s no way around it, Canada’s petroleum industry will struggle to find the workers it needs over the next 10 years,” said Cheryl Knight, executive director and CEO of the Council. “Not only will we need to replace thousands of our most skilled and experienced workers but prepare for future growth as well.” According to the report, over 30 per cent of the industry’s core workforce is expected to retire over the next decade, driving the need to hire at least 39,000 new workers. If the industry expands due to industry activity, a staggering 130,000 workers will be needed to fill new positions and keep pace with retirements. The situation is no better for Saskatchewan where 4,000 jobs will be needed in the next decade

in a strong oil and gas market with another 2,500 positions to fill from retirements. Even in a low growth scenario, the industry in Saskatchewan will need to hire for 1,500 positions or 13 per cent of its 2009 workforce, according to the report. Knight says industry was directly involved in developing some of the outlook scenarios and oil and gas pricing scenarios but has been late in reacting. “The information has been there for quite awhile,” she said. “The demographics don’t shift quickly. During the downturn the heat was off as the industry tended to turn its attention elsewhere. “Unfortunately, industry hasn’t been as focused on labour attraction and retention through the downturn as they ought to have been. “I do sense that industry is interested in focusing on it now. It’s never too late to start,” she said. Increased growth is likely to further strain local housing, infrastructure and housing which could be a deterrent to attracting and retaining workers. The services sector was the hardest hit in the recent economic downturn and continues to suffer from labour shortages. Drilling co-ordinators, geologists and petroleum engineering technologists are projected to require hiring near or above 91 per cent of their 2009 levels in the province. ɸ Page A6

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News

Notes

Building oil pro¿le Ironhorse Oil & Gas Inc. increased its oil and liquids weighting in 2010 and boosted its oil reserves with the discovery of oil at Dawson and Leon Lake. Oil now accounts for over 25 per cent of total production and 34 per cent of the company's total reserves, up from one per cent and 28 per cent respectively in 2009. Due to declining natural gas production, the company’s overall production fell last year to 922 boepd from 1,071 boepd 2009. Light oil and natural gas liquids output, however, rose to 177 bpd last year from 11 bpd in 2009. The company drilled two (1.1 net) Slave Point oil wells at Dawson, Alberta last year and these wells are currently producing at approximately 400 (220 net) bpd. It also drilled two (1.8 net) Upper Shaunavon oil wells at Leon Lake, Saskatchewan. The ﬁrst well was drilled horizontally the second well was drilled vertically. The oil wells are currently producing 30 (25 net) bpd. Ironhorse said it is planning to drill additional wells targeting the Upper Shaunavon oil bearing formation on a vertical basis and a horizontal well targeting the Lower Shaunavon.

TOP: Premier Brad Wall checks out a model of a STARS air ambulance at the announcement of Saskatchewan’s joining of STARS on April 6. Photo courtesy the Government of Saskatchewan.

RIGHT: MLA Rod Gantefoer is Saskatchewan’s point man on the helicopter air ambulance project. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Potash and energy sectors back air ambulance By Brian Zinchuk Pipeline News Regina, Saskatoon – Saskatchewan’s new helicopter air ambulance service is coming together quickly, with major players stepping up to the plate to help ﬁnance the project. Each announcement in recent months has trumped the previous one, and Potash Corp has come to the table with a whopper of a cheque. Saskatchewan has signed a service agreement with Calgary-based Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society (STARS), a non-proﬁt organization that provides rotary wing air medical transportation in Alberta. Premier Brad Wall made the announcement April 6 in Regina with STARS president and CEO Dr. Greg Powell and private sector partners. On April 14, Potash Corp. announced in Saskatoon it would be signing on for a multi-year, multi-million-dollar commitment to help bring helicopter air ambulance service to communities across Saskatchewan. While details of the commitment are

being ﬁnalized, it will help support the availability of a state-of-the-art emergency medical services helicopter and the construction of a new hangar to house the aircraft from its base of operations in Saskatoon, whose estimated values are $27 million. The bulk of the money will be going towards the actual capital costs of the helicopter and hanger. Potash Corp. has been working with the province for the last two years on putting this together. This comes after an announcement in Regina on April 6 when Mosaic Potash announced a $5.5 million contribution over ﬁve years. That money will primarily go towards the Regina hanger and helicopter. Crescent Point Energy Corp. was the lead donor for the initiative with $5 million over four years, plus being one of the instigators of the helicopter air ambulance initiative. At the time of the Crescent Point announcement last fall, STARS told Pipeline News that had been their biggest donation to date. ɸ Page A7

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Advantage closes asset sale Advantage Oil & Gas Ltd. has closed its previously announced disposition of oil-weighted assets to Longview Oil Corp. The assets are located in west central Alberta, southeast Saskatchewan and the Lloydminster area of Saskatchewan. Advantage received consideration, after adjustments pursuant to the terms of the purchase and sale agreement for the transaction, comprised of net cash proceeds of approximately $224.3 million, 29.45 million common shares of Longview and a $21.2 million promissory note payable in cash or in common shares of Longview, at the option of Longview. It is expected that the promissory note will be repaid in cash if the over-allotment option granted to the underwriters pursuant to Longview's initial public oﬀering is fully exercised, in common shares if the over-allotment option is not exercised and in a combination of cash and common shares if the overallotment option is partially exercised. Pursuant to the transaction, Advantage directly acquired ownership of an aggregate of 29.45 million common shares resulting in Advantage holding approximately 66.3 per cent of the total issued and outstanding common shares of Longview. Briefs courtesy Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin

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EDITORIAL

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Pipeline News Publisher: Brant Kersey - Estevan Ph: 1.306.634.2654 Fax: 1.306.634.3934

Mission Statement: Pipeline News’ mission is to illuminate importance of Saskatchewan oil as an integral part of the province’s sense of community and to show the general public the strength and character of the industry’s people.

Editorial Contributions: SOUTHEAST Brian Zinchuk - Estevan 1.306.461.5599 SOUTHWEST Swift Current 1.306.461.5599 NORTHWEST Geoﬀ Lee - Lloydminster 1.780.875.6685

Associate Advertising Consultants: SOUTHEAST • Estevan 1.306.634.2654 Jan Boyle Cindy Beaulieu Glenys Dorwart Kristen O’Handley Deanna Tarnes SOUTHWEST • Swift Current 1.306.773.8260 Doug Evjen Stacey Powell NORTHWEST • Lloydminster Daniela Tobler 1.780.875.6685 MANITOBA • Virden - Dianne Hanson 1.204.748.3931 • Estevan - Jan Boyle 1.306.634.2654 CONTRIBUTORS • Estevan - Nadine Elson To submit a stories or ideas: Pipelines News is always looking for stories or ideas for stories from our readers. To contribute please contact your local contributing reporter. Subscribing to Pipeline News: Pipeline News is a free distribution newspaper, but is now available online at www.pipelinenews.ca Advertising in Pipeline News: Advertising in Pipeline News is a newer model created to make it as easy as possible for any business or individual. Pipeline News has a group of experienced staﬀ working throughout Saskatchewan and parts of Manitoba, so please contact the sales representative for your area to assist you with your advertising needs. Special thanks to JuneWarren-Nickle’s Energy Group for their contributions and assistance with Pipeline News.

Published monthly by the Prairie Newspaper Group, a division of Glacier Ventures International Corporation, Central Oﬃce, Estevan, Saskatchewan. Advertising rates are available upon request and are subject to change without notice. Conditions of editorial and advertising content: Pipeline News attempts to be accurate, however, no guarantee is given or implied. Pipeline News reserves the right to revise or reject any or all editorial and advertising content as the newspapers’ principles see ﬁt. Pipeline News will not be responsible for more than one incorrect insertion of an advertisement, and is not responsible for errors in advertisements except for the space occupied by such errors. Pipeline News will not be responsible for manuscripts, photographs, negatives and other material that may be submitted for possible publication. All of Pipeline News content is protected by Canadian Copyright laws. Reviews and similar mention of material in this newspaper is granted on the provision that Pipeline News receives credit. Otherwise, any reproduction without permission of the publisher is prohibited. Advertisers purchase space and circulation only. Rights to the advertisement produced by Pipeline News, including artwork, typography, and photos, etc., remain property of this newspaper. Advertisements or parts thereof may be not reproduced or assigned without the consent of the publisher. The Glacier group of companies collects personal information from our customers in the normal course of business transactions. We use that information to provide you with our products and services you request. On occasion we may contact you for purposes of research, surveys and other such matters. To provide you with better service we may share your information with our sister companies and also outside, selected third parties who perform work for us as suppliers, agents, service providers and information gatherers.

Editorial Saskatchewan companies step up Saskatchewan often has a begrudging attitude when it comes to Alberta – they have more money there, bigger companies there, more people, more everything. They can do more because they have more. Well, when it comes to corporate giving, Saskatchewan-based operations have decidedly shown up our western cousins. When it came time to launch a helicopter air ambulance service in this province, Saskatchewan corporate donors have put Alberta to shame. This spring, Saskathchewan signed on with Calgary-based Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society (STARS), the helicopter air ambulance service. Crescent Point Energy Corp. may have its head oﬃce in Calgary, but for all intents and purposes, it’s a Saskatchewan company – the largest producer of light crude in the province, with the bulk of its operations in Saskatchewan. It was a leading proponent to get an air ambulance in this province. CEO Scott Saxberg, Oilman of the Year at the 2009 Saskatchewan Oil and Gas Show in Weyburn, made a point of mentioning air ambulance in his acceptance speech. Last fall, Crescent Point made the biggest donation in STARS history, putting up $5 million over four years. Now remember, STARS has been in Alberta since the mid-1980s, land of the big corporations and numerous booms. Yet here is a Saskatchewan-operating company coming to the plate with the largest cheque to date. April has since brought even bigger corporate donations to the launch of STARS in Saskatchewan. Mosaic Potash, the people who put their name on our beloved football stadium, bested Crescent Point and put up $5.5 million over ﬁve years. That’s another huge

donation. However, their record didn’t last long. A week later, Potash Corp., one of the largest companies in Canada, and recently rescued from the clutches of BHP Billiton by Premier Brad Wall who laid it on the line for them, came to the table, big time. This donation was ﬁve times the size of the previous record $27 million to build a hangar in Saskatoon and put a new top-of-the-line, larger, faster, longer-ranged Augusta Westland AW139 helicopter in it. Let’s put that in perspective: Telemiracle 35 (2011) brought in $4.6 million. Potash Corp.’s donation is the equivalent of nearly six years of Telemiracle. The STARS Foundation people were just stunned at the generosity. “That gift goes beyond just about any corporate gift in Canada to anyone project,” Phil Levson, vice-president of the STARS Foundation and point man on major donations, told Pipeline News. Take that, Alberta! We can show you how it’s done! Other corporate donors, including Rawlco Radio, Enbridge, and Husky, have announcements pending. Now it’s time for the smaller people to get involved. To fully support this air ambulance, helipads will need to be built thoughout the province, especially at local hospitals like Lloydminster, Estevan, Weyburn and Swift Current. This is where the local companies can step forward, putting helipads in place so that a patient can simply be rolled out the door and into the waiting bird. Our industry knows how to move dirt, pour concrete, and install lights. This is something we can do. Wouldn’t it be great if some of these facilities could be in place in time for the launch of the program in southern Saskatchewan in spring 2012? Time to step it up. The people in our industry put themselves in harm’s way every day. Let’s help improve their odds.

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Opinion Plenty of calls on housing, and one call on railways From the top of the pile Brian Zinchuk

In a refreshing turn of events, I’ve been getting a number of calls in recent months regarding stories I’ve been covering for Pipeline News. Often one can feel as though you’re working in a vacuum, wondering if anyone out there notices. When it comes to housing, an issue I’ve been watching like a hawk for a long time now, people are starting to take notice. I’ve had several calls from people interested in developing housing, in addition to frequent discussions I’ve had with camp providers. One person called about developing a new hotel in a small town. He was curious about the prospects for such a facility in that small town, and was assisting the owners of a property in that community. Another wants to renovate an existing, old hotel, one that hadn’t seen much use beyond a drinking establishment for many years. A third was looking to renovate a heritage building into apartments.

A common thread in these conversations was, “Do you know where I can get money?” Well, not really. I do know of a few government programs, but as I’ve told these people, in this sort of hot market, there are lots of people in these towns who have money to invest, so start asking around. You shouldn’t need to go to government programs except as a last resort. One person has done precisely that, and the Regina-based oﬃce of one such federal program questioned whether there was a housing crisis in this region. What, are these bureaucrats under a rock or something? Tell them to give me a call, I said. I’ll set them straight. What I’ve told a number of people is what is needed in southeast Saskatchewan is not so much half million dollar homes or camps, but rental apartments, and lots of them. Because of the shortage of building tradespeople in the region (since they keep getting cherry-picked by the oilpatch with the incentive of higher wages), I’ve also suggested modular construction might be the way to go. I was pleasantly surprised to see that is precisely what is happening right now on the northwest corner of Weyburn. New apartment units were craned into place, and crews were putting the ﬁnal touches in. While talking to the workers on site, though, I realized I should keep my mouth shut, lest someone quit his job for work on a service rig. Another call I got was regarding the shipping of crude on rail stories that ran in last month’s edition.

I expected that to get some reaction, because it’s not something you’ve heard of too much in these parts. The caller’s concern was in resuscitating a branch line in southeast Saskatchewan. He even mentioned trying to bring back a line that had recently been removed. I told him that in my 14 or so years of oﬀ and on reporting on rail line abandonments, there was absolutely zero chance that would happen. When talking to the rail reps, I was able to get a grudging acknowledgement that perhaps pulling out so many branchlines in recent years may have not been a good idea, but they said those decisions were based on the economics of the times. No, the rail lines realize that shipping crude by rail is likely a short term thing, until Enbridge can get its capacity up to handle the surge in production from North Dakota, and to a lesser extent, southeast Saskatchewan. Keep those calls coming. My job is to talk to as many people as possible and keep a ﬁnger on the pulse of what’s going on, so sometimes I’m able to provide a few pointers as to where to go next. I’m always interested in hearing what people are looking into, and hopefully, several of these calls will turn into stories where I will be able to provide the full picture. The best way to reach me is by e-mail, at brian.zinchuk@sasktel.net, or at 306-461-5599. Brian Zinchuk is editor of Pipeline News. He can be reached at brian.zinchuk@sasktel.net.

Opportunity comes knocking at oil shows Lee Side of Lloyd Geoff Lee

June will be a busy month with the Saskatchewan Oil and Gas show in Weyburn, and the ﬁrst ever Bonnyville & District Oil and Show in Bonnyville, Alberta. Lloydminster will host the 2011 Heavy Oil Technical Symposium this fall. While some people might argue they are too busy to attend or exhibit at a show, to stay away is a missed opportunity in marketing to a target audience that comes to your door. Saskatchewan Energy and Resources Minister Bill Boyd used the occasion of the World Heavy Oil Congress held in Edmonton in March to trumpet the huge economic role that conventional light and heavy oil plays in the economy of the province. His speech titled, “Real Growth, Real Opportunity and Real Rewards” doubled as free advertising for oil show hosts in Saskatchewan and Alberta. “Our light crude oil plays and our massive heavy oil resources oﬀer plenty of opportunities for entrepreneurs, and our positive business climate provides

the perfect backdrop for those opportunities to be realized,” said Boyd. The Weyburn show shines the spotlight on light oil companies while the bi-annual Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show and the new Bonnyville show focus on businesses in heavy oil. More than half of Saskatchewan’s conventional crude oil production comes from heavy oil which reﬂects the dual focus of these upcoming shows. Saskatchewan’s oil and gas industry had approximately $10.5 billion in sales in 2010 and invested $3.3 billion in exploration and development activity. The oil and gas industry provides direct and indirect employment for more than 29,000 people. Government revenue from oil and gas is expected to reach $1.6 billion in the 2010-11 ﬁscal year. These are all facts that Boyd had the opportunity to emphasize at the Congress that included dozens of exhibitors, thereby strengthening the argument for the value of an oil show. Boyd’s speech also touched on one of the key attractions for exhibitors and investors at light and heavy oil shows – learning about the new technology that continues to drive production. “Technological innovation has turned the Bakken into one of the hottest oil plays in North America,” said Boyd. “Improved horizontal drilling techniques and multi-stage fracturing moved production from Saskatchewan’s portion of the Bakken up from 750 barrels per day in 2004 to current production of over 60,000 barrels per day.

“There are approximately 2,400 producing oil wells in our portion of the Bakken now, up from around 100 in 2004.” Boyd also talked about the impact of technology on other hot oil plays such as the Viking light oil play, the Shaunavon medium oil play and the Birdbear heavy oil play in the Lloydminster area. Boyd says if new technology could increase the average heavy oil recovery rate by only ﬁve percentage points – from the current nine per cent to 14 per cent – Saskatchewan’s remaining recoverable reserves of heavy oil would more than double to approximately 1.6 billion barrels. “We continue to support leading-edge technology, in particular the work that the Petroleum Technology Research Centre is doing on carbon capture and storage and on enhanced oil recovery (EOR),” said Boyd. Boyd also noted a lower royalty regime speciﬁc to enhanced oil recovery (EOR) projects is in place which will apply to any future production from unconventional oil resources including oil sands or oil shale. In short, the World Congress was an opportunity for Boyd and others to generate a lot of valuable news coverage about the leading role that oil and gas plays in the overall economic success in Western Canada. His speech, “Real Growth – Real Opportunity and Real Rewards” is what exhibitors and investors can expect to gain from an oil show – when opportunity comes knocking.

PIPELINE NEWS INVITES OPPOSING VIEW POINTS. EDITORIALS AND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ARE WELCOME. Email to: brian.zinchuk@sasktel.net

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Labour shortages mean higher costs ɺ Page A2

said Knight. “Shortages have an Openings for envi- impact on projects getronmental health and ting done on time.” safety inspectors, landThe report recommen and industrial elec- mends a variety of hirtricians will need to be ing strategies including ﬁlled to at least 86 per communicating labour requirements to stakecent of 2009 levels. The need is nearly holders such as governas critical for other po- ment and post secondary sitions in the service and training institutes. It also suggests insector. “Labour shortages creasing collaboration mean higher costs for within the industry Saskatchewan’s energy labour outlook for the next 10 years in a strong labour and postpone- sectors and with other market calls for the hiring of over 4,000 workers in addition to Àlling nearly ment issues which re- stakeholders while tap2,500 positions from retirements. Chart submitted lates to higher costs,” ping into diverse labour pools. “I think the draw• We build ULC, UL, Flameshield, ing of talent from other labour pools is really API-650, 620, 12F, ASME critical for Saskatch• 7-3000 bbl ewan,” said Knight. • 2,273-200,000 L Horizontal Contained “Saskatchewan has • Pressure Vessels the largest portion of • 2,273-110,000 L Jacketed Underground First Nations people in • 2,273-120,000 L Vacuum Monitored the country and they • 1,250-5,000 L Rectangle are a younger workforce. • 5,000-200,000 L Single Wall Vertical The challenge in Saskatchewan is to really AGI’s innovative design, custom manufactoring process and engage First Nations comprhensive service combine to make AST’sone of the most cost people in the industry. effective, efficient means of storage available today. “I know Saskatchewan is stepping up their immigrant numbers, and I would recommend that as well because immigrants are CALL US TO DISCUSS YOUR NEEDS: professionally trained and experienced in oil and gas. 401 Hwy #4, PO Box 879, Biggar SK, S0K 0M0 “When you look at supply of workers, there Tel: (306) 948-5262 Website: www.envirotank.com isn’t really one source Fax: (306) 948-5263 Email: info @envirotank.com we can focus on to solve the problem.” Knight says the labour market report will continue to be published annually with the expectation it will become a reliable resource to guide decision making and the development of policies and programs by a variety of

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stakeholders. The 116 page report is titled, The Decade Ahead: Labour Market Projections and Analysis for Canada’s Oil and Gas Industry to 2020, and includes provincial outlooks and statistics for Saskatchewan, Alberta and B.C. “We have expanded the information this year, and we are planning other enhancements next year,” said Knight about the report. Knight says compared with Alberta and British Columbia, Saskatchewan is “oil heavy, which from a royalty perspective is positive because of the price of oil” and promotes development in the province. “As the Saskatchewan industry grows, there are more opportunities for Saskatchewan-based businesses to establish themselves and grow,” Knight added. “Right now, there is a certain amount of work that’s being done in Saskatchewan with Alberta oil and gas people in moving people and equipment across the border. “So that’s one option for Saskatchewan – to grow more businesses and to increase the on the ground labour force.” Knight noted that Alberta is in a unique situation and beneﬁts from growth in Saskatchewan, British Columbia and the rest of Canada by adding head oﬃce positions in Calgary.

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The AW139 at night. STARS pilots are equipped with night vision goggles for night missions. Photos by Mark Mennie/STARS

The AW139 lifts off during the AMTC conference in Minneapolis. Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan is paying for one of these air ambulances to be based in Saskatoon, as well as its hangar.

Regina ¿rst, Saskatoon next ɺ Page A3 Husky Energy, Rawlco Radio and Enbridge have also committed financial support to the service, although details were not available at press time. Bill Doyle, president & CEO of Potash Corp., announced the company’s commitment to a large crowd of dignitaries and community leaders gathered for the April 14 event, including Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall. “At PotashCorp, we’re committed to improving quality of life in places where we operate and health care is an area that touches us all,” said Doyle. “We’re a Saskatchewan company with deep roots across the province. We believe people who are critically ill or injured should have access to the best care – whether they live in one of our cities or smallest communities.” Powell spoke about how the new service will be introduced in Saskatchewan. “PotashCorp’s investment will make possible a hangar for the STARS base in Saskatoon which will initially operate with a BK117 twin-engine helicopter that has a response radius of 250 kilometres,” explained Powell. “However, when the program is fully operational, PotashCorp’s commitment will help to bring a larger, faster AW139 helicopter with increased patient capacity and a wider range to support critical care missions further into northern Saskatchewan and deeper into the southern region.” This flight range means that the new STARS program will provide service to approximately 90 per cent of Saskatchewan’s population, with the capacity to respond to emergencies in rural, remote and First Nations communities and isolated work sites with limited access to health services. Phil Levson, vice-president of the STARS Foundation, told Pipeline News that they were stunned by the level of support Potash Corp. has supplied. “That gift goes beyond just about any corporate gift in Canada to any one project. In terms of corporate giving, this is off the scale.” On April 6, Mosaic Potash Operations senior vice-president Norm Beug said, “Investing in the health of Saskatchewan people makes sense. Mosaic is excited to help bring STARS to Saskatchewan and we look forward to working with government, corporate partners and local communities on this important initiative.” Mosaic’s Brad Delorey said, “This is an exciting opportunity for the province. STARS is an amazing organization. We have demonstrated repeatedly we believe as a Saskatchewan entity, we need to give back to the province.” “We're proud to be a part of this great initiative,” Crescent Point Energy's vice-president of marketing and investor relations Trent Stangl said. “The STARS program is an essential service that will benefit everyone in Saskatchewan. We're excited to see it launched." Point man In early March, Pipeline News spoke with MLA Rod Gantefoer, the former

finance minister, who has spearheaded the project for the government. When initially announced last fall, the province was looking at the new, higher end Augusta Westland AW139 helicopters. That’s been downgraded to the current model being used by STARS, the BK117. Gantefoer explained that for southern Saskatchewan, a BK117 based in Regina will be sufficient. Saskatoon will eventually see an AW139. He noted it takes 18 to 20 months just to get one assembled. At $15 million each, they are not inexpensive, and the medical bundle is the same, he explained. An AW139 will be able to reach LaRonge from Saskatoon without having to refuel. The province had been leaning towards two AW139s, he acknowledged. “That may happen over time,” Gantefoer said, but added they are more expensive to operate, maintain, and train pilots for. Regina first The plan will be to see STARS helicopter air ambulance service established in Regina first, in the spring of 2012, followed by Saskatoon in the fall of 2012. “One of the other factors is we’re hoping to access an existing hanger in Regina. We have to build one from scratch in Saskatoon,” Gantefoer said. The Regina-based helicopter will provided coverage to the oilpatch in both southeast and southwest Saskatchewan. Lloydminster and Kindersley areas are actually close in range to the Edmonton service area, Gantefoer noted. Regina General Hospital will be the Regina facility fitted with a helipad. It’s a tight squeeze, in an area with little open space where parking is already at a premium. “There’s going to be some noise. There’s no getting around it,” Gantefoer said. “I hope people remember, when it does come into the General, it’s bringing a severe trauma case in, and they would say a little prayer before they dial in and complain.” “They closed the wrong hospital,” Gantefoer said of the NDP’s 1998 closure of the Regina Plains Health Centre in the 1990s. That facility was on the edge of the city with lots of wide open space. Yet in Saskatoon, the situation is even tighter. Royal University Hospital will be the primary trauma centre there, but there is simply no room at the present time for a helipad there. “We’re designing a helipad in the roof of the new children’s hospital in Saskatoon,” Gantefoer said. In the mean time, a temporary helipad location will be set up at the field house, several blocks down College Drive, and ground ambulance will ferry the patients to the hospital. “I think our biggest challenge is going to be pilots,” Gantefoer said. Two pilots are needed for each helicopter, 24 hours a day. Some ex-patriots from Saskatchewan who currently work with STARS may be interested in coming back, he added.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Kobes swamped with spring rig repairs

Kobes Welding is owned by Kevin Kobes and his wife, Karen, with assistance from Dwight, the shop dog. Karen manages the front ofÀce staff. Their daughter, Bailey, is an CAD operator.

Phone: 306.821.7292 Fax: 780.871.2388 Email: kelly@wranglerwell.ca

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By Geoff Lee Lloydminster – There is a lot of iron knocking at the door of Kobes Welding Ltd. these days forcing owner Kevin Kobes to have phones in both ears. “That’s the way the oil patch goes. Everything has to be done tomorrow,” said Kobes. Kobes Welding is the only rig manufacturer and repair shop in Lloydminster, and the workload for repairs and Level 3 and 4 inspections and certifications is piling up with operators on spring breakup. “We are busier than normal just because equipment gets shut down, and that’s when they want to do their maintenance,” said Kobes. “We have some equipment from Manitoba, some from Saskatchewan and some from local companies as well.” Kobes has three mechanics, 15 welders and two machinists on the shop floor, but hires extra workers every year to keep up with everything from safety inspections to complete rebuilds and certifications. “I have some contract guys like pipeline workers who get slow at breakup and they come here and work for two or

three months until their other job picks up and they go back. “A good bulk of our business is building our own service rigs. It’s what we are trying to focus on, but with the industry it is more maintenance right now.” Kobes Welding specializes in Level 3 and 4 maintenance along with complete rebuilds. “We do get safety inspections as well but we try to do the whole thing when it comes in,” said Kobes. A Level 4 certiﬁcation is required every 24,000 working hours and that involves a complete teardown and inspection. “You have to tear the drawworks apart and tear the derrick apart and ‘mag particle’ (magnetic particle testing) the derrick and put it back into new working condition,” said Kobes. With a Level 4 rig components are dismantled, sandblasted and inspected, and engines, transmissions, draw works, pumps, derricks and overhead equipment are refurbished or replaced. “There’s a lot of machining sometimes depending on the condition of the equipment,” said Kobes. “ ɸ Page A9

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Dustin Drake repairs welds on this derrick at Christie Corrosion Control next door to Kobes. Christie sandblasts rig parts prior to inspection and repair and then coats or paints them on completion.

Bailey Kobes uses her pink measuring tape to accurately measure rig parts for CAD drawings of parts that need repair or engineering approval. The drawings are given to the guys in the shop who complete the repairs.

Rebuilding rigs right down to the frame Éş Page A8 Most of the time if the Level 3 inspections are kept up, the level 4 is not as in depth other than the teardown.â&#x20AC;? A Level 3 inspection is an annual requirement with a visual inspection on brake parts, draw works and derrick components. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s got to be performed by anybody who has good working knowledge of a service rig,â&#x20AC;? said Kobes. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t necessarily have to be an engineer or even ourselves. A lot of the rig crews will do that themselves. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a similar inspection to a Level 4, but not as in depth.â&#x20AC;? Kobes Welding also has some major rebuilds underway including the overhaul of a 1979 rig in the shop. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We literally went through this one,â&#x20AC;? said Kobes. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We tore it right now to the frame rails. That was more in depth than just a Level 4. It was due for a complete overhaul. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We put a new engine in â&#x20AC;&#x201C; new transmission and a new cab, all new decking and a catwalk and hand railed it. Basically, when it leaves here it will be a brand new rig for two-thirds of the cost of a new one.â&#x20AC;? Kobes Welding builds its own rigs from a stock cab and chassis with a 44 foot carrier and 38 by 10 draw

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works. Most of the new units are 72 foot stiďŹ&#x20AC; mast single doubles but they have built a few double triples. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As much as we can, we fabricate our own parts. We make our own draw works. We used to buy them from wherever we could until the demand got to where it was hard to get.â&#x20AC;? The shop is equipped with three lathes including a CNC lathe and a lathe with a 42-inch sling to spin draw works drums. They also have a milling machine and a 100 tonne press. É¸ Page A10

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A10

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Defects are Àagged, repaired and inspected ɺ Page A9 “We are self contained for any type of repair work we got to do. We also repair tubing tongs,” said Kobe. Kobes Welding works closely with Christie Corrosion Control that sandblasts and coats rig parts that are visually checked for repairs by Dave McPherson from Dog Inspection Service in Elk Point. “I am looking for imperfections in welds, cracks or anything that’s damaged during the operation of a service rig,” said McPherson. “Mainly I do a level 3 inspection which is a vi-

Greg Haggard wires some lights on a new pressure truck in the shop.

sual examination of the welds. “Basically, we go through the entire mast of the derrick and check all the welds to make sure there are no imperfections in them and no visual cracks in the steel. “If we find a defect we flag it with an orange or red ribbon and usually mark beside it what’s wrong with it, and the welders will come and repair it. “Once it’s repaired, I usually come back and do a final inspection.” Dog Inspection also inspects production tubing inspection in the field when oil companies pull the tubing from the wellbore. An engineer is required on a Level 4 certification or to approve major repairs that Kobe’s daughter Bailey drafts using the latest auto computer assisted drawing (AutoCad) software. “She will draw an A-leg for example, and draw the repairs that have to be made on the A-leg,” said Kobes. “Where you have to have engineering involved, you can e-mail them drawings and the engineer can approve them prior to us doing any of the repair work. “The drawing also gives us a parts list and gives somebody on the floor a drawing they can work from. “We will have a drawing made up of it either prior to the repair or while the repair is being made so there is a record of what we did on our files. “The advantage of doing drawings is that is makes it easy for the guys on the floor – rather than them having to guess how they are done. It saves a lot of time and creates a lot less headaches at the end of the day.” Work is also sped by Kobes’ practice of allowing a client’s own rig crew to assist with maintenance

Machinist Chris Gardine is dwarfed by these giant size calipers used for turning large draw works drums in a big lathe with a 42-inch sling.

and repairs. “We prefer it if the crew comes in and helps tear their equipment apart and helps put it back together,” said Kobes. “It helps speed things up once they get their working knowledge of how the rig comes apart and is put back together. “A lot of rig companies like their own guys working on their equipment. I actually encourage it.”

r d a u G e h t f O g n i g n a Ch New management of Goulet Trucking would like to thank Jeanne Petterson for her tireless work over the last two decades and all of the best in retirement. Goulet has proudly been serving the Shaunavon and surrounding area for more than 50 years, providing year-round 24-hour tank truck service, hauling crude oil, crude oil emulsion, fresh and produced water and blowback fluid. Goulet owns the exclusive leased use of the Dollard, SK clean oil terminal on the South Saskatchewan Pipeline. Goulet is one of the largest privately held oilfield trucking companies in Saskatchewan. Goulet will continue under the same values it has been built upon, expanding its long standing relationships with its customers, always with a commitment to superior service and safety. Box 1084 Shaunavon, SK S0N 2M0

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

A11

Husky upgrader returns to pre-¿re status Lloydminster – The Husky Lloydminster Upgrader is returning to full capacity following repairs from a small ﬁre on Feb. 2. Husky Energy issued a report on April 11 noting the upgrader was ramping up from 75 to 85 per cent of full capacity toward full production.

The Husky Lloydminster Upgrader is returning to full capacity in wake of repairs to a hydrocracker fractionation unit damaged in a Feb. 2 Àre. Photo submitted

The overall pre-tax impact, including repair costs, is estimated between $80 to $90 million which represents the facility running at reduced rates and the market price environment during the affected period and through ramp-up. Steps undertaken to mitigate financial impacts included maintaining daily production at approximately 40 to 50 per cent of normal rates during the repair process. Husky explained the fire damaged a hydrocracker fractionation unit, which supplies product to the coker. While the damage was not extensive, repairs took place in a congested space under extremely cold weather conditions. Husky's focus has been on ensuring the safety of its personnel and the thoroughness of the repair work. The cause of the fire has been attributed to a pipeline that froze and burst, releasing fuel onto equipment. The cause has been analyzed and repairs have been made incorporating measures to prevent a similar incident in the future.

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A12

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Boyd buoyed by heavy oil potential Saskatchewan Energy and Resources Minister Bill Boyd delivered a keynote address at the World Heavy Oil Congress in Edmonton in March highlighting the growth of the oil and gas industry in the province. Boyd’s speech titled “Real Growth, Real Opportunity, Real Rewards” was heard by more than 800 delegates from 30 countries. The following is an abridged version of Boyd’s speaking notes on the province’s energy sector that generated approximately $10.5 billion in sales in 2010, and invested $3.3 billion in exploration and development activity. Today, I’d like to share with you, my thoughts on the “Real Growth, Real Opportunity” that exists next door – in the province of Saskatchewan. Employment levels are at an alltime high. Our population is at an alltime high. People are moving to, and many of our ex-pats are returning to Saskatch-

ewan – coming home to a healthy economy and a desired lifestyle. In 2010, housing starts rose 55 per cent relative to 2009, the second highest growth rate in the country. Average weekly earnings in Saskatchewan are at a new record. Statistics Canada forecasts total investment in Saskatchewan will reach a record $17 billion in 2011. That’s a 7.2 per cent increase from last year. For 2011, the Conference Board of Canada is forecasting that Saskatchewan will lead the country with a growth rate of 4.4 per cent. Few jurisdictions can match Saskatchewan’s diverse energy resources. Our per capita energy production is the highest in Canada and comes from coal, oil, natural gas, hydro, uranium, wind, and biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel. Saskatchewan is one of the largest producers of uranium in the world, accounting for 20 per cent of global production last year.

We’re the third largest producer of natural gas and second largest oil producer in Canada. In any given year, between 65 and 70 per cent of our oil is exported to the United States. The oil and gas sector accounted for 16.3 per cent of Saskatchewan’s total GDP in 2010. Government revenue from oil and gas is expected to reach $1.6 billion in the 2010-11 fiscal year (ended March 31). Those dollars come from royalties, taxes, and from the sale of Crown petroleum and natural gas rights. The $1.6 billion does not include all the indirect benefits. We produced approximately 155 million barrels of oil in 2009 and expect to match that output in 2010 once the numbers have been finalized. Oil production in our province roughly doubled from 1990 to 2000 and has remained basically stable since.

The upstream oil and gas industry provided more than 29,000 direct and indirect jobs in 2010. Saskatchewan produces light, medium and heavy quality crude oil in various locations throughout the southern half of the province. Historically 50 per cent of our conventional crude production stream has been heavy oil. Our pipelines are important connections to markets in both Canada and the United States and we continue to improve our crude oil refining and upgrading capacity. In fact, Saskatchewan can boast the first heavy oil upgrader in Canada. We have about 140,000 barrels per day of upgrading capacity and 114,000 barrels per day of refining capacity. The upgrading capacity includes the 60,000 barrel per day NewGrade Upgrader in Regina and the 82,000 barrel per day Husky Upgrader in Lloydminster. ɸ Page A14

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

A13

Safety | Reliability | Efficiency | Emission Reduction Inquire about complete CSA B149.3 Inspection and Certification Services The PHM is prebuilt, wired and includes: Burner Management System (BMS), Valve Train, Burner, Firebox, Flame Arrestor and are function tested to ensure quality and performance. Optional solar or low power operation requiring only 0.2 amp to run. Optional factory installed electric or glycol heat trace.

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A14

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Future lies in tech unlocking oil wealth ɺ Page A12 The refinery capacity includes a 100,000 barrel per day refinery in Regina, and a smaller 14,000 barrel per day refinery in Moose Jaw. This capacity does not include the expansion of the refinery in Regina which is currently in the process of increasing its capacity to 130,000 barrels per day. I believe that our future lies in further technological advancements that will help unlock the wealth of oil under our province. We calculate that industry has identified more than 45.6 billion barrels of conventional oil in place in the province. But only about 13 per cent, or six billion barrels, is considered recoverable at this time with current technology. Also, recovery rates fall to less than 10 per cent from Saskatchewan heavy oil reservoirs where over 50 per cent of Saskatchewan’s conventional oil resources can be found. I want to assure you, as part of the heavy oil industry that we want to work with you to capture as much of the heavy oil-in-place as possible through the application of new and emerging technologies. Not that long ago the Bakken formation in southeastern Saskatchewan

was a play that was not considered to be economically viable nor technically recoverable. Improved horizontal drilling techniques and multi-stage fracturing moved production from 750 barrels per day in 2004 to current production of over 60,000 barrels per day. There are approximately 2,400 producing oil wells in our portion of the Bakken now, up from around 100 in 2004. There are many other emerging conventional plays occurring across the province that have built on the successes gained in the development of the Bakken, but I will only mention a few. We have the Viking light oil play of West Central Saskatchewan. There is the Shaunavon medium oil play located in the southwest corner. And ﬁnally, there’s the rejuvenated Birdbear heavy oil play located in the Lloydminster heavy oil belt. The search for oil continues, as does development of the industry in our province. Our most recent Crown petroleum and natural gas dispositions sale last month (February) generated $43.4 million in revenue for the province and brought the total revenue from land sales for the 2010-11 ﬁscal year to $467 million. ɸ Page A15

Energy and Resource Minister Bill Boyd delivered a keynote address on Saskatchewan’s energy sector at the World Heavy Oil Congress in Edmonton. File photo

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

A15

Provincial government's objective is to increase recoverable heavy oil reserves ɺ Page A14 The government of Saskatchewan is committed to working with industry to providing a competitive fiscal regime. Our goal is to strike the balance between a competitive investment climate and a fair return from our resources to the people of Saskatchewan. We have made a commitment not to increase our royalty rates. One of our government’s objectives is to increase the amount of recoverable heavy oil reserves in the province, to capture as much of the heavy oilin-place as possible. We can see the value of investing in research into technologies. If we could increase the average heavy oil recovery rate by only five percentage points – from the current nine per cent to 14 per cent – Saskatchewan’s remaining recoverable reserves of heavy oil would more than double to approximately 1.6 billion barrels. We continue to support leading-edge technology, in particular the work that the Petroleum Technology Research Centre is doing on carbon capture and storage and on enhanced oil recovery (EOR). We’ve extended the Saskatchewan Petroleum Research Incentive program to this year. A lower royalty regime specific to EOR projects is in place which will apply to any future production from oil

sands or oil shale. In addition, the general Saskatchewan corporation capital tax, the CCT, has been abolished. The rate of the CCT surcharge on resource sales was reduced to three per cent for oil and gas. The CCT surcharge rate on oil and gas produced from wells drilled after Oct. 1, 2002 was reduced to 1.7 per cent. As well, the Saskatchewan Corporation Income Tax was reduced to 12 per cent. We are also undertaking a major redevelopment of our oil and gas business processes and computer systems. The Process Renewal and Infrastructure Management Enhancements Project, known as

PRIME, will transform how government and industry interact. As part of the PRIME project, we’ve partnered with the Petroleum Registry of Alberta to provide a common home for the reporting and retrieval of oil and gas production within both provinces – a move that has been widely supported and applauded by the industry. This will also align with the goals stated in the recently announced New West Partnership between Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. The “go live” date for the petroleum registry in Saskatchewan is April 2012.

Painted Pony targets SE Sask A production increase of about 1,440 boepd helped Painted Pony Petroleum Ltd. increase cash ﬂow and revenue in the fourth quarter. Painted Pony's fourth quarter production was about 53 per cent oil and liquids and 47 per cent gas. The company expects another active year in 2011. Its capital budget is set at $160 million, just under half of it allocated to British Columbia targeting liquids-rich Montney gas and slightly more than half earmarked for Saskatchewan targeting Bakken and Mississippian light oil plays. A total of 38.3 net wells are planned for Saskatchewan targeting both the Bakken and the Mississippian. This will include follow-up drilling on the discovery wells in Weyburn and Flat Lake. Highlights of the year included discoveries in the Bakken formation at Flat Lake and Weyburn in Saskatchewan. Painted Pony continued to grow its acreage to a total of 202,307 net acres of developed and undeveloped land in Saskatchewan and B.C., with undeveloped land valued at $168.1 million. Last year, the company drilled 51 (34.9 net) wells at a net success rate of 92 per cent, including six (1.2 net) joint venture wells.

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A16

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Rollovers keep TNT repair shop busy This Super-B sustained internal and external damage in a rollover. Shop foreman, Dennis Snider stands inside a cutout to enable the application of an epoxy coating.

Story and photos by Geoff Lee Lloydminster – It’s a sure sign of spring to see a yard full of tanker trailers going through a repair and inspection cycle at TNT Truck and Trailer Repair Ltd. in Lloydminster. The warmer weather is also pulling in a rush of farm bulk fuel haulers for annual safety inspections and crude oil, gas and diesel trailers in for repairs on insurance rollover claims. The TNT shop is busy with scheduled annual tank or barrel inspections to meet federal dangerous goods safety regulations. “We are busy all year around, but after Christmas and during the spring, we get tons of rollovers,” said Dennis Snider, shop foreman. “That’s one of the reasons I am very busy right now because of the

amount of rollovers we have on insurance claims. I have quite a few on the go. “They tend to just roll them on their side most of the time, and they will crush one side of the tank, so we will do a side section repair. “The majority of our work is welding and basic mechanics.” Surprisingly, Snider says spring road bans don’t generate as much extra maintenance work from oil and gas companies as one would think. “It’s almost to the point now where there isn’t much of a breakup,” he said. “Everybody just goes all the time in the crude hauling end of it anyway. They never shut right now. It’s actually gets busier for them.” ɸ Page A17

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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Roads hard on trailers ɺ Page A16

Welder Jim Wack repairs a section of a catwalk on a tanker. The majority of the repair work made to tankers is done by welding.

TNT sells, leases and services a full line of tanks and trailers in diﬀerent makes and models for the oil, agricultural and construction market including gravel trailers, Super-Bs, tri-axles and tri-axle grain trailers. They also have a wide selection of enclosed, ﬂatdeck, gooseneck and stock trailers.

Snider does acknowledge that rough off-highway roads are hard on the trailers along with where they operate and what they fuel they haul. “Some guys will get their tank epoxy coated on the inside to protect them,” he said. “They will pit if they haul in an H2S area. It will cause pitting in aluminum and steel tanks. “The tanks tend to crack a lot, so we are doing a lot of welding on the barrels.” Dangerous goods cargo tank re-test standards call for measures such as annual pressure, visual, internal leakage, liner and thickness tests. “On the barrel side of it, a lot of it’s valving,” said Snider. “There are external valves and internal valves. There’s certain valving criteria that needs to be kept up. “The yearly inspection for dangerous goods is basically looking for leaks. “We pressure them up and test for leaks and repair all of the valving and stuff like that.” TNT has a crew of seven welders, one heavy duty mechanic, and two certified trailer mechanics and all the work they can handle. “We just seem to get busier every year,” said Snider. “There is the safety inspection side of it and the barrel inspection side,” he said. “We kind of do a combination of both.” Snider also says repairs keep picking up as the company continues to gain new customers and more exposure to the marketplace. “We are selling more trailers and renting more trailers all the time. It kind of snowballs from there,” he added. “About 90 per cent of our work is oil field related but we do quite a bit of the fuel bulk haulers that we Welder Durwin Jimmy ties down a replacement piece in preparation for welding onto the side of deal with. We do all of their inspections.” a crude hauler that was struck by a train.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Oilsands footprint won’t step on parkland

Alberta Sustainable Resource Development Minister Mel Knight unveiled a new draft land protection plan for the oilsands that would cancel some leases. Open houses began April 18 in Bonnyville and continue to May 19 in Calgary. Photo submitted

Edmonton – A new draft land protection plan calls for a fifth of Alberta’s oil sands to be transformed into parks and recreation, requiring the cancellation of leases held by more than a dozen energy companies. The government unveiled the plan on April 5 to set aside two million hectares, or about 20 per cent, of Alberta’s oil sands zone for conservation. Major oilsands players like Cenovus Energy Inc., Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., BP PLC and Imperial Oil Ltd. stand to see a marginal part of their development land seized if the regional plan goes into effect. Southern Pacific Resource Corp., which

has thermal projects in Saskatchewan and in the Alberta oilsands, reports that neither of their existing Alberta oilsands projects at McKay and its pilot project at Red Earth, would be affected by the regional plan. Southern Pacific says the government’s proposed conservation areas would potentially affect only one of Southern Pacific’s six land blocks in its Anzac property, but the company has been consulting with government since the regional plan was proposed in August 2010. “The government has taken our input into consideration under the proposed conservation area around our Anzac prop-

erty,” said Byron Lutes, president and CEO. “The draft plan would allow for maximum resource recovery while protecting sensitive areas from surface disturbances.” The announcement by Sustainable Resource Development Minister Mel Knight also included information about compensation for aﬀected energy companies within the plan zone. “In the case when any sub-surface access or statutory consents are out – if there is an individual case or cases where persons are aﬀected, there is compensation,” said Knight. Compensation is addressed in Bill 10, the Alberta Land Stewardship Amendment Act introduced on March 1, respecting all the existing

“

The draft plan would allow for maximum resource recovery while protecting sensitive areas from surface disturbances

”

- Byron Lutes, Southern Paciﬁc Resource Corp. President and CEO compensation and property rights for Albertans. The Lower Athabasca Regional Plan is the ﬁrst of seven regional plans to be developed under Alberta land-use framework with the second Lower Peace Regional Plan to get underway in 2012. Open houses on the new Athabasca plan began April 18 in Bonnyville and wrap up May 19 in Calgary. The plan was developed with input from an advisory council of individuals with broad

experience in the region, and input from the public, municipalities, stakeholders and First Nation and Métis communities. “We are committed to the responsible development of the oilsands and all our natural resources, and to managing the social and environmental impacts,” said Knight. “With this plan, we’re looking ahead more than a generation. It is government’s responsibility to plan for the future and it is important that all Albertans have their say.”

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Heavy oil app speeds data to head of¿ce Field operators can now process and transfer production related data to various stakeholders using an opLynx web-based application developed for the heavy oil sector by i-Gen Solutions of Edmonton. Photo submitted

At Target Safety Services Ltd., we use our knowledge, leadership and commitment to safety to ensure a safe and productive work environment for our clients and staff. We are a full service safety company supplying safety personnel and equipment to some of the most progressive and safely operated companies in the Oil and Gas industry.

We are currently adding safety professionals, safety trainees and experienced safety rescue personnel to our team. Due to unprecedented growth in all areas we are currently seeking the following safety personnel: 1. NCSO National Construction Safety Officers - Fully accredited NCSO are required for new positions within the company. If you are currently working on your designation, we are willing to support your completion. Use Reference # 11-02-01 NCSO. 2. Safety Supervisors - Senior and Junior. We are actively seeking fully qualified senior safety supervisors capable of supervising large projects and turnarounds. Qualified junior supervisors will be included in our in-house safety training programs and be eligible for progressive promotion. Use Reference # 11-02- 02 Sup 3. Safety Trainees - People with a desire to lead safety on the work site and willing to participate in our comprehensive safety training program are encouraged to apply. Basic Oilfield tickets are required to be considered for this position. Use Reference # 11-02-03-trainee 4. High Angle and Confined Space Entry Rescue Personnel - Must be willing to continuously train to hone your skills. You must also be prepared to work as a team member both on and off the worksite. Use Reference # 11-02-04-Rescue 5. Safety Equipment Quality Control Technicians - Experience in the repair and maintenance of breathing apparatus and gas detection is a requirement to be considered. Use Reference # 11-02-05-Techs 6. Safety Training Instructors - Must be certified in ENFORM H2S Alive and St. John Ambulance First Aid instructor programs. Use Reference # 11-02-06-Instructor In return for your commitment, we offer a highly competitive compensation and benefits package, combined with long term career development. We are currently offering the following positions at these operating centres: Lloydminster, Bonnyville and Red Deer, with the Safety Equipment Quality Control Technicians operating from Red Deer office. Target Safety Services Ltd builds and fosters an environment that takes pride in working safely in a team environment and is managed through effective leadership. We are committed to providing continuous training and we support a substance abuse free workplace.

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Edmonton – Heavy oil producers can purchase a new web-based application called opLynx designed to optimize data flow from field operations to production accounting at head offices. The product is available from developer i-Gen Solutions Corp. in Edmonton and comes with a mobile computer to allow field operators to process and transfer data to stakeholders without paperwork. “Specifically, we want to optimize how operators are logging well production data and managing well service requests and product transfer tickets,” said Ryan Zarowny business development manager. Zarowny says opLynx has been in use for more than a year by a heavy oil producer operating in the Bonnyville and Lloydminster area covering 60 production runs with 50 more in the works. “Beside cutting regional administration costs and getting data to Calgary that much quicker, the client guesses they’ve saved one-to-two hours per day, per operator,” said Zarowny. The opLynx system is intended to allow operators to better manage and improve productivity and share vital data with supervisors and administrators. Other data stakeholders might include regional management, production engineers and scale facilities and service companies being dispatched. “Most producers out there are capturing field level data in a similar fashion,” said Zarowny. “In most instances, it’s an operator filling out some sort of run sheet that accounts for all the wells in a specific area. All that data would have to be collected manually or by technology such as SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition).” Zaronwy says i-Gen is currently working to integrate SCADA data with opLynx to capture all the data that an operator might use to optimize production and schedule maintenance or product transfers. “Due to its potential integration with SCADA systems and scale facilities, data flows will become increasing accurate,” said Zaronwy. Zaronwy also noted that opLYNX can be complementary to SCADA which can cost approximately $10,000 per site to implement. i-Gen developed opLynx as part of its focus developing software solutions geared toward industrial process controls, data acquisition, reporting, and advanced systems integration. The opLynx application was field tested and developed in co-operation with the unnamed heavy oil producer a year ago and is ready for roll out. “The theme of our product is to allow oil companies to start processing data as early as possible,” said Zarowny. “We want to give an operator the best possible tools to do things like capture field data and report it.” Typically, there is a large volume of run sheet/ haul ticket paperwork generated daily by producers that can lead to miscommunication between the scale facilities and or service companies. With opLynx, an operator sitting in a vehicle can easily make a service request or request an infield transfer, and be able to track what has been completed and what’s crossed the scale. Operators can use the system to request a variety of services such as coil tubing or flusby units to get the well producing again, to increase production or to produce more efficiently. “A lot of that reconciliation that would normally happen in the regional offices by data entry clerks or administrative staff is now being done in the truck,” said Zarowny. ɸ Page A21

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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Service requests prompted from well site ɺ Page A20 “The operator is that much more on top of his or her game.” Zarowny says the opLynx application is well suited for the heavy oil industry because of the trucking component for hauling oil, water and sand. “A large portion of the application is verifying what’s been done, prompting new product transfers or new service requests,” said Zarowny. “Basically, it’s a new way to prompt all that. They are not going to be requesting any diﬀerent kinds of services than they would be before. It’s going to be a more eﬃcient way to do it.

“Usually when they make those requests in the past they would have to drive back to the field office, and they would fax through a hand written request to service companies. “Now it’s prompted from the well site, and by the end of the day the service companies are getting a summary of all of their service requests for the next day. “We have the ability to integrate requests with the dispatch systems of some of the bigger trucking companies.” The mobile computer unit requires the operator to enter a password to access data that is specific to the run he is

working on. The data entry tool can allow the operator to display information and update daily run functions and make service requests to management with touch screen technology. The terminals are weather and vibration-rated and are mounted inside the vehicle. The data entry follows a company’s existing run and haul sheet format making it easy to work with and includes GPS functions. “In rolling out the technology, we had to make it for everybody,” said

Zarowny. “We had to make the application very intuitive. We couldn’t spend days training people. “Our focus was to make it easy to use, reliable and ﬂexible with the needs of producers in mind. “It was also designed to account for the fact that certain producers and operators are going to do things differently. “From day to day you are not going to run into the exact same situations. There is some ﬂexibility in how service or trucking requests works and things like new assets be added.”

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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First Truck braced for Àood of repairs Lloydminster – All of the 23 heavy equipment technicians at First Truck & Trailer in Lloydminster are bracing for the annual high water mark of servicing that comes with spring breakup in the oilfield. The flood of repairs and maintenance on heavy duty trucks is a little late this year like spring itself, but Miles Smith, the service manager, knows a steady stream of work can turn into raging torrent at any moment. “Usually at spring breakup we get flooded with enormous amounts of work,” said Smith during the first week of April. “We are right on the verge of a boom possibly. Apart from day to day work that’s flooding in, I think we are going to get swamped again very quickly. “This spring the oilfield is busier. I think because things have been fairly slow the last couple of years, those companies are pushing as hard as they can and trying to keep their trucks out working as long as possible. “In previous years, it’s been really, really busy. We will have to wait and see.” First Truck in Lloydminster is a dealer for Western Star and Freightliner trucks and Deopker trailers, but is equipped to repair and service all type of vehicles used in the oilfield. “We work on all the major brands such as Kenworth, Peterbilt and Volvo, and our Freightliner and Western Star units,” said Murray Grayson, general manager. “Western Star is one of the main vehicles in the oilpatch. You see a lot of them running up and down the roads. They are a tough, rugged vehicle. “They are built for situations like the oilpatch where there is a little bit of off-highway driving.” The company also has two locations in Edmonton including a body shop and paint facility and a shop in Vancouver to meet the needs of highway and oilfield truck owners and fleet companies in Western Canada. “Customer service is one of the things we strive to do the most,” said Grayson. “These trucks are their livelihood, and we try to make it as easy as possible to do business with them. “Relationship building is one of the key things that we try to do. Our customers are in the business to make a living. We acknowledge that. “We do a lot of servicing for one or two truck owner guys and some larger fleets, but we treat everyone the same, and do the best we can,” Grayson said. First Truck is a full service shop specializing in full oil analysis, in-frame engine overhauls, full rebuilds, engine replacements and coolant analysis using the latest diagnostic tools.

The majority of maintenance involves the use electronic diagnostics for warranty work and electronic troubleshooting. Spring breakup also generates a wave of annual safety inspection jobs with quick turnarounds expected from oilfield and retail customers. “The oilpatch can be very demanding, but you can see it from their point of view,” said Grayson. “When they are sitting in our shop they are not making money. “With preventative maintenance, it is much better to be proactive than reactive. “The guys that are on a good solid maintenance schedule and follow manufacturer’s specifications and that kind of stuff can really cut down on their downtime; find the small things before they get big.” All First Truck locations are open seven days a week and provide dedicated Freightliner-certified Express Assessment bays for quick parts and service quotes for engine code alerts or mechanical issues. “Speed is the essence,” noted Smith. “It’s always a serious headache trying to get the trucks in and out in the spring. “Safeties are a big thing and big repairs that guys have been putting off over the year. “There is such a massive amount of customers we sold trucks to and big fleets that you are always trying to impress.” ɸ Page A24

Shop foreman Tim Dyck checks a maintenance list for the Freightliner truck in the background.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Push it through with a smile ɺ Page A23

Murray Grayson, general manager of First Truck & Trailer, says the company has 15 bays and 23 heavy equipment technicians to handle the expected rush of spring repairs and safety inspections.

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First Truck technicians update their knowledge regularly at a company training facility in Edmonton where they are qualified to work on everything from motorhome engines to Caterpillar equipment. “The parts and service group is the backbone of the business,” said Grayson. “The sales guys can sell the truck, but it’s the fixed operations that keep that customer coming back. “When a guy brings his unit into our shop, he is expecting professional work. We have a shop full of professional technicians. “We are a big believer in growing our own workforce. We have students in the registered apprenticeship program. “We get the guys out of high school who are interested in doing the heavy tech trade. “If you have a well established company with low turnover, and a place where people want to come to work every day, it makes it easier to find and keep people,” Grayson said. First Truck doesn’t hire extra hands for the spring rush of repairs and maintenance, but Smith says they “push through it” with a smile. “If we have to work late we work late. We are always happy to do it,” he said. “A few years ago we were backed right up. Right now, we are doing really good – but things can get worse quickly. “The phone is usually going berserk. The yard is full of vehicles. “When the flood comes, we will be like a few years ago – swamped and two weeks behind just going as hard as you can.”

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Strike re¿ts Cats with summer jaws and claws Story and photos by Geoff Lee Battleford – Strike Energy Services Inc. in Battleford is using spring breakup to refit the winter attachments on their backhoes, trackhoes and Cats in preparation for a busy summer of pipeline installations. “We are basically taking all of our winter equipment and putting it away for the summer and getting all the summer stuff out,” said Corey Chmel-

nyk, area manager. “That means all of the frost teeth and frost buckets and ripper shanks get put away, and we get the summer buckets ready for the summer season.” Chmelnyk says the switchover is not a big job, but it takes time with mechanics and welders working seven days a week to meet the deadline for a new season of pipeline construction. ɸ Page A26

During spring breakup, Strike Energy has to replace frost carbide teeth on trackhoe and backhoe buckets with spade-type teeth for summer pipeline trenching and digging. Area manager Corey Chmelnyk grips a broken tooth caused by harsh winter working conditions.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Looks like 2011 will be a busy year ɺ Page A25 It’s the same story at all of Strike’s divisions and locations in Western Canada as the demand for spring maintenance picks up. “It’s looking like it’s

going to be a really busy year,” said Chmelnyk. “We have a continuation of the winter stuﬀ and it’s looking like it’s going to continue right through 2011 and continue on to 2012.”

“We have been busy all throughout the winter doing lots of pipelines near Battleford toward Turtleford and Mervin, and in the Luseland and Unity areas. “We were working on

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gas and oil pipelines from blend lines to gas distribution to water injection lines – a little bit of everything, basically. “We had a lot of frost this year on the leases. It was froze right to the bottom of the nine foot level. It busted a lot of equipment.” “The frost conditions this year were fairly hard. We had lots of moisture last year, so the frost drove down as deep as we had to dig. “The leases we on were very rocky, so some of our buckets are back here now getting ﬁxed.” Chmelnyk says it can take a day per bucket to repair broken carbide teeth and replace them with spade type teeth suited for summer digging. “These carbide teeth are really good in frost, but they don’t work as good in the summer and they are pretty costly for the summer,” said Chmelnyk.

Maintenance will continue to be important as the ﬁve main companies Strike has been working with over the winter have a lot of pipeline construction jobs in the works. “Some of our major clients are looking like it’s going to be a busy year,” said Chmelnyk. Strike’s Saskatchewan division will also send a pipeline crew to southwest Manitoba this summer to help their facility construction division complete a 15 kilometre eight-inch pipeline. Strike’s corporate organization includes electrical and instrumentation, HDPE pipe fusion and fabrication divisions, but in Battleford the focus is pipelines installation and tie-ins and some facility work. Most of Strike’s pipelines are ditched in but composite pipe is plowable with a plow tractor. “It’s just ripped in basically with a plow Cat,”

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said Chmelnyk. “They can pull in up to six-inch pipe.” Almost all of Strike’s machines in Battleford are Caterpillar, including backhoes, trackhoes and side booms with the local Cat dealer, Kramer Tractor handling warranty maintenance and repairs. “We are probably going to end up getting a couple of more hoes and we might need more than that too,” said Chmelnyk. “We have to see what the demand will be like.” “North Battleford and Battleford have really changed in the last year. We actually have a rush hour now. There’s a lot of oil traffic. You can see a lot of oil traffic – rig movers and vac trucks etc. There’s been a lot of activity in the last year and we see that. “It just seems like there is more guys moving in and drilling. They know the oil is here. It’s a little heavier but there are different technologies these days to get that oil out. It seems to be working for them. “You are seeing these smaller junior-sized companies come in and drilling up some holes. It’s getting closer to Battleford and these power stations (SaskPower) are helping. “It’s looking like there could be some kind of upgrader moving in. I don’t have a word of who or what. but there’s been talk of different upgraders coming in here. “It’s a good area to be in I think. We are happy to be here that’s for sure,” Chmelnyk said. With demand for new pipeline growing by the month, Chmelnyk says the need to maintain and repair equipment gets more significant. “Our trucks are one of the main things,” he said. “They have to get our guys to and from the job site. If the truck is down, our job is on hold. “Keeping up with the oil changes and fuel filters and air filters is a very important thing. “There is also the dayto-day stuff like checking fluid levels in our trackhoes too, and keeping all the levels up on them. “It they ain’t going, the crew ain’t going. Keeping up on the daily things is really a key thing to our industry,” Chmelnyk said.

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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Terri Clark to sing at Thorpe centre Lloydminster â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Construction of the new $16.25 million Thorpe Recovery Centre near Blackfoot, Alberta, is on schedule for a fall 2011 opening and is on budget. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the word from marketing co-ordinator Stan Parke who provided a project update at the Thorpe booth during the Showcase tradeshow in Lloydminster March 25-27. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We will have a two day open house,â&#x20AC;? said Parke who is also chairman of the board at the non-proďŹ t addictions treatment centre currently located within city limits. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We will invite the general public and all interested parties just before we start moving all of our clients into the centre.â&#x20AC;? The new centre will provide a 72-bed detoxiďŹ cation and treatment facility with separate youth and adult residential programs and services. The building will house a commercial kitchen, separate youth and adult dining rooms, a shared gymnasium and outdoor walking paths â&#x20AC;&#x201C; with naming rights for sale. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. chairman Allan Markin leads the list of sponsors with his $1 million donation followed by Husky Energy at $125,000 and Grit Industries and Grithog Sand Control Systems Ltd. with $100,000. Parke says Markin was motivated to write a cheque when it was clear local individuals and small and medium size businesses were supporting the project with ďŹ nancial support. â&#x20AC;&#x153;That spoke volumes to him,â&#x20AC;? said Parke, who says the Building Hope campaign has raised $2.4 million of its $3 million target by at the end of March. Excitement is generating over the upcoming Building Hope Gala on May 19 to help the campaign reach or surpass its $3 million goal from community donations. Country and western singer Terri Clark will perform at the gala with master of ceremonies celebrity Danny Hooper leading a silent auction at the Alberta building at the Lloydminster Exhibition Grounds. Oil and gas companies are among those being oďŹ&#x20AC;ered three levels of gala sponsorship with $10,000 platinum, $5,000 gold and $2,500 silver options. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are hoping a lot of local businesses are going to be buying corporate tables,â&#x20AC;? said Danika McCullough, fund development co-ordinator. Tickets are $150 per person with a $75 tax receipt or $1,200 for a table for eight with a $600 tax receipt. â&#x20AC;&#x153;That purchase includes â&#x20AC;&#x153;mocktails,â&#x20AC;? a specialty coďŹ&#x20AC;ee bar, appetizers, supper

and the silent live auction and entertainment,â&#x20AC;? said McCullough. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We will have Cajun cuisine that has never been done before â&#x20AC;&#x201C; thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s absolutely wonderful. We also have more than 75 items for the silent auction.â&#x20AC;? The Thorpe Centre will continue to raise funds beyond its target goal to pay for programming needs as expected contributions from the federal and Saskatchewan governments have not materialized. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think they are really missing the opportunity to tell people that they really do care about society because of the vastness of addiction starting with young people,â&#x20AC;? said Parke. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really important to us that we feel this participation.â&#x20AC;? The centre has received $10 million from the Alberta government and has $1 million in reserve in addition to the $3 million being raised during the ongoing Building Hope campaign. The centre may have to take out a small mortgage to make up the balance, and McCullough says there are a few naming rights to be sold including the gymnasium. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I will be targeting oil companies, individuals and local businesses, â&#x20AC;&#x153;she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are also hoping to be part of some golf tournaments this summer.â&#x20AC;?

The new $16.25 million Thorpe Recovery Centre for addictions treatment has sold some facility naming rights to major oil companies. A Building Hope Gala featuring Terri Clark will be held in Lloydminster May 19 to raise the balance of a $3 million community fundraising campaign.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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Alberta sets renewable fuel standard Edmonton – Alberta is giving its bioenergy sector a boost with the implementation of a renewable fuels standard. The new standard went into eﬀect April 1 and requires an annual average of two per cent renewable diesel in diesel fuel and ﬁve per cent renewable alcohol in gasoline sold in Al-

berta. The greenhouse gas emissions of renewable diesel or alcohol must be at least 25 per cent lower than the equivalent petroleum fuel. Alberta was the ﬁrst North American jurisdiction to commit to a greenhouse gas emission threshold for renewable fuel supporting a renew-

able fuels standard. “Alternative and renewable energy sources are a growing part of Alberta’s energy portfolio,” said Ron Liepert, minister of Energy. “The government of Alberta continues working towards clean energy production and is taking action to support the growth and de-

First Blackfoot well completed Calgary – Alberta Star Development Corp. has drilled, cased and completed the first well of their recently announced three well (one net) drilling program on the Blackfoot heavy oil property in Lloydminster, Alberta. The well located west of Lloydminster is currently producing, and Alberta Star expects production rates will be comparable to that of surrounding heavy oil wells once the well has stabilized. The remaining two wells on adjacent sections are expected to be spudded after spring breakup and are part of the company’s Blackfoot Phase 1 drilling program. The Phase 1 program is scheduled to include drilling and completing three in-fill heavy oil wells in the heavy oil property. Once completed, the Phase 1 – three well program will increase the number of Lloydminster heavy oil wells that the Alberta Star has an interest in to 17. Alberta Star will have a one third working interest in the Phase 1 program wells. The company’s heavy oil assets are primarily concentrated in the heavy oil producing region around the Lloydminster area straddling the Alberta and Saskatchewan boundary where they have accumulated working interests in approximately 2,500 acres of undeveloped land. Alberta Star is a Canadian resource exploration and development company that identifies, acquires and finances oil and natural gas assets in Western Canada and advanced stage mineral exploration projects in North America.

velopment of bioenergy production in Alberta.” To ensure the success of the renewable fuels standard, the Alberta government will expand and extend the Bioenergy Producer Credit Program until 2016. The current 2011 budget allocates $336 million to the program over the next three years, including $58 million

in 2011-12, to support bioenergy production in the province. “The Bioenergy Producer Credit Program encourages production of a wide variety of bioenergy products, including renewable fuels,” said Liepert. “This program will encourage Alberta biofuel production needed to satisfy the requirements of the renewable

fuels standard.” The Alberta government is also releasing the Biodiesel Integration Strategy pilot study conducted by Kyoto Fuels Corporation and JK Trucking, demonstrating the successful use of biodiesel blends in the Canadian climate. The study was supported with a grant from the Alberta government.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Osum raises $40M Calgary – Osum Oil Sands Corp. has raised another $40 million for development work on its insitu projects in Cold Lake and the Saleski carbonates. The fundraising comes from the closure of a private share sale on March 29 with regulatory approval for the 35,000 barrels per day Taiga project at Cold Lake expected this year. The Calgary-based company also raised $100 million from a similar share deal with the Korea Investment Corporation in November 2010. Proceeds from the latest share placement will be plowed into development work on both in-situ projects and for general purposes.

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Osum ﬁled a commercial application and an environmental impact assessment for the Taiga project in December 2009 with the ﬁrst oil anticipated in 2014. Osum also continues to drive forward on its other core area in the Grosmont carbonate play at Saleski where a joint venture pilot project began in December 2010. The results from this pilot are expected to provide Osum with valuable insights into how to best develop the Grosmont carbonate resource. Work towards commercializing the company’s 100 per cent acreage in the region is also ongoing with a 19 well core program that recently wrapped up.

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PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

B-Section May 2011

This view shows a bit of the scale of this sculpture. Photo submitted Lyle Lamb would love to see his “Oil Patch” pumpjack sculpture purchased by a company in Lloydminster. The reworked pumpjack used to operate on Lamb’s family farm at Lone Rock, Saskatchewan. The pumpjack art piece is located on Lamb’s bison ranch near Hepburn, Saskatchewan. Photo by Geoff Lee

Rancher sculpts a piece of oil history By Geoﬀ Lee Hepburn – Rancher and metal sculptor Lyle Lamb from Hepburn Saskatchewan is welding an oil industry icon into a work of art with invaluable provenance and a price tag of about $165,000 with freight negotiable. His steel sculptor called the “Oil Patch” weighs approximately 90,000 lb., stands 34 feet high, 17.5 feet wide, and will be ready to move oﬀ his property this fall – if a buyer comes forward. Lamb’s masterpiece is based on the bones of an Emsco pumpjack that operated on his family’s farm near Lone Rock by Fargo Oils Ltd. in the late 1940s. It was later taken over by Canadian Reserve Oil & Gas Ltd. Issues with Canadian Reserve led Lyle’s late father, Frank John Lamb, to seek a Supreme Court of Canada appeal in 1976 for fair compensation for lease land under the provincial Surface Rights Acquisition and Compensation Act. The appeal restored the original compensation judgment Lamb received from an Estevan judge in 1972 based on the Blackstock Formula that inspired Lyle to close the circle with his sculpture. In a note to the Pipeline News, Lyle stated his belief that the old pumpjack was donated to Lyle by Canadian Reserve when the site was abandoned around the same time as the Supreme Court ruling. Lyle moved it from Lone Rock to his ranch in the 1980s, and began working on it two years ago with an artistic vision and purpose in mind.

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“I had all the pipes, the parts, the catwalk and I had the steel and I have the know-how,” he said. “I didn’t buy this at Wal-Mart. “This has been a bit of an obsession you could say. I have been working on this thing every chance I have for the past two years. It’s just been a going concern. “It’s an oil patch sculpture representing the industry, and the oil patch and the colour of oil and big things – big heavy things. “It’s called the ‘Oil Patch.’ This is the ultimate contemporary sculpture representing the oil patch – bar none. “This is my biggest endeavour, and I won’t do this again. This has hurt me physically. “I’ve got two broken toes over this. My elbow’s not good, and my back’s not good. This is it.” The Oil Patch will be a static display as Lamb has replaced more than 5,000 lb. from the counter weight with lighter metal along with removing the gears from the gearbox. He is also adding reinforcement metal to a couple of key pick-up points along with base supports in place to prevent any damage when it comes time to move the sculpture. It sits outdoors on a concrete pad next to his workshop at the ranch. ɸ Page B2

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Three-crane lift ɺ Page B1 “I have had two different quotes to pop it on a truck. It’s about $10,000 to put it on a truck,” he said. “It’s going to be a three crane job – three 75 tonne cranes.” Lamb has teamed up with Crockatt Communications Ltd. in Calgary to market the sculpture to a list of eight potential energy companies in Western Canada. “I would like to see it in Lloydminster at Husky,” said Lamb who notes it’s a non-commissioned work on the open market. “There are other Western Canada companies I have talked to. It could go to Edmonton or Calgary. There’s a chance it could even end up in Estevan.” The case for Lloydminster is strengthened by the fact the oil from that pumpjack was shipped by Canadian Pacific Railway on the Lamb farm to the old Husky refinery in Lloydminster. In addition, Lamb drives back to Lloydminster every second week to visit his mother, Emily, and helps his brother Charles with spring seeding and fall harvest at the Lone Rock farm. There are more than 40 oil leases on the 6,000 acre farm today where Frank Lamb began his famous legal feud for fair compensation. “This is the heart of the patch,” said Lyle. Lyle says his dad didn’t see eye to eye with the oil industry “because of scrap left, oil on the ground, salt – access – just everything. They never stayed on the edge (with leases). “He wanted compensation and he wanted to be treated fairly. There was oil and there was a salinity issue as well, and they would leak stuff. “He probably lost a couple of acres from the pollution. It’s still not farmable. “He just got fed up and none of the farmers were getting a half-assed decent amount of surface lease. ɸ Page B3 Rancher and sculptor Lyle Lamb has reworked a historic pumpjack into an 90,000 -pound work of art called the “Oil Patch” that will be Ànished this fall. Lamb is marketing the piece to a list of eight major oil and gas companies in Western Canada. This early April photo shows Lamb working on the piece. Photo submitted

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Inspired by Supreme Court case for landowner’s rights ɺ Page B2

Lyle Lamb uses a power hoist to weld parts on his 34 ft. high pump jack sculpture. A dispute between Lamb’s late father, Frank John Lamb, and Canadian Reserve Oil & Gas Ltd. that operated the pumpjack on his farmland led to a Supreme Court of Canada ruling in favor of fair compensation to landowners for lease land. Photo submitted

“They make the proper roads today – graded up and gravelled, and they try to stay along the fence line. “They’ve got real good these drilling companies. I have nothing against them. They have gotten really good, and my dad had a lot to do with making that happen.” The Blackstock Formula requires an authority to pay 50 per cent or more for the part taken than the average per acre value of the land from which the part is taken. The formula was devised by G.M. Blackstock, a former chair of the Alberta Board of Public Utility in respect to compensation awards for expropriation of land for pipeline construction. The court cases led Frank Lamb to become a founding member of what is now the Federation of Saskatchewan Surface Rights Association. Asked if he ever worked in the oil patch after his dad’s experience, Lyle says his dad wouldn’t let him. “He thought it was too dangerous. We were farmers,” he said. Lyle has a bit of ﬁght in him too, and admits he was “kicked out” in Grade 12 in Lloydminster and completed his year by correspondence. He went on to graduate from the University of Saskatchewan with a bachelor of ﬁne arts and a bachelor of arts. He bought his ranch in 1978 where his cur-

rent art critics included two dogs, approximately 80 bison, 32 rodeo bucking horses and a collection of mules. Over the years, Lamb has completed several metal sculptures for various clients including a stylized bison at the Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon, but his “Oil Patch” trumps everything in scope and significance. “I am going to sell it,” he said. “It would mean quite a bit. “I would get a couple of hundred grand, and I would feel really good about it. “I would feel like I accomplished something in my artistic career. I would feel good, but I am not going to build another one. Lamb has a power hoist to enabled him to weld parts high off the ground all year round, but the machine has weather limitations that slow down his task. “There was time last winter when I worked when it was warm, but anything below 15 (-15 C) I couldn’t really,” he said. “I paint bits and pieces as I go to keep the rust off. I have a shop and I do that inside. You can still weld outside, but you can’t really go up if it’s 15 below because the thing freezes. “Sometimes I won’t work on it for weeks at a time, and sometimes I will work 10 or 12 hours a day for maybe a week or day. It depends on what else I have to do. “I am a commercial pilot too. I fit this into my life over two years.”

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Pros bone up on EOR fundamentals Lloydminster – About 18 oil and gas specialists took part in a one day detailed primer course on Enhanced Oil Recovery Fundamentals at Lakeland College in Lloydminster in late March. The course was taught by Professor Larry Lake

from the Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering at the University of Texas who was invited to Lloydminster by the Society of Petroleum Engineers. “The objective is just to promote the technology

Professor Larry Lake was invited to Lakeland College to deliver a course on Enhanced Oil Recovery Fundamentals at Lakeland College in Lloydminster by the Society of Petroleum Engineers. Photo by Geoff Lee

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to make people more aware of it,” said Lake. “Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) is an opportunity for producers to increase recovery in their fields and make more money in the end. EOR is becoming a more common practice.” By definition, EOR is oil recovery by injection of fluids or material not normally present in reservoirs. It excludes pressure maintenance or water flooding. Lake says the people taking the course need to know about EOR “so they can actually plan the life of their fields to make sure they see what the end game is, and to optimize oil production.” He says the number one thing to take from the course is the knowledge you can make money from EOR processes. “In some cases you can make a lot of money,” he said. “That should be part of your planning just like infill drilling programs, well cleanouts or doing fracturing jobs. It should be part of your arsenal of tools.” The course covered eight modules focusing on the chemical, thermal and solvent EOR applications which appealed to a broad spectrum of professional interests in the classroom. “I just want to know more about the different technologies that are out there,” said Curtis Longmuir, a technical account manager for Baker Hughes in Wainwright. “Typically, we only come across waterfloods in my area, but there seems to be more and more talk about different technologies such as polymers. I am just trying to get a little more educated on that.” Baker Hughes supplies chemicals to oil producers in the Wainwright area. “We want to know the effects of the different technologies and different chemicals that will be needed to help support different types of EOR,” he said. Lake told the class that EOR typically comes into play when primary and secondary oil production processes reach their economic limits, but that’s not the always the case with heavy oil. ɸ Page B5

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

It's EOR for the ¿elds

Professor Larry Lake from the University of Texas delivered an intense primer on Enchanced Oil Recovery Fundamentals to industry specialists at Lakeland College in Lloydminster in late March. Photo by Geoff Lee

ɺ Page B4 “Often the primary and secondary oil production processes don’t exist with heavy oil, so it’s all EOR for those ﬁelds,” he said. “In heavy oil, they very often go right to tertiary with SADG (steam assisted gravity drainage) or cyclic steam stimulation.” “EOR is very important in heavy oil production. It’s the whole game. Most of the heavy oil comes in a thermal project,” Lake noted. The use of polymers in EOR is also catching on in certain reservoirs in Western Canada which brought Brad Simonar, a facility engineer with Integra Energy Consulting Ltd. in Lloydminster to the lecture. “I want to learn a little bit about the polymer ﬂooding which is supposed to be picking up in the area,” he said. “We are actually working on a project right now, working on the facilities for one, for a company near Coleville. “It seems like guys are getting more oil out of the ground and that seems to be one of the steps they are

looking at. “I also hope to learn about the downhole stuff because we are doing mostly facility work. Most of the polymer work is happening in the Coleville area.” Ryan Peardon, a technical service representative for SNF Oil Division in Kindersley that supplies polymer EOR to companies in that area, says polymers add viscosity to water. “Waterfloods are a huge activity in the area,” he said. “There are five or six floods that I take care of. “There’s one company just north of Kindersley that has the potential to be very large with their reservoirs. “The reservoirs have been water flooded for several years and they want to target the residual oil that’s

remaining.” Asked why he was taking the course Peardon said it was to “further my knowledge of EOR and the way reservoirs work. “It’s very new to me so a lot of this stuﬀ is not really in my vocabulary.” In fact, the second module of the course launched the lecture into a private engineer’s world of formulas pertaining to the two fundamental scientiﬁc principles of EOR – achieving a lower mobility ratio and increasing the capillary number. The course also dealt with a variety of depth guides, permeability guides and oil viscosity charts to help planners determine where and when to use chemical, thermal or solvent EOR applications.

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Ladies of the Patch limber up Lloydminster – The 6 th annual PWM Steel Ladies of the Patch Petroleum Golf Classic is already a success even though play doesn’t get underway until May 27. Just two weeks after the call for registration, the tournament maxed out with 144 golfers with another 25 to 30 women on the waiting list. “It’s absolutely amazing,” said Debbie Horbach, chair of the 10-member organizing committee. “It’s the only event of its kind in the Lloydminster area. We know that the oil and gas industry in Lloyd is a vibrant exciting place and there are lots of females that work in the industry. “This is their only opportunity to get together with females that work in the patch and have a bit of a get-to.” This year’s event will be played at the 18-hole Rolling Green Fairways Golf Club just west of Lloydminster instead of the Lloydminster Golf Course that hosted the tournament for its first five years. Horbach says the decision to switch venues was based on lower costs at Rolling Green which will allow the tournament to raise more money Remember this scene from the 2010 Ladies of the Patch tournament? Lee-Ann Triffo Tower from for the Lloydminster Sexual Assault Center. Red Deer and Rae-Lyn Rasmussen from Grande Prairie clowned it up for the paparazzi. More good Last year’s tournament raised $20,000 for the times are expected this year. charity with this year’s goal pegged at $25,000. “The money will be raised from entry fees and there will be some skill competitions and raffles and stuff like that going on,” said Horbach. Funds are also raised from sponsorships and corporate donations from oil and gas companies. “We can’t be more pleased with our sponsors,” said Horbach. “Our platinum sponsor, PWM Steel, Anyone can round up 9 guys for a night out, why not a is on board again this year, and we’ve got half a dozen weekend away? With 3 ﬂights daily, you and your boys food and drink sponsors. will have your own private lodge only hours away! “It’s great. I attribute that to the fact this is the only event of its kind for the female ONE VISIT HERE AND YOU’LL SEE WHY ADVENTURE workers in the FISHING ISN’T JUST ANOTHER DAY ON THE WATER. patch. Everybody realizes that and just gives it their EAT PACI FIC GR full support.” Players come from all over Alberta and SasSA katchewan and a LM O LODGE N few more spots will open up as comWeb: GreatSalmon.ca mittee members Toll Free: 1-855-227-GPSL (4775) who usual particiEmail: BigFish@GreatSalmon.ca pate have opted to THIS IS WHERE YOUR ADVENTURE HAPPENS cheerlead instead. Dodge Cove, Prince Rupert, B.C. loads of fun can be expected at this years Patch

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Oil City drives repeat business to its shop Lloydminster – Some of the big name bulk fuel haulers like Plains Marketing and Gibson Energy have come to rely on Oil City Diesel Repair in Lloydminster for their annual safety checks and brake and suspension repairs. “We have many repeat customers,” said Claude Poliquin, shop manager. “We have a pretty well known name in the industry. They like the service we do. “What they seem to like about us is that whatever we charge for, we do the work. There is just no middle ground there. If it’s invoiced, the work is actually done.” Oil City is owned by Doug Fisher and is well known for servicing annual Alberta and Saskatchewan safety inspections on oilfield trucks and trailers with the focus on brakes and suspension repairs. “The majority of our work is trailer repairs,” said Poliquin. “We mainly repair oilpatch trailers and haulers, gravel trailers and flatdecks, hi-boys and low boys – any type of trailer. We can do tandems and B-trains. “I would say the main thing we fix on trailers is the air brakes and suspensions. We do of brake pots (pots are the pistons inside the brake calipers). “We do a ton of them. It’s not uncommon for us to get a call from a guy whose brake pot just blew. It’s about an hour and a half job, so we will slip him in and out.” “We do all kinds of mechanical work. We do a ton of brakes around here, suspensions, air bags, wheel alignments, lights, and that kind of thing.” Oil City has four drive-through bays to accommodate an entire B-train and four other bays for maintenance and repairs on smaller trucks and trailers. ɸ Page B9

The day Pipeline News dropped by, Oil City was doing the mechanicals for a service rig brought in for a safety inspection during spring break-up. “We are going through the safety work,” said Poliquin. “We did some driveline work – whatever it needs we will look after the safety aspect of it.” “Once we go through the initial safety sheet if there are any repairs we will do those. They can’t get stickered until all the repairs are done.” Oil City is not certiﬁed to repair specialized rigs parts such as pumps but they will allow the rig owner to make their own repairs as the safety inspection goes on. Spring break-up is the busiest time of the year

for service rig safeties at Oil City, but Poliquin says breakup doesn’t have that much impact on business. “Springtime can be a little busier than normal, but we seem to keeping busy year round,” he said. “Right now (today) it’s just a little bit slow, but last week we were just swamped. You never know with that phone. “We move a lot of iron through here. We do get a lot of calls where they need it yesterday and we try to accommodate them as best as we can. “If it’s just a quick safety and not a whole bunch of repairs we can move them through pretty quick.” Oil City is open ﬁve days a week some Saturdays if the workload warrants it.

Shop manager Claude Poliquin, left, quarterbacks a part huddle with service manager Leo Dery and parts manager J.C. Lebrecque.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Journeyman mechanics Terry Bota and Mike Jezowoski work together to replace a trailing arm bushing on a tri-axle.

Dedicated lube bay and attached truck wash ɺ Page B8 Oil City doesn’t do a lot of engine repairs, but they can fix anything that is attached to an engine such as water pump or a radiator. The shop also features a dedicated lube bay and an attached truck wash that can accommodate a B-train. They also have a welding and fabrication shop for all kinds of repairs to trailers and to make skids for oilfield engines. Oil City has been at its current location since 1994 and has eight mechanics, two parts specialists and four front office employees. Despite being busy there are no plans for expansion in the works. “The last few years there was a little bit of downturn so there wasn’t a lot of

growth there, but we were able to keep our own head above water on that, and now here we go,” said Poliquin. “We just sense that it’s strong again. “We will just stay the course. We don’t have a lot of room for expansion. We’ve got a good little shop here.” Poliquin has been at the job for two years after a short retirement from a 27 year career in the oilﬁeld that included looking after service rigs and working as a production manager for several local oil companies. He says working at Oil City suits him just ﬁne. “It’s a lot of fun here. It’s a good atmosphere. “I’ve got a Harley so I have to make sure I have time for that one. I had it out the other day. It sure felt good.”

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CAPP prints oilsand dialogue Calgary – The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) expects to engage in more dialogue with the release of its Report of the Dialogues on the Oil Sands: Engaging Canadians and Americans. The report released in April is the result of CAPP’s oilsands dialogues outreach program that took oil sands CEOs and the association to eight cities in Canada and the United States for discussions with more than 160 key stakeholders. “The purpose of the dialogues was to understand the diversity of views on oilsands, both the challenges and opportunities,” said CAPP president Dave Collyer. “Through this exchange of views it was our intent to advance possible solutions to improve the performance of companies working in the oil sands and to assist in clarifying the role of oilsands in Canada's energy future. “We look forward to participants’ response to this report.” CAPP’s report on the oilsands dialogues seeks to cover the variety of perspectives heard from people in Canada and the United States. “We have not done anything like the oilsands dialogues before and we are interested in continuing these and other forums to discuss the critical issues – from Canada's energy system to greenhouse gas emissions to local and regional environmental and social impacts,” said Collyer. The report also provides the oil sands producers’ broad consensus response to the major issues raised. “This response includes a strong focus on technology and innovation, enhanced engagement with stakeholders, increased transparency in performance reporting, and support for policy and regulatory action in the areas of national energy strategy, climate policy and regional planning,” said Collyer. CAPP’s oilsands dialogues began in Vancouver, followed by sessions in Edmonton, Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal. Dialogues held in Washington D.C., New York and Chicago covered the major population centres in the eastern and north-central United States. Oilsands dialogues participants came from an array of perspectives including business, the investment community, environmental groups, labour, academia, Aboriginal leadership and broader social, local, community and faith-based perspectives. CEOs acting on behalf of the oilsands industry participated in each dialogue. All sessions were held under the Chatham House Rule. While some individuals and organizations were unable or unwilling to par-

ticipate in the dialogues, all parties who expressed interest in the process and/or participating were invited to join the discussions. “While not all of the perspectives oﬀered necessarily align with our industry’s views, the knowledge participants demonstrated and the constructive, solutionsoriented nature of the discussion exceeded our expectations,” Collyer said. The oilsands CEOs and CAPP plan similar dialogue sessions in 2011.

New Website Peter Keller, operations manager of the Prairie Moon Inn & Suites in Unity holds up a laptop displaying the hotel website for visitors at the Showcase tradeshow in Lloydminster March 25-27. Keller reports the number of overnight oil and gas guests is up along with an increase in 3-D seismic surveys in the area in recent months. Photo by Geoff Lee

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G-Force grows the one-stop shop concept

Logging â&#x20AC;˘ Multistage Perforating â&#x20AC;˘ Slants â&#x20AC;˘ Pressure Testing â&#x20AC;˘ Foaming â&#x20AC;˘ Complettions â&#x20AC;˘ Workovers â&#x20AC;˘ Pipeline Cleanouts â&#x20AC;˘ Horiztonals

â&#x20AC;&#x153;From March on, we have hired another nine or 10 employees. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really taken oďŹ&#x20AC; well and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s grown every month since. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t keep up and we are short of manpower just like the rest of Western Canada. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a good problem to have.â&#x20AC;? The list of mechanical services includes repairs to hydraulics, diďŹ&#x20AC;erentials and power take-oďŹ&#x20AC;s and diesel engine maintenance and rebuilds. G-Force can also diagnose Cat, Detroit and Cummins engines along with Mack engines and ABS systems. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Primarily, we are focused on Cat, Cummins and Detroit,â&#x20AC;? said Schwenk. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Some of our aftermarket products are speciďŹ cally made for

those three manufacturers. â&#x20AC;&#x153;A lot of the dealerships do engines, but we kind of go beyond that. We can oďŹ&#x20AC;er aftermarket component with a little better quality.â&#x20AC;? PDI has designed aftermarket ECMs (engine control modules) to increase either fuel mileage or a little bit of power or all-out Stage 3 or 4 power for tractor pulls. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s basically whatever the consumer is asking for. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Primarily, our biggest seller is fuel economy products. We can install aftermarket turbos, manifolds, fuel injectors, cam shafts or just tune in an ECM, gaining the customer some more fuel mileage or a little bit more power with fuel mileage. É¸ Page B15

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Lloydminster â&#x20AC;&#x201C; GForce Diesel Service in Lloydminster lives up to its billing as a one-stop heavy truck and trailer repair shop that begs a guided tour to appreciate the concept and service divisions. The business model includes a growing retail shop in Estevan with one service bay to keep oilďŹ eld and highway trucks on the road earning money. The company is also the Western Canadian distributor of Performance Diesel Inc. (PDI) high performance parts, Trux accessories, T&E Pumps Ltd., Lipe Clutch and Fass fuel air separator systems. Mechanical services in Lloydminster range from safety inspections and pump repairs to installations of aftermarket performance parts and custom fabrication with 25,000 sq.-ft. of total space. G-Force is the only truck and trailer repair company in Lloydminster with a truck chassis dynamometer and this is where owner Greg Schwenk began his dialogue. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is a chassis dynamometer that allows us to run a truck in a controlled environment loading down the suspension, the drivetrain and putting the vehicle under a load so you can replicate issues a vehicle has going down the highway under loaded conditions,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You can see what kind of horsepower it puts out or identify vibrations, noises and squeaks â&#x20AC;&#x201C; anything that an owner/operator of a truck would hear when itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s working really hard. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an excellent diagnostic tool. A lot of people are just trying to get better fuel economy or soup up their engine, so we can show them exactly what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve done to their vehicle on the chassis dyno.â&#x20AC;? The Lloydminster shop also features 20 service bays that are seeing a lot of traďŹ&#x192;c with spring breakup and an improving economy. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been crazy for the last year or so,â&#x20AC;? said Schwenk. â&#x20AC;&#x153;About last March it started really picking up after the economy crashed.

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Fab shop a busy division ɺ Page B13 “It’s really taken off well. We have PDI dealers all across Western Canada.” G-force also sells a full line of heavy duty truck and trailer parts for oilfield Lead welder Rob Mctrucking including slinky hoses, hydraulic pumps and motors, water and petroleum Dermaid welds piping hoses, camlocks and chrome accessories. for a gear pump. The fabrication shop is one of the busiest divisions at G-Force with more than 10,000 sq.-ft of space where welders and mechanics can set up trucks or trailers to haul in the oil patch. “The fabrication portion of our business basically is rigging up a stock tractor The Estevan location has 7,500 sq.-ft. of space with the business focus on unit or a body job unit to haul gravel or crude oil or water or pull a frac trailer, etc.,” over-the-counter sales of oil hauling products, chrome accessories, and supplies said Schwenk. followed by truck servicing. “We have full-time welders, machinists and rig-up guys basically doing shutSchwenk is also researching other possible locations for future growth and downs, hydraulics, wiring, and lights and installing aftermarket accessories like he is hoping to distribute new products to his dealer network in Western Canada. chrome exhaust packages. “We can mount a T & E gear pump which we distribute or a hydraulic system to run a component on a trailer or maybe a centrifugal pump anything.” G-Force opened in 1997 and has grown steadily to meet Schwenk’s vision to diversify with his one-stop shop concept. “That was kind of the plan from the start to try to offer all the services that a guy need when he has the downtime to do repairs and make it a one-stop shop,” he said. “Being diversified, you don’t want to be relying on one industry to service. We are well diversified from welding to engine repairs and safeties. It works out very well.” The decision to open a shop in Estevan two years ago was based on the knowledge that a lot of his customers went to Estevan to haul crude during the boom Gummi Air Clutches WPT Air Clutches years between 2006 and 2008. “We picked that community because of the wide variety of trucking compa9419 - 27th Avenue, Edmonton, AB, Canada nies and lease operators that we were servicing in the past and ended up working Phone: (780) 438-3493 Fax: (780) 438-6655 down there,” said Schwenk. “There is no one down in that area doing what we do supporting the oil haulEmail: bill@lamarreequipment.com ers with some of the T&E gear pumps, hydraulic systems, hoses and all of the other products that it takes to do what they do every day. “Now just approaching two years, it’s going gangbusters. “It’s been really good. We had a couple of more employees hired on this late www.lamarreequipment.com winter and we are just trying to keep up down there.”

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Southern Paci¿c steams ahead on two fronts

Imperial Oil has begun a solvent assisted/steam assisted gravity drainage (SA-SAGD) pilot project in the Cold Lake oilsands Clearwater formation near its Makheses development. The new pilot follows a previous pilot in 2009 covered by the Pipeline News to assess the long-term potential of conventional SAGD and SA-SAGD for new reservoir areas at Cold Lake and also in the Athabasca deposits near Fort McMurray. The new pilot will continue for Àve years in two well pairs. The well pairs will be operated in SAGD and SA-SAGD mode sequentially during the pilot to reduce geologic uncertainties in the data interpretation. Photo submitted

Calgary – Southern Paciﬁc Resource Corp. is steaming ahead with the development of its STP-McKay thermal project in northern Alberta while it continues

to generate cash ﬂow from its STP-Senlac thermal project near Senlac, Saskatchewan. The company commenced drilling on the ﬁrst steam-assist-

ed gravity drainage (SAGD) well pair at McKay, located 45 km northwest of Ft. McMurray, Alberta in late March. A slant hole drilling

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rig will drill 24 individual wellbores over the next five months which will comprise the first 12 SAGD well pairs for the project. Southern Pacific received regulatory approval in October 2010 for the $450 million project with an initial phase design capacity of 12,000 barrels per day of bitumen. The company secured full financing in January for the first phase. Over 90 per cent of the major equipment purchase orders have been issued with approximately $100 million in total costs incurred by the end of February with another $118 million of project costs fixed. The project is in keeping with the company’s focus on exploration, development and production of thermal in-situ oil sands and

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heavy oil. The expenditures include the recent completion of a 29 km allseason access road into the plant site to allow for all-season access in and out of the site. The majority of the earthwork has been completed for the central process facility (CPF) and the first two SAGD well pads. Southern Pacific also constructed a 14 km, eight-inch diameter natural gas pipeline to the CPF that will be used to transport natural gas to fire the electricity/steam cogenerators and steam generators. Source water wells and pipeline tie-ins have also been completed at McKay. Progress is also being made at the Senlac thermal project in Sask. with an additional four SAGD well pairs expected to come on

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stream in April. These latest wells should assist in maintaining Senlac heavy oil production levels between 4,000 – 5,000 bpd on an annual basis with three more SAGD well pairs planned for the third quarter. The company expects those three pairs to remain on standby, ready to be placed on production once there is room in the plant to accommodate one or more of them. Southern Pacific has also stepped up work for its second phase expansion at McKay with the drilling of 38 core holes in and around the project area. Southern Pacific is expected to submit an expansion application this summer. The core holes were drilled on time and under budget. Several of these core holes were cased and equipped with sensitive pressure and temperature gauges that will be used to monitor steam chamber parameters within the SAGD patterns. The core-hole data is currently being interpreted and results from the program are expected to be released before May. Southern Pacific will use these interpreted results to finalize the size and timing of the McKay expansion.

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

B17

Digital Connection connects with clients

Sales consultant Wade Younger with Digital Connection says the talk around his ofÀce water cooler these days is about new multi-function ofÀce equipment. Younger manned an exhibit at the Showcase tradeshow in Lloydminster March 25-27. Photo by Geoff Lee

Lloydminster – Office equipment is following the example of the Swiss Army knife with ready to use multiple print, copy, scan and fax functions. That’s the story of Digital Connection Office Systems that sells and services multi-function equipment to the commercial and oilfield market in Alberta and Saskatchewan from locations in Cold Lake and Lloydminster. “We handle Lexmark printers, Canon and Ricoh copiers and multi-function products,” said Wade Younger, a sales consultant who manned a booth at the Showcase home and garden tradeshow in Lloydminster March 25-27. “Canon is our premier brand right now, and we service what we sell. “The demand is for multi-function products and larger copiers – things that are ready to work and able to handle multi-station tasks. In some areas,

they are hooked up to a network with up to 200 users on one machine.” Digital Connection is owned by Troy Schmeichel in Cold Lake where sales and service calls are often made to oilfield clients operating in the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range. The company is currently making service calls in that area for a client constructing stations along a pipeline from Fort McMurray to Fort Saskatchewan. “People like us because of our service,” said Younger. “We are going to look after our clients. If a machine goes down, we just go and fix it. About 98 per cent of what we do is on location. “If we sell you something, we are going to provide you with maintenance and a warranty to back it up for up to five years.” Digital Connection has been operating in Lloy-

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dminster for more than 12 years, and is growing in pace with the strong oil and gas economy. “We have over 100 clients in Lloydminster, and we service about 800 clients throughout the west,” said Younger. “It’s growing leaps and bounds right now. We’ve just about doubled our workforce in the last 18 months. “We are doing well, and we would love to have a few more clients.” Digital Connections is tapping into the surveying and mapping market with the introduction of new wide body colour printers by Canon for computer assisted drawings (CAD) up to 44-inches wide. The multi-functional unit combines high-speed printing, scanning and copying along with document archiving and scanning to e-mail and ﬁle capabilities.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Design and construction Dallas Renney with Sparkes Builders in Lloydminster Àelded a lot of questions about the company’s residential, commercial and agricultural construction services during the Showcase tradeshow in Lloydminster March 25-27.

Lloydminster – Local name and project recognition are important to Sparkes Builders. The company has been designing and constructing commercial, residential and farm buildings for more than 28 years from Lloydminster, but is often asked if they are new to town. That was the case again at the Showcase tradeshow in Lloydminster March 25-27 when Dallas Renney with design and sales took the opportunity to set the record straight at the company booth. “Here at the tradeshow everyone keeps coming out and asking ‘are you new to Lloyd?’ – because commercial and oilﬁeld work keeps us out of town – even though we have been located here for so long,” said Renney. ɸ Page B19

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Sparkes Builders: Made in Lloydminster rently has its own 12-person ďŹ eld crew and vehicles such as trailers, tool sheds and boiler sheds for concrete pours during winter. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our niche market is that we are a general contractor that keeps everything in-house,â&#x20AC;? explained Renney. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The ability to keep everything in-house keeps our prices aďŹ&#x20AC;ordable and gives us the ability to more closely maintain a timeline because itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s our crews going out when we send them rather than waiting on a Sparkes Builders designed and built its own of- sub trade.â&#x20AC;? Sparkes also deĂ&#x20AC;ce and showroom a few years ago to keep up signed and built their with growth. The company specializes in the design and construction of residential, commer- current 7,000 sq.-ft. ofcial and agriculture buildings made of wood or ďŹ ce building and showsteel. room in-house three Éş Page B18 Sparkes is a general years ago to keep up â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have a massive contractor that can de- with growth. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The busiest area service area. We have sign and construct evdone jobs as far west as erything from concrete in the oilďŹ eld is pumFort St. John in B.C. foundations to turnkey phouses,â&#x20AC;? said Renney. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Right now, there buildings made from â&#x20AC;&#x153;There is a ton of drilling seems to be 100-km wood or steel using in- going on out there. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The work can cover bubble just outside of house expertise and maeverything from other Lloydminster, and ev- terials. companies doing pumperything in that bubble â&#x20AC;&#x153;When someone is keeping us busy be- needs a new shop or houses and us supplying tween travel time and needs a speciďŹ c style of hardware to them, all construction.â&#x20AC;? pumphouse, for example, the way to designing our Renney wants read- they can come in and sit own shacks.â&#x20AC;? Asked why someone ers to know that Sparkes down with us and we dewould want a custom poured a 20,000 sq. ft. sign from scratch exactly pumphouse, Renney concrete slab for a turn- what the client needs,â&#x20AC;? says, "If you put three around at the Lloydmin- said Renney. ster Husky Upgrader a â&#x20AC;&#x153;Everything we do things together so one few years ago. is pretty much in-house building is more cost efâ&#x20AC;&#x153;It wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t one of custom whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a fective that three small our largest jobs by any new showroom addition buildings â&#x20AC;&#x201C; sometimes it means, but it was impor- for a building or some- just comes down to doltant for the local market thing 30 miles away that lars and cents.â&#x20AC;? Sparkesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; portfolio of to see what we were do- you are only going to ing,â&#x20AC;? he said. visit every six months.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;We ran heat Sparkes operates through the slab to give with the latest AutoCad them what they required architectural and engieven though the time of neering software and year wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t as conducive 3-D conceptual design to concrete as was nor- programs and provides mally preferred. It was a full in-house blueprintthick slab for industrial ing. use.â&#x20AC;? The company cur-

projects includes custom commercial projects such as the new Purolator freight depot in Lloydminster designed for expansion. It features an integrated conveyor system. The company also builds a variety of farm buildings including pole sheds and barns in keeping with the agricultural roots of company and its owner, Carson Sparkes, who designed a new water heater bowl for the livestock industry years ago. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have a wonderful rapport with all of the hog farmers and agriculture industry around Lloydminster,â&#x20AC;? said Renney in reference to Carsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s connections. Sparkes got its start building barns up to 100,000 sq.-ft. for hogs, poultry and cattle. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As the hog market has gone down, we are building fewer barns,

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Blood Tribe new Alberta Bakken player Calgary – The Blood Tribe has launched Kainai Energy to explore for oil and gas on its southern Alberta reserve with a $100 million investment from Native American Resource Partners LLC (NARP). The Blood Tribe has the largest tribal reserve in Canada, with over 350,000 acres of reserve land in the emerging Alberta Bakken play. The agreement allows the Blood Tribe to retain all of its rights to royalty payments from development of its reserve land by industry partners Murphy Oil Company Ltd. and Bowood Energy Ltd. while securing capital for its own resource development through Kainai Energy. “The formation of Kainai Energy is a continuation of the Blood Tribe’s goal towards self-determination,” said Ron Thunder Chief during the partnership with NARP on April 4.

“We chose NARP because of its unique specialization of resource development in Indian Country and their successful history of working closely with Native American tribes in the United States in creating co-partnered energy companies, thus making the tribes an active partner in the commercial development of its natural resources.” NARP played a key role in helping build both the Southern and Northern Ute tribal energy businesses in the United States into successful energy companies. NARP has offices in Salt Lake City, Utah, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and Calgary and was formed in 2008 Quantum Energy Partners and John Jurrius. The funding organization specializes in working alongside Native American tribes in the United States and First Nations in Canada. The NARP partnership also allows the Blood Tribe to retain exclusive rights to reserve lands outside the existing joint ventures with U.S.-based Murphy Oil and Calgary’s Bowood for future development. Kainai Energy will initially be focused on the existing joint venture areas in the emerging Alberta Bakken play as well as other potential oil and gas formations. Legacy Oil + Gas and Bowood have also partnered to drill in the Big Valley, Exshaw and Banff Formations, which collectively form the Bakken petroleum system in the southern Alberta Basin. The two companies announced they spudded their first joint well in the Alberta Bakken on March 25 and are currently drilling a Spring Coulee horizontal well in the area. The Spring Coulee well is the 28th well licensed by industry in the fairway on the Canadian side of the border since the play emerged in 2010. Kainai Energy will also consider mid-stream and other related energy investment opportunities in its joint venture areas in the Alberta Bakken. Over time and with success, Kainai Energy could expand its focus both in and outside the Blood Tribe’s reserve. "The creation of Kainai Energy is a natural step for our tribe,” said Charlie Weasel Head, Chief of the Blood Tribe. “Just as our sister tribes in the States have used their natural resource estates to create financial independence, we must become an active participant in the development of our resources in order to provide long-term financial stability to our Tribe and greater social and economic benefits to our membership.”

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

CAPP poll: U.S. values our oil Calgary – Most Americans strongly value Canada’s role as a secure, stable, and friendly supplier of oil to meet the needs of American families and businesses. Their already strong support for this relationship becomes stronger still when they learn about the jobs Canadian oil creates in America. These are among the highlights of a poll conducted by Harris Interactive for the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) and the American Petroleum

Institute (API). “Americans naturally want to reduce dependency on imported oil, but to the extent that the U.S. continues to rely on supply from other countries, Canada is very well regarded,” said Dave Collyer, president of CAPP. “Among Americans, Canada is seen as a friend and ally, with positive environmental values and a commitment to democracy, social justice and human rights. “Production growth from oilsands will strengthen the energy

relationship between Canada and the U.S., beneﬁting the economies of both countries. “As the policymakers debate important questions about our energy security, Americans polled overwhelmingly want the administration to support greater use of Canada's abundant resources,” said Jack Gerard, API president and CEO. Key ﬁndings of the poll: • Most Americans are unsure of how much oil the U.S. imports from Canada. The most com-

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mon estimate is that Canada provides less than 100,000 of the eight million barrels the U.S. imports every day. The reality is roughly 20 times that amount, or about two million barrels. • Of eight million barrels the U.S. imports every day, most Americans (56 per cent) feel that more than four million should come from Canada, or double the current level. • The vast majority (80 per cent or higher) give Canada good marks as a supplier of oil to the U.S., based on each of the following criteria: • An ally that America can trust (95 per cent

say very good/good) • Has a good human rights records (92 per cent) • Oﬀers good social and living conditions (92 per cent) • Respects the environment and works to limit environmental impacts (88 per cent) • Has a democratic government that operates with clear laws (87 per cent) • Poses limited political risk of a disruption in the oil trade (79 per cent) • Buys a lot of goods and services from America (80 per cent) • 85 per cent believe U.S. government policies

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should support the use of oil from Canada's oil sands. • 79 per cent feel pipelines are likely the best way to move Canada’s oil to U.S. markets • When informed about the economic benefits of buying Canadian oil, this significantly improves already positive feelings about importing from Canada. • Overall, Americans are nearly unanimous in seeing several good reasons to import oil from Canada, including buying from an ally, a stable democracy with a good human rights record, and the fact that there are important jobs and economic benefits for America. CAPP represents companies, large and small, that explore for, develop and produce natural gas and crude oil throughout Canada. API represents more than 470 oil and natural gas companies and leaders of a technology-driven industry.

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Surge buying North Dakota assets (Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin) Waskada, Man. - After moving into the Waskada area of southwest Manitoba last year, Surge Energy Inc. is acquiring adjoining Spearfish light oil assets in Bottineau County, North Dakota through two key transactions for $21.5 million, just a stone’s throw distance from the Waskada field. The acquisitions more than double the company's net unbooked Spearfish light oil drilling inventory by adding 205 gross (120 net) horizontal drilling locations. The acquisitions also include a high working interest, contiguous undeveloped land base of more than 100,000 acres that is exploratory in nature and prospective for light oil in the Basal Spearfish and the Madison formations. Through the North

Dakota acquisitions, Surge is acquiring 100 bpd (2010 exit rate) of light oil production, 6,000 net acres of prospective land in the Spearﬁsh light oil resource play adding 205 gross (120 net) horizontal drilling locations and greater than 100,000 acres of additional, high working interest, undeveloped land for total consideration of $21.5 million in cash (subject to customary closing adjustments). The assets will be acquired by Surge Energy USA Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Surge Energy Inc. The ﬁrst acquisition, involving 1,800 net acres and 40 bpd of production, is expected to close on March 30. The second acquisition, involving 108,000 net acres and 60 bpd of production, is expected to close on May

Hawk drills at Edam Through 2009 and 2010, Hawk Exploration Ltd. focused almost entirely on drilling exploratory oil opportunities in order to satisfy its $12 million ﬂow through commitment. With this commitment fulﬁlled, Hawk said it intends to shift its focus to the development of its oil properties. The company has assembled approximately 35,000 net acres of undeveloped land within its core areas of eastern Alberta and west central Saskatchewan which supports a large inventory of horizontal and vertical oil drilling locations. At Seagram Lake in western Saskatchewan, the corporation has acquired 12 sections (six net) or 7,680 acres (3,840 net) of land adjacent to its producing horizontal well. Hawk has recently received licences for three (1.5 net) dual-leg horizontal wells to be drilled in the second quarter of 2011 following spring breakup. Based on mapping of the Leduc formation over its existing land base and with continued drilling success, Hawk said it could potentially drill up to 50 (25 net) additional dual-leg horizontal locations on this play.

During the ﬁrst quarter of 2011, Hawk drilled one (one net) vertical oil well in the Edam area of western Saskatchewan. The well is expected to be completed in the Waseca formation in the second quarter of 2011 following spring break-up. The corporation plans to drill three (2.2 net) vertical oil wells during the summer of 2011 in the Edam, Silverdale and Hoosier areas of western Saskatchewan.

12. After closing both transactions, Surge will have approximately 329 gross (231 net) horizontal Spearfish drilling locations in Manitoba and North Dakota. The 6,000 net acres of highly prospective Spearfish lands are located directly south of the Waskada and Goodlands Spearfish oil fields, immediately adjacent to the Canada/U.S. border. Based on existing vertical well producers and the proximity to Goodlands, Surge said it characterizes the acreage as being within the sweet spot of the Spearfish trend with internally estimated discovered petroleum initially in place of 10 million to 15 million bbls of oil per section. Management be-

lieves the acreage can be effectively exploited by drilling 205 gross (120 net) horizontal wells. On portions of the same acreage, Surge has also identified additional light oil upside in the underlying Madison formation (Mississippian) with internally estimated DPIIP of 1.5 million to 4.5 million bbls per section. This formation has traditionally been developed with vertical wells but may have the potential to be further exploited using conventional horizontal wells. On the remaining undeveloped land, which consists of more than 100,000 net acres, Surge’s management believes the Basal Spearfish has significant potential as a light oil resource play and could likely be

exploited with vertical wells or conventional horizontal wells. Surge estimates the total petroleum initially in place (TPIIP) of the Basal Spearﬁsh ranges between 1.5 million and three million bbls of oil per section, and if tested successfully, the play

could cover up to 20 per cent of the undeveloped land base. The Madison formation also has potential as a secondary target with similar TPIIP per section and could be exploited with verticals wells and conventional horizontal wells, the company said.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Lakeland trades program tops all Vermilion – Lakeland College was the toast of the town at this year’s Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training Branch awards banquet in Edmonton on April 8. A Lakeland instructor, two students and an alumnus member took home top provincial honours. Topping the list was Lakeland instructor Randy Hobbis who received the top instructor

(North) award. This is the second time a Lakeland instructor has received the top instructor provincial award. It recognizes excellence in the classroom instruction and commitment to apprentices. “I was very surprised when I received the letter notifying me about the award,” said Hobbis. “Of course, we all try to do a good job in the classroom, but when a student takes the time to

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submit a formal nomination, as an instructor, it makes the recognition even more special and appreciated. Recent Lakeland apprenticeship graduates Catherine Rumjan and Claude Forseille were named Alberta’s top student apprentices in their respective parts technician and heavy equipment technician (oﬀ road) training programs. Lakeland alumnus Morgan Rockenbach was also honoured for industry career contributions. This is the fourth year in a row that a student who took apprenticeship technical training at Lakeland received a major award from the provincial apprenticeship training branch. Student awards are presented to the person who achieves the highest overall mark in their ﬁnal period of training

Claude Forseille )middle) of Hinton stands with his son, Cody, Lakeland College trades dean Bert Samuelson (left)and instructor Don Henry (right) at the apprenticeship awards banquet in Edmonton.

and receives a strong recommendation from their employer. For Rumjan, who began her training at the age of 36 and as a mother of three, the award is recognition for hard

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and Red Seal exams. At the job site, there are often times when I encounter a certain situation that I think back about how Randy would have explained it. He just had a certain way with students.” Forseille’s award was also well deserved, said Lakeland instructor Don Henry. “Claude was a pleasure to have as a student on campus,” says Henry. “He was excellent with ﬂuid power (hydraulics) and because he works at a limestone mine, he contributed some very interesting information during class about the unique maintenance problems that could occur in that type of mine.” While he was a student, Forseille lived in the campus's residence village during the week and would travel home to Hinton for weekends. Forseille is employed with Leigh Inland Cement at the Cadomin Quarry near Hinton, Alta. Another special moment at the apprenticeship awards banquet occurred when Morgan Rockenbach, 1997 Lakeland alum, received the Chairman’s Award of Excellence. The award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding dedication and commitment to their trades and to the principles of apprenticeship through service in the industry network system.

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

B25

Questerre To Drill In Sask., Alberta and Manitoba (Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin) Questerre Energy Corporation has announced 2010 results that include increased cash flow, falling revenue and a greater net loss compared to 2009 and plans for a staged drilling program in Antler, Saskatchewan this year that could include up to 20 (10 net) wells. The company also plans to drill a location at Vulcan, Alberta in the second quarter. Subject to equipment availability and results, it has scheduled a drilling program in Manitoba, where last year it spent $1.56 million primarily acquiring land rights, targeting infill and step-out locations that have been assigned proved undeveloped reserves. An independent reserves report attributes to Questerre 153,200 bbl. of oil and natural gas liquids reserves and 15.5 mmcf of natural gas reserves as proved undeveloped. These relate to one infill drilling location in Vulcan, one stepout drilling location in Manitoba and several infill and step-out locations in Antler. According to the report, Questerre has total net proved plus probable reserves of 1.57 million bbls of light and medium oil, 1.37 bcf of gas and 8,400 bbls of NGLs as of Dec. 31, 2010. That compares to total net proved plus probable reserves of 1.28 million bbl. of light and medium oil, 2.62 bcf of gas and 11,000 bbls of NGLs as of Dec. 31, 2009. Contingent upon the timing of drilling, completion equipment availability and weather, Questerre anticipates production for 2011 will average between 600 boepd and 800 boepd day with an increasing emphasis on oil. By comparison, in 2010, the company established a production target of 400 to 600 boepd and obtained an average rate of 619 boepd. Questerre said its revenue decline last year was due to lower production in the year but was partially offset by increased realized oil and liquids prices. To-

tal volumes were 24 per cent lower in 2010 but realized oil and liquids prices were 21 per cent higher. Realized natural gas prices decreased marginally by two per cent. In the fourth quarter of 2010 the production increases at Antler translated into oil and liquids accounting for 62 per cent of the company’s product mix compared to 53 per cent in the prior quarter and 45 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2009. Light oil from Antler accounted for 82 per cent of the company’s oil and liquids volumes. The remaining oil and liquids are largely from its Mannville pools in Vulcan. The overall decrease in production on a BOE basis from the prior quarter was mainly due to the A-5 well being shut-in at the

Beaver River ﬁeld. The improved oil and liquids weighting and pricing translated into revenue of $3.25 million, 10 per cent higher than third-quarter revenue of $2.95 million. The company said assessing the commerciality of its Utica shale discovery in Quebec was a priority in 2010. This assessment included a pilot horizontal well program with the company’s partner, Talisman Energy Inc.

beginning in late 2009 with the drilling of the ﬁrst two wells, St. Edouard No. 1A and Gentilly No. 2. In 2010, the company completed and tested both these wells and drilled two additional wells, St. Gertrude No. 1 and Fortierville No. 1. Questerre said test results from the initial wells are in line with its expectations for diﬀerent type curves associated with the structured and unstructured areas

of the play fairway. The St. Edouard No. 1 well tested the structured portion of the fairway with a 1 000-metre horizontal leg and eight-stage fracture stimulations in the target middle Utica interval. Initial ﬂow rates were more than 12 mmcf per day with a 30-day average ﬂow rate of approximately 5.7 mmcf per day. After 134 days of testing, the well was producing at a rate of 1.4 mmcf per day.

The higher ﬂow rates and subsequent production at lower rates is, in management’s opinion, related to the extensive overpressure and natural fracturing encountered in the well. Based on an early interpretation of the microseismic data gathered during the completion, the company believes ﬂow rates and ultimate recovery could be improved substantially with optimization of the frac performance along with longer horizontal legs with more fracs.

Estevan Office: Phone: (306) 634-2681 Fax: (306) 636-7227

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Oh deere

With the sun having just set, a herd of deer investigate a SaskEnergy right-ofway near the Enbridge Langbank station. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Cumberland focuses in B.C., Sask. Cumberland Oil & Gas Ltd. increased production in 2010, while its net loss climbed. The company’s focus for 2011 will be on developing emerging

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resource plays in southwest Saskatchewan and northeast British Columbia. The company’s net loss last year rose to $1.8 million from $1.2 million the previous year. Production climbed to 63 boepd from 52 boepd the previous year. Cumberland boosted proved plus probable reserves 256 per cent to 559,000 boe and proved reserves 140 per cent to 287,000 boe. Cumberland boosted capital expenditures to $3 million from $1.3 million in 2009. The company’s focus this year will be on developing emerging resource plays on its land in southwest Saskatchewan and northeast British Columbia. Its land is located near several resource development projects being worked on by competitors. In southwest Saskatchewan, Cumberland is targeting medium gravity oil in the Shaunavon formation. The company has identiﬁed seven (5.2 net) horizontal well locations with plans to drill up to two (1.4 net) of these locations in 2011. Based on productive analogy from nearby wells, each horizontal well is expected to be capable of producing approximately 100,000 to 150,000 bbl. of oil.

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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Higher prices and production boost WestFire WestFire Energy Ltd. reports its fourth quarter production averaged 2,802 boepd, putting the full year total at 2,513 boepd, an increase of 70 per cent over 2009. The junior’s oil weighting reached 57 per cent in the final quarter of 2010, up from 40 per cent in the corresponding period in 2009. The company invested $76.22 million (net) in capital expenditures last year, including $9.8 million on acquisitions. Capital expenditures for the fourth quarter were $11.9 million and were spent on drilling, completions, well equipment and land. Westfire drilled 53 (47.7 net) wells during the year with an overall success rate of 98 per cent. The company said it increased both reserves and production in 2010 through a balanced approach of relatively lowrisk Viking light oil horizontal drilling and selective acquisitions. Finding,development and acquisition costs were $20.11 per boe for proved reserves and $14.14 per boe for proved plus probable reserves in 2010, excluding future development capital. Including future development capital, the costs rose to $36.68 per boe for proved reserves and $31.38 per boe for proved plus probable reserves. WestFire has built a large base of drilling opportunities on the Viking light oil resource play in Provost and Redwater, Alberta and west central Saskatchewan. During 2010, it drilled and completed 26 (23.1 net) horizontal wells with multistage fracs in the Viking. In addition, three (2.7 net) Viking vertical wells were drilled. Seventeen (17 net) horizontal wells were drilled on the company’s Lloydminster, Alberta heavy oil prospect, two (0.7 net) wells were horizontally drilled at Willesden Green, Alberta and five (4.2 net) wells were drilled at Bashaw, Alberta resulting in four (3.2 net) gas wells and one dry hole for an overall program success rate of 98 per cent. During 2010, WestFire completed the purchase of three private

companies in the Provost area of Alberta. This acquisition represented a strategic entry point into a new Viking core area that complemented WestFire's existing Viking resource asset base. In an effort to high grade and focus its asset base, the company divested itself of five property packages representing 150 boepd of marginal production for total cash proceeds of $6.6 million. These divested volumes were replaced with higher netback production from the drilling program in core areas. WestFire currently has five core operating areas which are Redwater, Bashaw, Provost and Lloydminster in Alberta and west central Saskatchewan. The company's primary focus is the

development of its Viking light oil resource play at Redwater and Provost, Alberta and west central Saskatchewan. The Lloy-

dminster heavy oil horizontal and Bashaw multizone liquids-rich natural gas projects have evolved into self-sustaining, cash

ﬂow generating assets which help fund the Viking development. Consistent with previous guidance, Westﬁre

said its capital budget for 2011 is $90 million which is designed to generate an average annual production of 4,000 boepd.

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B28

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011 Rob Hildebrand, Donald Willock, Devon Fornwald and Dusty Schneider were the winning team. Photo courtesy of the Estevan Mercury

Right: Skip Dusty Schneider of JLS Consulting is in the house during an early game. He and his team would go on to win the bonspiel.

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NOV Downhole skip Rick Hawes, left, pursues his rock while Cordell Janssen, centre, and Conrad Meili, right, sweep hard.

Schneider $875,000 takes OTS bonspiel

Email: trent@tseoperating.com www.tseoperating.com Phone: 306-421-3865

Estevan – The winner of the biggest oilman’s bonspiel in southeast Saskatchewan has been there before. JLS Consulting took the top award in the Estevan Oilﬁeld Society Oilmen’s Bonspiel, which ran March 24 to 27. It

was the second win for JLS in three years. The team, skipped by Dusty Schneider, beat Southern Corrosion’s Jeff Mosley 5-2. The JLS team included lead Rob Hildebrand, second Donald Willock and third Devon Fornwald. There were 48 teams in the bonspiel, which tops off the annual oilmen’s bonspiel circuit in southeast Saskatchewan. The event takes place each year just after spring breakup begins, allowing for many people to take part in the four-day event. “We’re just glad to see everyone come out,” said Jeff Mosley, president of the Estevan OTS. Dayman Trucking beat Red Hawk 11-9 in the B event. Brent Gedak Welding took out last year’s champions, Pure Energy, 7-2 for the C event. Apex Distribution won over TS&M Marcotte 7-4 in one of two D event finals. Jerry Mainil took the other D-event 8-4 over Enbridge.

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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Compass expands Viking exposure (Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin) Through a series of recent agreements, Compass Petroleum Ltd. says it has expanded its Viking light oil opportunity base in west central Saskatchewan. During the third quarter of fiscal 2011, Compass drilled and cased nine (nine net) successful Viking horizontal oil wells in the Lucky Hills area of west central Saskatchewan. All nine wells were completed and fracture stimulated prior to the end of March and the onset of spring breakup/road bans. In addition to the nine horizontal wells, Compass has drilled three (three net) vertical wells outside of its Lucky Hills focus area in an effort to further de-risk its opportunity base and identify future horizontal drilling locations. All three wells were cased prior to the onset of road bans. Cores were obtained from two of the three vertical wells to obtain reservoir information and assist with the planning of future horizontal drilling and enhanced recovery studies. Management believes that these vertical tests have confirmed that the lands are prospective for Viking light oil and the use of horizontal multistage fracturing technology. Initial production rates on two of the new horizontal wells drilled at Lucky Hills have exceeded management’s expectations and are the highest achieved by Compass to date for horizontal wells employing multistage fracturing technology. One well flowed at an average rate of 184 bpd over the first 33 days of production while the second well flowed at an average rate of 151 bpd over its first 34 days of production. With the strong horizontal drilling results achieved at Lucky Hills, overall company production at the end of March 2011 was 1,210 boepd (83 per cent oil), based on field estimates. Viking horizontal wells at Lucky Hills contributed 640 boepd (90 per cent oil) to this estimated total. However, due to early road bans (resulting in

restrictions on trucking crude oil and limitations on oilfield access and operations) and an expected prolonged spring breakup, fourth quarter fiscal 2011 production volumes are anticipated to be materially lower from Lucky Hills. Compass continued to evaluate methods to optimize production from its horizontal wells at Lucky Hills during the third quarter of its fiscal 2011 year. Eight pumping units were installed in the quarter, bringing to ten the number of pumping units installed to date. A number of systems to handle paraffin or wax issues were assessed, including the use of solvents, inhibitors, and dispersants, in combination with hot oiling. With the proceeds of the financing completed by the company in January 2011 and expansion of the fiscal 2011 capital expenditure budget, three to four net additional Viking horizontal wells are scheduled to be drilled on the company’s existing Lucky Hills lands prior to the end of fiscal 2011 ( June 30, 2011), subject to timely receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals and weather permitting. Other activities initiated in the third quarter of fiscal 2011 (the three months ended Dec. 31, 2010) including construction of pipelines to gather solution gas and emulsion from 12 Viking horizontal oil wells and the expansion of the

1-29 oil treating facility at Lucky Hills. Both of those projects have been completed. The installation of two additional oil treating facilities has also been initiated. The expanded pipeline infrastructure and additional oil treating facilities were installed in an eﬀort to improve operational eﬃciencies and reduce operating costs. Solution gas sales are expected to commence in late June. Compass recently closed the acquisition of approximately 640 acres of land in its Lucky Hills core area. In addition, it has entered into a farm in agreement that provides for the company to earn a working interest in approximately 600 acres of land in the Lucky Hills area, through the satisfaction of certain drilling commitments (subject

to an industry standard overriding royalty agreement). The recently acquired and optioned lands immediately oﬀset recently drilled Compass horizontal Viking oil wells. Management currently estimates that Compass can drill up to eight horizontal wells per section on the recently acquired and optioned lands at Lucky Hills and anticipates commencing drilling operations on those lands in August, subject to the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals and weather permitting. As well, through a series of pooling, farm in and participation agreements, the company has the right to earn interests in lands in the Forgan and Elrose areas of west central Saskatchewan, which management believes are prospective for Viking

light oil. The agreements provide Compass with access to approximately 16,000 acres (25 sections). Compass has committed to drill four (three net) Viking horizontal wells

on the aﬀected lands and anticipates commencing drilling operations in July, subject to the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals and weather permitting.

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B30

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

SaskPower inks power deal with First Nations Regina –The power of the pen could help Saskatchewan meet a projected 2.4 per cent annual increase in demand for electric power. The government of

Saskatchewan, SaskPower and the new First Nations Power Authority (FNPA) have signed a memorandum of understanding that will help First Nations to advance

their project projects. Potentially new sources of power generation could come from any of the province’s 74 First Nations that may want to join the FNPA.

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“This MOU highlights the efforts of the government of Saskatchewan to actively engage First Nations in the province’s growing economy,” said Premier Brad Wall at the March 30 signing. “Many Saskatchewan First Nations are already pursuing economic development opportunities through potentially owning and operating power generation projects. “The MOU sets out FSIN Chief Guy Lonechild speaks at a power a partnership framework generation MOU signing. Photo courtesy Government of Saskatchewan for a more streamlined process to help First Nations move their projects developing a 250 MW electrical grid. The FNPA was forward for consider- hydroelectric project. The feasibility study formed to engage First ation.” SaskPower is cur- for the project known Nations in developing rently working with as the “Pehonan Hydro- power generation projthree Saskatchewan First electric Project” in Cree ects. The FNPA will be Nations to study the fea- could take up to four a non-profit, membersibility of developing a years. The project would ship-based corporation renewable energy project on the Saskatchewan be downstream from the supported by various forks where the South First Nations with existRiver system. River ing or imminent power The players are the Saskatchewan James Smith Cree Na- meets the North Sas- projects “This partnership tion, Chakastaypasin katchewan River. The Black Lake First is clearly an important Band of the Cree and the Peter Chapman Nation also signed an milestone for SaskatchBand along with their agreement last May to ewan’s First Nations,” development partners, move forward with fea- said Federation of SasBrookfield Renewable sibility studies on a run katchewan Indian NaPower and Peter Kiewit of the river hydroelec- tions (FSIN) Chief Guy tric project at Elizabeth Lonechild. Sons Co. “We are pleased These First Nations Falls near Fond du Lac reached an agreement that would provide up to to continue to support last May with SaskPower 50 megawatts (MW) of FNPA as it develops.” SaskPower is makto study the feasibility of power to the provincial ing a multi-year, multibillion dollar investment to maintain and build the province’s electricity system to meet growth demands from all users. “SaskPower will need new projects to meet Saskatchewan’s growing demand for electricity,” said Rob Norris, minister responsible for SaskPower at the MOU signing. “This is a once-ina-generation chance to create new jobs and opportunities for First Nations people and communities.” FNPA board chair Ben Voss also thinks the MOU will open the doors for new opportunities for First Nations in the development of power generation projects. “This will result in a higher probability of viable, long-term sustainable First Nations’ economic development opportunities while helping SaskPower meet the province’s electricity supply needs,” said Voss.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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B32

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PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

C-Section May 2011

Kaaxan, left, and Rider on a pipeline right-of-way. Photo submitted

Using dogs to ¿nd pipeline leaks By Brian Zinchuk Ralph, Sask. – Out West Canine Consulting has the appearance of a typical dog obedience school. There’s a fenced yard, obstacles, and of course, dogs. But the specialty of the business is finding leaks in pipelines in a much easier, and cheaper fashion than the usual splitting of the line until you find the leak. “We started out the search work with search and rescue in Alberta,” said Bill Allen, owner of Out West. “We do a lot of search and rescues as well – live finds, cadaver work.” Allen’s wife, Rachel, does all the admin work for the company. “She gets the dogs ready to go. She’s a big help with the training aspect,” he said. Until recently, both worked for Carson Energy Services at their Halbrite location, just a few miles down the road southeast of Weyburn. Rachel still does, but Bill recently left after 10 years, to pursue the dog business full-time. “We moved back to Saskatchewan around 19992000. There’s not a lot of calls for search and rescue in Saskatchewan. “We’ve done over 60 official search hours. Fortyfive of those were on the Tamra Keepness case,” Allen said. Asked about the recent earthquake and tsunami

in Japan, he said, “My dogs aren’t disaster dogs. We did search for the fetus in Weyburn. We searched for a day and a half, actual search work being about three hours. For a dog, that’s a lot, in that environment.” However, there’s not enough. “I had heard of guys in Alberta using dogs for leak detection, so we went a different direction.” Allen used to live in Sundrie, and had done some forestry and lumber mill work, as well as pipeline maintenance. “I’m born and raised in Weyburn,” Allen said. As he puts it, he went to Alberta, but got sick of the rat race. Back in Saskatchewan, he went to work for Carson, where he would find himself in a supervisor position. He did pipefitting and maintenance. “We got so busy here, I had to make a decision – do the dogs, or do both.” It was affecting what he could offer his clients. “I couldn’t afford to lose my dog clients.” Allen has been doing leak detection since 2001. “We’ve been out there physically looking for leaks,” he said. “They (Carsons) supported me, but you get to a point where you’re worried about what your small business is doing.”

Meet the dogs The dogs are very inquisitive when you first enter the house, sniffing at everything. After a while, they get bored, and have a nap. There’s a faint scent of mercaptans in the house. More on that in a minute. His first dog, 15-years-old, recently passed away. “He did a ton of work for me,” Allen said. “Kaaxan” is a chocolate Labrador. It’s a Mayan name for “someone who seeks or finds.” The second dog, “Rider,” is a black Labrador who wears a Saskatchewan Roughriders dog collar. His registered name is “Out West Rider Pride.” The third dog, “Sadie,” has recently retired. Fourteen-years-old, Allen said, “She’s just a pet.” Not to be outdone, there’s another dog in the house, a Mexican chihuahua named “Becky” that recently joined the pack. This dog, a rescue, is also a pet, and not likely going to be chasing leaks any time soon. In training for search and rescue, Allen said there’s a lot of hands on. “You need victims, you need to set up. “You raise them from puppies to search. The first aspect is to get them to know what the nose is for. Once they know their nose is to find something, you keep it a game. It really doesn’t matter live finds, cadavers, leak detection.” ɸ Page C2

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Their motivation is a tennis ball ɺ Page C1 Allen uses pseudo-scents for things like cadaver training. “Their nose is like how we see. A dog would identify a stew as potatoes, salt, and carrots. For a dead body, they don’t have a full spectrum, but probably 40 per cent.” He added, “The basis of any dog training is motivation. Their motivation is a tennis ball.” Allen pulled out a stinky tennis ball out of an old Cheez Whiz jar. “This is my target ball.” The ball reeked of mercaptans, the scent added to natural gas or propane that is similar to rotten eggs. Side-by-side with hydrogen sulphide (H2S), there’s a big difference, he said. “There are some naturally occurring mercaptans with crude, but just in some specific spots,” Allen said. Otherwise, it is added to the contents of the pipe, and used for leak detection. When the dogs alerted to the scented tennis ball he pulled out, he rewarded them with peanut butter cookies. The cookies sit open on the counter, but the dogs are disciplined enough not to go rooting for the cookies themselves. Each dog has a specific alert, letting Allen know he’s found something. For Kaaxan, he simply sits, a passive alert. Rider, the younger one, is more excitable. “He goes ballistic. He barks, he digs, he jumps.” “If I was going to do bomb or drug detection, I would use him, Kaaxan. You don’t want him to get into what he has found. “It’s part of obedience. When they get an olfactory response, I need them to react in a certain way. You smell it, you sit, you get a cookie.” Asked about comparisons to police service dog training, Allen said, “Police dogs want aggression. I don’t want aggression. They need a high play drive.” As for whether Allen has to be the “alpha dog” in the pack, he responded, “I don’t consider myself the alpha. I consider myself the leader.” “I’ve got them using their nose. I need them to stay with me, not take after rabbits and deer.” The other trigger for the dogs is their harness. Lifting one up, Allen said, “When these orange harnesses go on, they know it’s time to go to work. Never, ever do other things with the harness on. When the harness goes on, they’re working dogs, and they know it. ɸ Page C3

The dogs alert to the scent of mercaptans, saturated in a tennis ball inside the jar.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Don’t be out-worked

Occasionally the dogs can detect a leak while riding in the back of the pickup. They will then pursue the leak along the right-of-way. Photo submitted

Bill Allen and his newest dog, Rider, after Rider alerted to a test object.

ɺ Page C2 “In the house, they’re pets, so I give them some latitude. When we’re working, it’s pretty militaristic. We don’t work 10 hours a day. We work 15 minutes, and take a play break. Five minutes on, two off. I’ll also trade dogs.” Pipeline leaks “Our main search work is right after construction. Ninety-eight per cent is fibreglass pipeline. They do a pressure test, it fails. They have a leak. That’s where we come in.” The conventional alternative to using dogs is to let the leak soak and have the contractor find it themselves. “We need parts per thousand,” Allen said of a human’s ability to perceive the mercaptans. “Sometimes I think [the dogs] are working in parts per trillion.” “A lot of times guys put in too much mercaptan in. You need enough, but not too much. They’ve alerted to SaskEnergy lines, weeping through the plastic.” As for the pipeline contractor, “Their next option is to split the line, and one side will test, the other won’t.” That can mean repeated dig-ups, testing, and eventual repair of the test sites, until the leak is isolated. “I’m the cheapest alternative. A lot of contractors see that and want to get going,” he said. As for their success rate, Allen stated, “I would say, upwards of 75 to 80 per cent. “We do save them a lot of money. We save the oil companies a ton more.”

Sometimes it’s the oil company that pays, but usually it’s the pipeline contractor. The culprit is often a bruise or a fitting, but sometimes it can been a bad piece of pipe. Allen observed their appeared to be some production quality control issues for pipe in recent months. “I’m the last QC guy anyone wants to call.” Not easy “The first lesson I learned on a farm don’t let anybody outwork you. If doesn’t matter if it’s you and your buddy, or 10 guys on a crew. If you’ve ever walked down two clicks of right-of-way up to your but in snow, or mud, it’s not an easy job. It’s tough on the dogs, too, getting through snow and mud,” Allen said. “Other times, when the right of way is clear, the dogs lays on the back of the truck. When the wind is the right direction, he finds it from the back. He barks, gets out, runs back, and starts digging. I had a client in the cab with me one day. He couldn’t believe it.” As for accuracy, Allen said, “We’ve been 250 feet from a lease. Mercaptan went 250 feet under a compacted zone, and through a berm.” Otherwise, he said, they are usually within a joint of pipe. “There are a lot of variables. Sometimes on a hill, they will alert downhill, since it will settle. First, start digging uphill.” “When I take them out, they’re not looking for a pipeline. They’re looking for a stinky tennis ball.”

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

SETI coming together Story and photos by Brian Zinchuk Estevan – The building envelope is coming together, and the new Saskatchewan Energy Training Institute is taking shape. Quorex Construction of Regina is the contractor for the project. At the end of March, project manager Bud Green said, “We’ve got a lot of the punch out windows installed. The structural steel is complete. All the decking is done.” “We’re pretty much at the half-way point. We’re pretty much where we wanted to be. By mid-April, we’ll be closed in, heat on. We’re hoping by the third week of this month (April) we’ll be thawed out for the mechanical in Lab 3 and placing the slabs.” Those are structural slabs, he explained. They will sit on forms, and not be susceptible to ground movement. ɸ Page C5

This is the larger lab, which will have fall arrest training equipment indoors.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

This is the front of the new Saskatchewan Energy Training Institute, under construction.

SETI at construction half-way point ɺ Page C4

building when it’s ready. Due to federal funding rules that required part “April is the dry-out season.” of the building to be occupied by March 31, 2011, Since the Energy Training Institute is an indus- the construction was initially going to have to jump trial-type building, the finishing is going to come a through many hoops for that to happen. However, lot more quickly. There is not at lot of drywall, for the extension has allowed for a more natural workflow. instance. In May, the masonry walls go in. “We’re pretty encouraged of meeting our com“It was not an ideal situation,” Madu noted. “All pletion date of Oct. 31,” Green said. “Our biggest those hoops we had to jump through disappeared.” concern is the site work. If we have a year like last It will also bring the cost down, because there will be a more proper sequencing of construction. It year...” The facility is 49,500 square-feet in size. literally flipped which side of the building would be “We’re slating for after Christmas, for January,” done first. “That was huge when they made that ansaid Keith Madu, director of SETI, who took Pipe- nouncement,” Madu said. line News on a tour. Classes will start in the present Most of the subtrades working on the project facility, part of the Southeast Regional College’s fa- are from out of town, but a few local operators, like cilities in the same building as Estevan Comprehen- Bob’s Electric and F & L Concrete are taking part. sive School. They will then transfer over to the new “I’m quite impressed with the architectural de-

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Prairie Petro-Chem sold Â&#x201E; Story and photos by Brian Zinchuk Estevan - On April 1 it was announced that Houston-based specialty chemicals expert Clariant has acquired Prairie Petro-Chem of Estevan. They will integrate it into the Clariant Oil Services business. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The transaction signiďŹ cantly enhances Clariantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s presence in

the important Bakken Shale, an area positioned to be the number one oil and gas producing region in North America,â&#x20AC;? the company said in a release. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Clariant Oil Services is a provider of chemical technologies and services to the oil, pipeline and reďŹ nery industries. A global business with

headquarters in Houston, Texas, Clariant Oil Services is represented in all major oil and gas locations. From deepwater exploration to reďŹ ning, Clariant Oil Services provides chemical products and services designed to reduce customer costs, decrease operational risks and improve production efďŹ ciency. Clariant Oil Services

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operates a state-of-theart R&D laboratory and technical service centre in Houston, Texas, speciďŹ cally designed to serve the North American market. The facility â&#x20AC;&#x153;delivers ďŹ rst-class, high-quality service and new technology developments for the oil and gas industry.â&#x20AC;? Clariant is an internationally active specialty chemical company based in Muttenz near Basel. The group owns over 100 companies worldwide and employed approximately 16,200 workers at the end of February 2011. In the ďŹ nancial year 2010, Clariant produced a turnover in excess of 7.1 billion CHF (Swiss francs). Clariant is divided into 10 business units: Additives; Detergents & Intermediates; Emulsions; Industrial & Consumer Specialties; Leather Services; Masterbatches; Oil & Mining Services; Paper Specialties; Pigments; Textile Chemicals.

An Estevan lab has been key to the operation of Prairie Petro-Chem.

File photo Prairie Petro-Chem, originally formed in 1969 and headquartered in Estevan, operates locations in Weyburn and Oxbow, Saskatchewan, and in Virden, Manitoba. It is a leading supplier of specialty oil and gas production, drilling and industrial chemicals. The company's operations

comprise three primary activities: developing well-speciďŹ c production chemicals and application-speciďŹ c industrial chemicals; blending production and industrial chemicals; and delivering production chemicals to the well-site or to the industrial facility. É¸ Page C7

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Capitalizing on their collective strengths ɺ Page C6 The company produces predominantly oilfield chemicals, industrial chemicals, and drilling-related chemicals. Much of their product is tailor-made for specific applications for individual clients. The company serves approximately 7,000 oilfield sites, representing more than 50 per cent of the southern Saskatchewan and southern Manitoba market. Prairie Petro-Chem continued its steady growth pattern in 2010, achieving sales of approximately C$30 million. “Prairie PetroPrairie Petrochem specializes in oilpatch chemiChem has an exemplary cals. reputation and marFile photo ket leadership position based on more than 30 A Veryy Limited Supply pp y Of years of continuous op2011 2 011 H HARLEY-DAVIDSON A R L E Y- D AV I D S O N ® eration in this important region. This acquisition Motorcycles l are available! l bl strengthens Clariant Oil Due to the factories limiting Services’ position as a supply, you may not get the top-tier global provider new bike of your dreams. of production chemicals So plan to service your and services and greatly current bike. Whether it be paint, tires or engine work... enhances our capabilities · In house Ànancing Book it today! Rick Dawson & within North America,” available on new/ used models Staff said Christopher Oversby, global head of ClariHARLEY-DAVIDSON of Yorkton, SK ant’s Oil & Mining SerSince 1984 306-783-1999 vices business unit. website specials Brent Frehlick, genwww.harleydavidsonofyorkton.com

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eral manager of Prairie Petro-Chem, said, "We are looking forward to working with Clariant to capitalize on the additional opportunities created by the combination of our collective strengths. As a Clariant company, our expanded geographic and strategic position will provide the ability to more eﬀectively serve existing customers in other markets. In addition, our shared commitment to

service excellence and our complementary solution-driven products will ensure we continue to provide our customers with the level of service they have come to expect.'' Frehlick (son of Prairie Petro-Chem founder Ray Frehlick) and assistant general manager Blane Fichter will join Clariant as a result of the transaction. "We are pleased to welcome the manage-

ment and employees of Prairie Petro-Chem to Clariant, and we look forward to joining with them in providing our customers the highest quality of support and service, and bringing our sales, marketing and service support to bear for new customers in this fast-growing region," said Kenneth L. Golder, president of Clariant Canada Inc., and head of Clariant's North American region.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Rig Locator adds mapping functions By Brian Zinchuk

plain that JuneWarrenNickle’s Energy Group Estevan – Seldom in is owned by the same the news business do you parent company, Glacier get one of those “aha” Media Inc., as Pipeline moments. I had one News. Nickle’s Rig Locawhen I first saw the recently released mapping tor is the official pubfunction on Nickle’s Rig lisher of the Canadian Locator, found at www. Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors riglocator.ca. First off, I should ex- (CAODC) rig data. Its

website has some basic information for free, like total rig count for each province, both by service and drilling rig. I keep a sharp eye on that number, and the corresponding graphs, because they are bellwether indicators for the industry. Service rig activity follows drilling, and pipelines

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are often six months to a year later. When drilling number are down, the rest of the industry will sag in the coming months. When you pay for a subscription, you get access to actual rig locations. That can be via operator or contractor, and again for drilling rigs and service rigs. The drilling rig data is highly accurate, but the service rig data suﬀers somewhat due to the frequency of rig moves (often daily, or even more than once a day) and the speed at which their contractors report their location. If the service rig contractor doesn’t feel like reporting their locations every day, then this mapping function will be of little use with regards to that contractor. This data is reﬂected in the mapping function. Its level of precision for drilling rigs is more than 95 per cent accurate, according to Rob Pentney, director of sales for

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JuneWarren-Nickles, while service rigs will be more like 60 to 70 per cent. What’s new for Rig Locator is its mapping function in three incarnations. The ﬁrst is Rig Locator Maps, which is is akin to Google Maps meeting Rig Locator. Select what you want to see – active, down or MIR (moving in rig) for drilling rigs; active or inactive for service rigs. The locations appear as colour-coded bubbles. Position your mouse pointer over a bubble, and it will provide the following information: Contractor: Precision Well Servicing Operator: EOG Resources Canada Inc. Rig# 606, Status: ACTIVE Waskada, 14-34-001-25W1

Looking at the broad map reveals the level and intensity of activity across the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. For service rigs, for instance, you see very high clusters around Lloydminster and Stoughton in late March. There was also a cluster around Shaunavon. On Garmin GPS There is a secondary mapping function, allowing you to upload current map data to your Garmin GPS. I have a Garmin Nuvi 265W, a relatively low end device, for my SUV. The Rig Locator on the Garmin link is found on the www.riglocator.ca home page. It instructs you to plug in your device, then click “ﬁnd devices.”

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Next you have to click on “obtain unlock code.” Once you have that, click “download files.” The download process took about one minute, give or take. Be sure to read the help file. It shows, with pictures, exactly what you have to do to find a rig. On the GPS, first click “Where to?” then “Extras.” “JWN Rig Locator” is next. The menu includes drilling rig (drilling), drilling rig (down), drilling rig (moving in), drilling rig (rigging up), service rig (active) and service rig (inactive). Selecting drilling rig (drilling), it lists the nearest rigs to my location. I see at the top of the list, Panther Drilling Rig 2 is working for Nuloch Resources, 23.1 km southwest of my location. Selecting that rig, it shows present depth (I presume current as of last reported time, and before the upload to the GPS), the area (Tableland), the LSD land location, and date spudded. The big “Go” button gets a click, and it maps out my route to the rig. Put it on my dashboard, and I’m ready to go. I also have another JuneWarren-Nickle’s product, Patchmap, loaded onto my GPS. It provides grid roads, lease roads, and pipelines, as well as well locations. I have not updated it in a year, so it is a bit out of date. However, the direction finding function of the GPS uses that data to find its way to the rig. With Patchmap, I could enter the rig location manually. However, this is much easier. Also, if there are a number of rigs in the area, or I am just lost, the listing showing the nearest rigs can be invaluable. The system is compatible with other oilpatch GPS mapping applications like Oiltrax. The Rig Locator tells the GPS where it is, just as it would a restaurant or airport. The basemap you have loaded, be it Oiltrax, Patchmap, or another product, should tell the GPS how to get there. Indeed, Pentney says it will work with other basemaps. ɸ Page C9

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Rig Locator now on Garmin Éş Page C8 If you have an aircard in your laptop, you could conceivably upload the Rig Locator ďŹ les while in the ďŹ eld. However, my understanding is subscriptions are typically for one computer only, so choose that computer wisely. The download ďŹ les are updated once a day. Remember, the data is only as accurate as its most recent posting, and your most recent downloading. If I were to turn on my GPS two weeks later, it would still think Panther Rig 2 is working for Nuloch, unless I updated the GPS. Downloads The third enhancement is the ability to

download the Rig Locator reports to an Excel spreadsheet. Locations have latitude and longitudes included, which can then be channelled into other mapping applications, according to Pentney. Some clients wanted the ability to use their own mapping applications, he explained. Uses Consider this: it takes a minute or two to load this directly onto the GPS before walking out the door. How much is an hour or two worth to you if your crew or a needed load is lost on the way to the worksite? It can pay for itself in a day. How about the clients? If they are waiting for your hotshot before they can continue, and you

spend two hours wandering through the wilderness, making wrong turns on buďŹ&#x20AC;alo trails, it saves them money, too. I can see multiple uses for this mapping software. If you are a hotshot company whose clients are mostly drilling rigs, you deďŹ nitely will want to try it out. Getting a map, in addition to the land location, greatly helps. From a macro perspective, it provides a precise way to see where current activity is. This could be used for plotting strategy for service companies, much more easily then just looking at LSD listings. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Oh, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a several rigs working at Queensdale, for instance. Maybe we

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

No power rate increases this By Brian Zinchuk SaskPower CEO Robert Watson said that will there 10 years of power rate increases to pay for the expansion of generation capacity and to refurbish a woefully underfunded grid. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Estevan – Coming off a profitable year, SaskPower plans on no rate increases for this year. However, expect rates to climb from now on to pay for the new generation capacity and transmission network upgrades needed to support Saskatchewan’ growing economy. That was the message SaskPower CEO Robert Watson brought to the Estevan Board of Trade, Tourism and Commerce as keynote speaker for the TTC’s annual general meeting on March 23. SaskPower came off the previous year with just

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Box 12 Frobisher, SK. S0C 0Y0 merv_and_deb@xplornet.ca over $100 million in proﬁt on $1.7 billion in revenue, Watson said. By not planning on a rate increase for this year, it makes SaskPower one of the few utilities in North America, or even the world, not raising rates this year. The reason behind that is the low price of natural gas that the utility uses to run several stations. “In two to three years, we’re going to buy more gas to produce power than SaskEnergy does,” he said. The utility was also able to save money on management costs. Management only controls about $600 million on costs, roughly 30 per cent of operating costs. The plan in the next ﬁve years is to reduce that to 20 per cent. ɸ Page C11

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

C11

year, don’t expect that to last ɺ Page C10 Consumption S a s k a t c h e w a n’s power needs are growing substantially. “We’re going to have to almost double our power production in 10 years,” Watson said. He’s asked the planners to make projections 40 years out, like miners do. Last year, 54 per cent of power production came from thermal means, primarily coal. In 10 years, that’s projected to drop to 35 per cent. Units 1 and 2 of Boundary Dam Power Station are in their last years. “They were commissioned when Diefenbaker was around. They’re just too small to rebuild,” he said. “We categorically cannot be as cheap as Manitoba with their power,” he said, adding SaskPower is talking to Manitoba Hydro regarding purchasing power. “The cheapest power we can produce right now is our coal plants. We have to clean them up,” Watson said. Sixty million dollars are being spent to retool, and $360 million is going to be spent to make Boundary Dam Unit 3 carbon capture ready. The turbine, being made by Hitachi in Saskatoon, is the ﬁrst carbon capture ready turbine in the world, he said. “The only reason we didn’t go ahead with Boundary Dam 3 is, I told the premier, we have to wait for the regulations.” The plan is ready to go, and they are doing work now, he said. Sometime this year there will

be a go/no go decision. Within 10 years, they will be able to sell all of SaskPower’s coalgenerated ﬂy ash to concrete companies. Shand They are also working a carbon capture test facility for Shand Power Station. The proposed Montana-Saskatchewan deal which would have likely used Shand as a source is not going to happen. This other idea would be a test facility. “We have some interested parties,” he said. “It’s something we’re working on.” “We haven’t even approached the board yet,” Watson said, in reference to the project being in very early stages. Hitachi, he noted, wants its Saskatchewan facilities to produce carbon capture equipment for the world. Transmission and demand The last 20 years have seen Saskatchewan’s transmission grid “woe-

fully underfunded,” Watson said. The utility is going to be spending $10 billion in 10 years on capital projects. On recent project has been to bring a 230 kilovolt line to the new BHP Billiton Mine at Jansen Lake. The mine would deliver more potash than the entire province produces today, he said. As it is, $32 billion is slated for new and expanded mines in this province. The growth in the oilpatch, with over 100 rigs working before spring breakup, is also driving up demand. “The old adage, ‘The lights are on, it’s okay,’ isn’t good enough. “We are going to invest in advanced metering. We will have all customers on advanced meters in ﬁve years,” Watson said. That will put responsibility on the customer. It’s not as simple as buying a fridge with a green sticker, he said. Elec-

tronics are far and away the biggest consumers of power in the home. “We’re into making sure people consume less.” Other options SaskPower is looking at cogeneration, biomass, hydro, natural gas, and wind power for power generation. Currently, approximately 8.5 per cent of generation is wind, and the plan is to

take it to 10 per cent. The issues with wind are it is expensive, and it doesn’t blow all the time. Wind can’t be used as a baseload, like coal or nuclear. Those two are categorized as baseload, the rest are complimentary, he noted. “We have joined the Canadian Nuclear Association,” Watson said, adding that in three to

ﬁve years from now, the utility will seriously look at it. Like much of the economy, SaskPower is facing “grey-out,” with a high number of retirements expected soon. Of their approximately 2,800 full-time employees, at least 500 are expected to retire within the next ﬁve years. “We have a huge employment gap.”

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Southwest takes land sales By Brian Zinchuk

tity and the quality of the bids we received,” Energy and Resources Minister Bill Boyd said. “We had the Regina – Southwest Saskatchewan has taken usual strong interest in the Bakken play, but our rich over as the land sales leader, with the region ac- oil resources in the southwest are obviously causing counting for more than half of the value of the April a stir in the industry. “Land sales are a key barometer of future activity Crown land sale. Heightened interest in the southwest's Shau- in the industry, and based on what we've seen over navon oil play has significantly boosted revenue the last 15 months from our sales, the forecast is very from the latest sale of Crown petroleum and natural bright indeed for increased investment by the industry investment that results in jobs and prosperity for gas rights. The Shaunavon play accounted for more than the people of Saskatchewan.” April's sale included 16 petroleum and natural half the total in April's sale, which brought in $109 million in revenue for the province. Land sale rev- gas exploration licences that sold for $26.2 million enues for the 2011 calendar year stand at $152 mil- and 311 lease parcels that attracted $82.5 million in bonus bids. lion after two sales. The Swift Current area, on the strength of the The latest sale was the third best on record for an April sale. It also marked the seventh time in the last Shaunavon play, received the most bids with sales three years that a single land sale has topped $100 of $56.6 million. The Weyburn-Estevan area was next at $40.4 million, followed by the Kindersleymillion. “This was a great sale, based on both the quan- Kerrobert area at $7.8 million and the Lloydminster area at $4 million. The highest price for a single parcel was $7.3 million, paid by Husky Oil Operations Ltd. for a 2,331-hectare explora* Formerly “Three Star Environmental” tion licence southwest of Estevan along the Cana* Environmental Protection Plans * Impact Assessments * Pre-Site Assessments * Environmental Audits & Assessments da-United States border. * Well Site & Battery Abandonments * Drilling Waste Management The highest price on * Pre/Post Water Well Testing * EM Surveying * GPS Mapping a per-hectare basis was $10,214. Villanova Oil Corp. bid $320,000 for a 31-hectare lease parcel FAX: 306-453-4476 near Carnduff. BOX 40, CARLYLE, SASK. S0C 0R0 A special exploratowww.evergreenenviro.ca ry permit block on offer

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west of Hudson Bay received a work commitment bid of $200,000 from Lane Land Services Ltd. The next sale of Crown petroleum and natural gas dispositions will be held on June 6, 2011. Provincial highlights The top purchaser of acreage in the province was NRG Landsolutions Inc. who spent $31,652,164.21 to acquire 15 lease parcels. The top price paid for a single lease was $5,932,036, paid by Federated Co-operatives Limited for a 923 hectare (2,280 acre) parcel situated partially within the Butte Shaunavon (Oil) Pool, 23 kilometres southeast of the town of Gull Lake. ɸ Page C13

The Weyburn-Estevan area, where this Lasso rig was working in February, is no longer the belle of the ball for land sales. It was overtaken in April by the Swift Current region, with surging interest in the Shaunavon play. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Shaunavon play taking off Éş Page C12 Top price paid for a single licence was $7,270,614 paid by Husky Oil Operations Limited for a 2,331 hectare (5,760 acre) block located 13 kilometres southeast of the Oungre RatcliďŹ&#x20AC;e Beds Pool, 33 kilometres southwest of Estevan. The highest dollar per hectare, at $10,214/ hectare ($4,133/acre), was paid by Villanova Oil Corp. for a 31 hectare (77 acre) parcel situated within the CarnduďŹ&#x20AC; Midale Beds Pool, 11 kilometres southwest of the town of CarnduďŹ&#x20AC;. Gas prone areas of the province attracted bonus bids of $1,130,291 for 2,865 hectares, an average of $395/hectare. Parcels oďŹ&#x20AC;ering deeper rights only brought in $3,531,640 (3.25 per cent of the sale) for an average price of $1,211.50/hectare. Swift Current Area Summary The total bonus received in the Swift Current area was $56,588,685, an average of $1,217/ hectare ($492/acre). This compares to $2,799,276, an average of $676/hectare ($273/acre) at the last sale. All ďŹ ve licences sold, totalling 21,756 hectares and $5.7 million ($263/ hectare). Of the 54 leases posted, 50 sold, totalling 24,745 hectares and $50.9 million ($2,055/ hectare). The top purchaser of acreage in this area was NRG Landsolutions Inc. who spent $31,603,018 to acquire 11 leases. Federated Co-operatives Limited dished out the top dollar paid for a single lease in this area, to the tune of $5,932,036 for a 923 hectare (2,280 acre) parcel. That parcel is situated partially within the Butte Shaunavon

(Oil) Pool, 23 kilometres southeast of the town of Gull Lake. This is also the highest dollar per hectare in this area at $6,429/ hectare ($2,601/acre). Top price paid for a single licence in this area was $1,826,410 by Scott Land & Lease Ltd. for a 3,108 hectare (7,680 acre) block situated three kilometres southeast of the Rapdan Upper Shaunavon (Oil) Pool, three kilometres east of Frontier. Weyburn-Estevan Area Summary The total bonus received in the area was $40,363,566, an average of $553/hectare ($224/ acre). This compares to $18,128,914 an average of $355/hectare ($144/ acre) at the last sale. Top purchaser of acreage in this area was Husky Oil Operations Limited who spent $12,944,267 to acquire two licences. Top price paid for a single lease in this area was $2,535,932 by Prai-

rie Land & Investment Services Ltd. for a 971 hectare (2,398 acre) parcel situated 10 kilometres southwest of the Amulet RatcliďŹ&#x20AC;e Beds Pool, 13 kilometres west of Ceylon. Top price paid for a single licence was $7,270,614, by Husky Oil Operations Limited for a 2,331 hectare (5,760 acre) block located

13 kilometres southeast of the Oungre RatcliďŹ&#x20AC;e Beds Pool, 33 kilometres southwest of Estevan. The highest dollar per hectare at $10,214/ hectare ($4,113/acre) was paid by Villanova Oil Corp. for a 31 hectare (77 acre) parcel situated within the CarnduďŹ&#x20AC; Midale Beds Pool, 11 kilometres southwest of the town of CarnduďŹ&#x20AC;. É¸ Page C14

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Kindersley area brings in $7.8 million Éş Page C13 Kindersley-Kerrobert Area Summary The total bonus received in the area was $7,772,596, an average of $408/hectare ($165/acre). This compares to $16,927,217, an average of $177/ hectare ($72/acre) at the last sale. One licence was posted, and it sold. The price paid for the single licence in this area was $2,947,889 paid by Scott Land & Lease Ltd. for a 1,295 hectare (3,200 acre) block located adjacent to the Brock Vi-

king (Gas) Pool, 4 kilometres northwest of Brock. Of the 70 leases posted, 65 sold, totalling 17,769 hectares for $4.8 million ($272/hectare). The top purchaser of acreage in this area was Scott land & Lease Ltd., who spent $3,522,296 to acquire ďŹ ve lease parcels and one exploration licence. The top price paid for a single lease in this area was $594,817 by Canadian Coastal Resources Ltd. for a 259 hectare (640 acre) parcel situated 7.5 kilometres south of the Avalon Hill Viking (Oil) Pool,

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8.5 kilometres east of Kindersley. This is also the highest dollar per hectare in this area at $2,297/hectare ($929/acre). Lloydminster Area Summary The total bonus received in the Lloydminster area was $4,000,780, an average of $424/hectare ($172/ acre). This compares to $5,592,905, an average of $312/hectare ($126/acre) at the last sale. There were two licences posted, but only one sold, for 6,151 hectares for $187,962 ($31/hectare). Of 33 leases posted, 30 were picked up, totalling 3,282 hectares and $3.8 million ($1,162/hectare). The total sales for the Lloydminster area were $4 million. The top purchaser of acreage in this area was Charter Land Services Inc. who spent $952,320.00 to acquire one lease parcel. Top price paid for a single lease in this area was $952,320 paid by Charter Land Services Ltd. for a 259 hectare (640 acre) parcel situated eight kilometres south of the Onion Lake South Colony Sand (Gas) Pool, 30 kilometres west of Paradise Hill. The highest dollar per hectare in this area was $7,474/hectare ($3,025/acre), paid by Prairie Land & Investment Services Ltd. for a 16 hectare (40 acre) parcel situated within the Big Gully North Mannville Sands (Oil) Pools, 20 kilometres east of Lloydminster. Top price paid for a single licence in this area was $187,962 by Arthur Der Hovanessian for a 6,151 hectare (15,201 acre) block situated ďŹ ve kilometres east of the Cavalier Spinney Hill Sand (Gas) Pool, four kilometres north of Meota.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

L&C Trucking changes hands, not leadership Story and photos by Brian Zinchuk Estevan – The ownership has changed with Estevan’s long-established L & C Trucking, but the leadership has not, and won’t for quite a while. On Feb. 15, L & C Trucking (LaFrentz & Christenson Trucking Ltd.) was purchased by Ironbridge Equity Partners, a Toronto-based equity firm. Their website says, “We provide equity capital for management buyouts, expansions, recapitalizations, restructurings and owner/operators who would like to retire and sell their business. We will make equity investments from $5 million to over $30 million (in partnership with our limited partners).” Ironbridge has companies as diverse as a cap and gown manufacturer in Winnipeg, an underground and above ground mining drilling company, and a flooring company. L & C is an Estevan-based oilfield trucking firm that specializes in dealing with tubing and casing pipe products. The firm has 30 units, over a dozen pickers, five loaders, and pipe spread across 50 acres and multiple yards. The multigenerational family company was established in 1956. “They came to us,” explained Blair Hunter, when asked who initiated the deal. Hunter and Rod Benning run the show. Each has been with the firm for decades, with

Rod, 46, starting 27 years ago and Blair, 52, starting 32 years ago. “We swamped, we drove, we loaded,” Rod said, describing how they worked their way up the ladder. The two each married into the family, with Rod’s wife being Dana Christenson, and Blair being married to Tammy Christenson. Tammy, Dana and their brother Lorne Christenson came into the ownership of the company in 2000 with the passing of their father, Walter. Dana still does bookwork with the ﬁrm, while Tammy has stepped back. The change in ownership has also allowed Lorne to step back as well. Hunter and Benning put out feelers last year to see if there was any

Blair Hunter, left, and Rod Benning will be staying on to run L & C Trucking for the foreseeable future.

interest in purchasing the firm. Realizing such buyouts will often have a several-year disengagement period where the company is run by existing management, they felt the time was right to start looking at it now, as opposed to five years from now. “What do you do, wait five years, and then put it up? Benning said. “It’s usually par for the course to stick around,” Hunter added. “We threw it out there to see if there was any interest,” Benning said. “They approached us in October.” Hunter explained it was an opportunity to diversify into Saskatchewan, which is apparently the talk of Toronto. ɸ Page C17

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Housing stress limits employees, and growth ɺ Page C15 With business up as the local oilpatch is on a tear, it’s a good time to sell. But then again, business wasn’t down in 2009, the most recent slow year, either. “We had a good year in ’09. That’s what peaked their interest,” Benning explained. “If we can find employees, these fellas want to grow,” he added. The housing situation will be further affected by the flooding of Estevan’s two campgrounds this year, they noted. In the first five years since 2000, the company has grown from eight trucks and two loaders to their current size. They now have a staff of 57. Hunter and Benning say it could be more, if they could find more people. Seventy sounds like a nice number, according to Benning. “We’re growing as fast as we can with the employees we have. We’re very, very short of employees. We’ve had employee issues for a long time. We just can’t get enough. Even if you came this way, it’s tough to find accommodation.” The pair lament how the housing situation has been slow to keep up with demand. Benning said, “The calls we get about employment are ridiculous (in number), but where are you going to go?” Benning added, “There’s only a certain group of people who will put in those hours anymore.” While the family business has been sold,

they then turned around an invested back into the equity firm, securing board directorships. It is not, however, a merger. “We feel the investment we make back into the company will grow, as the oilfield grows,” Benning said. This will allow them to reap some of the benefits of that growth, he added. The pair will stay on for a minimum of three years, and quite possibly

C17

Pipe, be it tubing or casing, and its handling is the bulk of L &C Trucking’s business.

much longer. However, they do plan on stepping back a bit. Key to that is a plan to hire a general manager to take care of some of the day-to-day things. They relish the idea of not having to take late night phone calls or come in so early the morning. “There will be some upper management changes,” Hunter said. However, there is no impact expected for the customers.

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C18

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Troy Lamb, right, lead mentor of driver training, speaks to data van operator Danny Long.

Canyon holds grand opening Estevan –The new shop is up, the equipment is arriving, and the

hiring is underway for Canyon Technical Services new Estevan loca-

tion. The company held a grand opening on March 30, as well as a job fair.

Todd Thue, chief operating oﬃcer of Canyon, said, “We’re here to

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expand our business, to expand into the Estevan area.” While they had provided limited services to the area before, they will now have a permanent base. “We felt, to really go after the business, we had to put up a permanent facility and show a commitment to the community,” he said. The facility is around $4 million not counting their trucks or inventory. “It’s a big opportunity. We thought long and hard. It was well thought out before we ventured into it.” Initially hydraulic fracturing will be offered out of Estevan, with coiled tubing expected after spring breakup. Later in the year, Canyon plans to offer acidizing and nitrogen services. “We’re going to continue to expand all service lines to be the equivalent of other operating bases,” Thue said, adding they are looking at expanding in remedial cementing. Currently there is one frac crew, and the plan is to expand that to two later in the year. “It depends on staffing, it really does. There’s no secret,” he said. “There’s an undersupply of frac equipment at the moment, I’d say in the industry, but also here.”

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“We’re expanding exponentially. We’re adding more frac crews as we speak. We’re currently running eight,” Thue said. “Here, it’s usually longer pumper times, with lower rates. In northwest Alberta and northeast B.C., it’s shorter pump times, and higher rates.” The average job, he said, is one to two days, equating to 18 to 36 hours.” “We’ll be running 24 hour crews on our coil, but on our frac crews, no.” Greater intensity of fracs per well is driving growth, he said. “The way the wells have evolved, and frac intensity increased, it’s put demand on all the services.” Asked if there is an upper limit on zones in a well, Thue responded, “They would like to drill the longest interval, and conduct as many fracs as possible.” The trend, he said, is towards systems that allow more zones. Sliding sleeve technology is one answer. “On our side, all the wells need to be fracked. We can optimize on ﬂuids, sand. No matter what conﬁguration goes in the hole, they still need to frac it.” Limiting factors for growth are the access to material, particularly frac sand and water. Concluding, Thue said, “The key is, we’ve made a big commitment to be in Estevan. We want to stay in Estevan. We’re here for the long run.”

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

C19

A group of Newfoundlanders, near the dark truck, can be seen outside Canyon’s new Estevan home. The crew has worked together for several years.

Three Star Trucking Ltd. Todd Thue, left, is chief operating ofÀcer of Canyon Technical Services. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Working together job after job Part of the new crew being established for Canyon’s new Estevan location are several men from the south coast of Newfoundland who have worked together for eight years. Bert, Jamie and Chris (they declined to give their last names) have all been working in Western Canada for several years. “I’ve been here since I was 18, back and forth,” said Jamie. He had

worked with two other similar service providers before coming to Canyon. Asked why he came out west, Jamie rubs his ﬁngers together, indicating money. One of the trio’s wife is out west, the others are back home in Newfoundland. They work on rotations and then ﬂy home. Bert said, “It’s hard on you. You’ve got to support them.”

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C20

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Road bans are busiest time of year

Look deep, on the right hand side, and you’ll Ànd Cory Bell working on a frac truck at Custom Truck Sales. We’re not sure how he got in there, or out, but he was pulling the front differential on this truck.

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By Brian Zinchuk Estevan – “Busy, really busy,” is how Curtis McWilliams, service manager of Custom Truck Sales, Estevan, describes spring breakup. “Road bans are always busy. It’s the busiest time of year, by far. we get to where we’re booking two weeks out. More usually, it’s three to four days.” Custom Truck Sales is the Kenworth dealer in Saskatchewan, with locations in Regina, Saskatoon, Estevan and Winnipeg. The Estevan location is focused primarily on parts and service. While they do have a salesman who comes in out of Regina, there’s no real showroom. If you’re coming to the Estevan location, it’s likely to get some work done. “In our service department, I have five techs,” McWilliams said. As for a service writer, “I’m it. I’m everybody.” Indeed, you’ll see him don his coveralls between phone calls and hook up a laptop to a truck’s computer for a diagnostic. They also have five people in parts. “It’s primarily safety inspections and all the repairs that go with it,” McWilliams said. “When safeties run out, they run out, but you can schedule it with some degree of planning.” Trailers are safetied on a yearly basis, while trucks need inspections every six months. “We do service rigs, too. They’re a one-year safety,” he said. “We’ll work on anything, basically. If my guys can work on it, we’ll do ’er. You’ve got to be diversified.” The service rigs see a lot of brake work, electrical, steering and driveline issues. “It’s the same as anything. It’s basically nothing more than a truck, really. It’s just the road side we deal with. “We usually get all the support units with it, the trailers, trucks, all the units with it. Depending on how badly beat up it is, each unit takes a couple hours to go through just to get the inspection.” ɸ Page C21

Highway 47 South MLS#386447 3,200 sq. ft. shop on a concrete slab foundation. Metal clad exterior. One metal pedestrian door and two overhead doors (one is 12’ x 12’ with manual opener and the second is 12’ x 14’ with electric opener).

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Hidden Valley RV Resort is nestled along the Souris River & located just East of Estevan. An unequalled opportunity to “get away from it all” in a setting of unparalleled natural beauty and charm. The campground offers a total of 86 existing sites, all fully serviced with an additional 114 sites to be developed. Situated on 20.30 acres with plenty of mature trees & numerous newly planted trees in the expansion side.

Highway 47 South MLS#386451 This package consists of 3 shops; the 1st one is 1,560 sq. ft. built in 1983. Wood frame construction with metal clad siding. T-bar ceiling with acoustic tiles, electric baseboard heat and two wall mounted air conditioning units. The 2nd building was built in 1968; 2,400 sq. ft. wood frame construction with metal clad siding & 2 overhead doors. The 3rd building is new construction built in 2006; 7,200 sq. ft. with four overhead doors, metal clad siding, 24’ ceiling height and in floor radiant heat.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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Journeyman heavy duty mechanic Joshua Delgado works on a PTO shaft at Custom Truck Sales, Estevan.

x Complete overhauls x New equipment upgrades x Refurbishments of individual

components There’s potential for growth, but manpower is the limiting factor, according to Custom Truck Sales service manager Curtis McWilliams.

Biggest hurdle is ¿nding people ɺ Page C20 “We’ve done more transmissions, more differentials than usual because people are getting stuck,” McWilliams said. All the deep snow and mud has been hard on drivelines. They’ve been putting in long hours. “Our product speaks for itself,” McWilliams said. “The biggest hurdle is ﬁnding more people. It’s hard to attract peo-

ple,” McWilliams said. Cost of living and lack of amenities are the two biggest factors, he’s found. The company has had to tackle the lack of housing in the community head-on. “We’ve actually purchased two mobile homes to house employees – something to start with.” McWilliams set up in Estevan 10 years ago when the Custom Trucks location opened.

“I was the only tech. I started hiring.” Asked about the possibility of expansion during these busy times, McWilliams said, “First we have to ﬁnd manpower. Yes, the potential is here to grow, but until we can attract more employees, we’re as big as we can be right now.”

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Saskatchewan housing summit Regina - The ongoing eﬀort to eﬀectively meet the growing demand for housing in Saskatchewan is taking center stage at the Building Communities, Building Saskatchewan Housing and Development Summit being held April 19-21, 2011 in Saskatoon. The summit is presented by Saskatchewan Housing Corporation in partnership with the Canadian Home Builders' Association - Saskatchewan. Housing, or the lack thereof, has been a major issue in the oilpatch, particularly in southeast Saskatchewan. The lack of housing has meant there is nowhere for new workers to live, and thus many businesses have reported their growth has been stymied. “Maintaining the Saskatchewan Advantage

demands leadership in all areas, including housing,” Social Services Minister and Minister responsible for Saskatchewan Housing Corporation June Draude said. “This summit will allow government and housing industry stakeholders to take an indepth, co-operative approach to solving our province's housing challenges, and to continue to develop a housing system that enables all citizens to build a better future.” “It is incumbent upon all communities, industry partners, builders, developers, municipalities, and the province to work together to build the necessary capacity to satisfy the emerging demand for housing throughout Saskatchewan,” Canadian Home Builders' Association - Saskatchewan CEO Alan Thom-

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arat said. “It is Saskatchewan's time we can build our future and chart a strong future for all communities. We are all in this together, building communities and building Saskatchewan.” The Building Saskatchewan, Building Communities Housing and Development Summit will bring together approximately 200 housing stakeholders from across the province to identify steps they can take to support a full range of housing solutions now and into the future. Participants will explore local and regional housing needs, investment opportunities and partnerships, discuss housing and development planning stages, infrastructure, purpose-built rentals, the regulatory environment and examples of creative housing. The summit is the culmination of extensive consultations over the last two months, including 12 meetings with 350 stakeholders in locations around the province. The results of these consultations, and the results of discussions at the summit, will form the basis of a comprehensive housing strategy that will support a growing population and ensure that housing is accessible to everyone. As part of the recently released Saskatchewan Advantage Housing Plan, more than $252 million is being invested in Saskatchewan to add more than 4,600 new homeownership and rental housing units across the province over the next ﬁve years. This is in addition to the 861 new government-funded rental units completed over the last three years and the more than 1,100 additional government-assisted homes that are currently under development around the province. The overall aim of the comprehensive housing strategy will be to complement these investments with creative solutions that make life more affordable for Saskatchewan citizens and help the Saskatchewan housing market match the demands of a growing population and a growing economy.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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Going through everything David Mack, operations manager of Kelly Lafrentz Trucking shows some tubing off a picker that needs to be replaced. Spring time is when all the equipment gets looked over and repaired.

Estevan – It’s spring time, which means it’s time to go through everything and ensure it’s ready for the summer. Dave Mack, operations manager for Kelly Lafrentz Trucking Ltd. and Border Tank Rentals, said, “Gen sets are a high priority this time of year because they go out much of the rest of the year.” “It’s the engine, electrical system, generator and light towers. We check bulbs, plug-in cords and cables.” They’re also adding to the ﬂeet. “We’re in the process of building a couple of big camp gen sets,” he said. On the truck side, he said, “In general, throughout the year you have your safety inspections. That’s an ongoing thing that covers the main features. This time of year allows for repairs and modiﬁcations. You don’t have time for that during the rest of the year. “For us, the priority is pickers. That’s number one.” A knuckle-boom picker can be seen under repair. Mack pointed to the piping that needed replacement. “We go through all the rigging, boom inspection, bolts. If there are any components that need replacing or rebuilding, this is the time to do it, because we have the time to do it.” One crane had its engineering inpection due. They now have a full-time mechanic, but safety inspections are done at a third party. Lafrentz operates three pickers and eight heavy trucks. There are over 500 pieces of rental equipment on the Border Tanks side.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Going hard during breakup

Jerrod Tedford is the service manager of Frontier Peterbuilt in Estevan

Estevan – Come spring breakup, it’s all hands on deck and long hours for the service staff at Frontier Peterbilt in Estevan. The hectic season begins from the middle to the end of March, according to service manager Jerrod Tedford. It depends when road bans go on. “I watch the weather quite closely. Once we get above zero all night, the guys will shut down earlier,” he said. In the back of the yard, several service rigs can be found in a row. “Generally, when they bring in the rigs, they bring in all the support units,” Tedford said. “They don’t bring in one unit at a time, they bring in five to eight, times several companies.” Safety inspections are a major driver of the spring breakup business. Tedford explained that pull tractors need to be safetied every six months, while everything else is typically done once a year. “Most companies time it for breakup, so they can bring it all in,” he said. “You never know what you’re going to get. It could be a couple of lights to two days of work.” Some examples he cited included full brake jobs or engine leaks. There is also a lot of suspension work, clutches, transmissions and the like. “We usually stock four or five transmissions at all times, and as for clutches, I don’t even know how many.” It’s a lot, he explained. “We see everything from coil units to frac units, iron trucks, crude haulers, vac trucks, water truck anything you see in the day-to-day operation on a rig, we’ll see here.” Asked if they farm out work to the Regina Frontier shop, Tedford responded that majority is done in house. “With the oilfield the way it is, it’s all localized. We’re more central, too.” The Estevan facility opened just three years ago, but already they could use more space. “We have a 14bay shop, and we can fit 18 units in it, as well as outside,” Tedford said. “it’s a mix of everything, depending on day-to-day. Generally there’s a service rig, a couple of crude hauling units, etc.” ɸ Page C25

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C25

Housing limits tech hiring ɺ Page C24 At least 80 per cent of their service business is oil-industry related, Tedford said. “We also do a lot of deck engine work, for frac crews, gen sets, etc.” As for turnaround, most major failures can be addressed in a few days, depending on the availability of parts and how bad the failure is. “The last, at least a year, we’ve been getting busier every day,” Tedford said. Part of that is from more businesses coming to the area. “We rely heavily on the parts department, and other support staﬀ, local and distant suppliers, as well as local companies. We use hydraulic shops, welders, machinists, whoever can do it the fastest. Downtime is number one killer in this industry. If these units aren’t running, they’re not feeding their families.” Tedford, himself, was a technician in the back before becoming service manager. “I was born and raised in the Estevan area. It’s been really interesting to see the growth from a small town to something much busier.” “There’s extreme opportunity in the Estevan area, not just in the truck industry, but in everything.” Tedford has 12 people in his department, including himself, a service writer, a warranty administrator and nine technicians. It’s a “good mix,” he said, with people ranging from their early 20s to their 60s. Those nine techs are fairly long term, and very dedicated, he said. “They make the place run, I just steer.” “I go from working on a truck, to service writing, to answering a phone.”

They are short four people he said in early April. “I’ve tentatively hired two techs, but they won’t join us until after breakup,” he said. One is former military. Even when he finds people, keeping them becomes a function of the housing crisis in the region. “I’ve hired six qualified techs and they haven’t been able to find suitable accommodations.” Citing one example, he said, “They have a wife, kids, pets. They want to move here for a better quality of life, not worse.” “Wife, kid, cat, where do you put them? He’s able to start tomorrow,” Tedford said. “Last summer we had two techs in campers out back. They couldn’t find suitable housing. They hooked up their campers and left.” The company has used an apartment to put people up, but Tedford noted, “We’re looking for long-term employees. I refuse to rotate techs in and out. A lot of out business is knowing the industry. I’m not looking for a Band-Aid solution.”

Several service rigs and their support units could be found behind the Frontier Peterbilt shop in Estevan.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Retire? At 69? Naaaa... Estevan – Jeﬀ Jopp had kind of retired. After a few months, he had enough of that. The long-time mechanic can be found doing safety inspections on trucks and trailers at Frontier Peterbilt, Estevan. Jopp started at Frontier shortly after its Estevan shop opened three years ago. “I was in Arizona, thinking of retiring,” he recalled. A mechanic for 50 years, and a heavy-duty mechanic for 48 years, Jopp is

now 69 years old. “I was in supervision and management for about two-thirds of that,” he said. “Then I went overseas for a few years to work with CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency) in Ghana. It was a water well project. I was training mechanics.” “I’m originally from southern Manitoba, close to Carmen. I married a girl from Estevan. When we were thinking of slowing down and possibly retiring, we decided to move here.” They bought a home in Bienfait in 2007, and more recently put in a new ready to move home in Estevan. “I want something to do. I spent three months renovating the house. I got tired of that. “I’m doing SGI safeties. That’s my main job, safeties and engine work. I’ve got 22 safeties to do in six days.” He was crawling under two trailers behind a tractor, three of those safeties, when Pipeline News spoke to him. Another unit was brand new, and being prepped to go out. “Those are the ones I like,” he said.

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

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Schlumberger session Estevan – Schlumberger put on an abbreviated one-day session for engineers and operators on hydraulic fracturing and completions at its Estevan location on April 8. The course was offered as a further supplement to the training courses that the Schlumberger Artificial Lift group has been sponsoring over the last 12 months. “It’s a frac and completions course,” said Dave Zhau, production engineer and acting base manager for Schlumberger in Estevan. “We took a two-day fracturing course we would put on in Calgary and condensed it to half a day, and put on a half-day completions course in the afternoon.” The technical course utilizes internal and external information that is used for Schlumberger engineers, field technicians and production clients.” The eight attendees had a mix of jobs, but most were production engineers. They represented prominent oil producers in southeast Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Schlumberger also recently did an exclusive course for another operator in the region, Zhau said. “We had the lecturers fly in from Calgary,” he said. “The main objective of this training course is to ensure that everyone is on the same page in terms of knowledge basis.” Doug Pipchuk spoke on fracking, while Gary Gill discussed the completions aspect. Pipchuk spoke about the new Schlumberger HiWAY* hydraulic fracturing technique. Their presentation went from the basics of well completions to what’s new and exciting with hydraulic fracturing. Zhau pointed out that the recent merger between Schlumberger and Smith International has allowed the company to better support the conventional completions market. More recently, the company had focused on specialized completions.

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Gary Gill spoke about REDA pumps and completions to a number of engineers who came for a day-long session at Schlumberger’s Estevan location. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Estevan adds 2,000 jobs Estevan – At the Estevan & District Board of Tourism, Trade & Commerce annual general meeting on March 23, community development manager Michel Cyrenne touched on the vibrance of the Energy City, which has been seeing an oil-fueled boom.

While keynote speaker Robert Watson, CEO of SaskPower, spoke about the power utility’s future, Cyrenne spoke of current development. Here is an excerpt of Cyrenne’s speech: “One of our priorities last year was to have a concise economic de-

velopment plan. With that in place, along with the recent formation of the economic development subcommittee, the City, RM and TTC will work together to ensure that these priorities, business development and growth, infrastructure, housing and labour,

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Michel Cyrenne, community development manager of the Estevan & District Board of Tourism, Trade & Commerce, said the community had added more than one-third of all the new jobs in Saskatchewan last year.

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“Both the City and RM are attracting record levels of development and while some of the major issues, such as housing, are still evident, much is being done. Estevan, last year led the province in housing starts per capita at nearly twice the rate of the next highest city and nearly three times the provincial rate. “Estevan has seen a greater level of multifamily residential development than any other city has seen total residential development and with $2.2 billion in major projects either proposed, planned or underway, we can be sure that growth and development will continue to occur. “Our local business community plays a vital role in Estevan’s growth. Last year, our business community added more than 2,000 jobs, accounting for more than one third of all new jobs in Saskatchewan. To ensure the business community’s input is provided throughout this growth and expansion, we’ve initiated the Business Retention & Expansion Project. “We want to develop this initiative as an ongoing project, rather than just a snapshot of today, that will provide us a continuous learning process of business priorities that we might be able to address or assist with. The process ensures an ongoing communication with the business community that provides vital information and input regarding business needs, issues and priorities.”

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Regional meeting for Desk and Derrick Estevan - The Southeast Saskatchewan Desk and Derrick Club are hosting the annual Region VII meeting in Estevan in May. The meeting will be hosted at the Days Inn on May 12 –14. Final plans are being put into place to make this a fun, exciting Region VII meeting. This is an extra special year due fact they ares celebrating their 25th year as a Club as well this is the first time in the club’s history they have a local Region VII Director. Barb Schaefer (Weath-

C29

Introducing...... The New Multideck

erford Wellhead) stepped up this year as the Region VII Director, the club is very proud of Barb for taking on this responsibility and performing the task professionally and with amazing enthusiasm. The club is expecting to register approximately 70 – 75 participants from Denver, Calgary, Edmonton, Grand Prairie that will take part in tours, workshops, formal meetings and of course events that will promote fun and camaraderie.

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C30

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

Software application for tracking surface leases Medicine Hat, Alta. – For landowners, keeping track of numerous surface leases for wells and pipelines can become a complicated matter. That complication compounds itself when companies keep ﬂipping names, ownership, and more and more properties are developed. Two licensed land agents from Medicine Hat have developed a software solution to help put all those pumpjacks in a row, as it were. Casey Zeigler, and his partner, Kris Bower launched WellTraxx in January 2010. It’s designed as a solution for managing oil and gas leases on agricultural land. Zeigler said, “It’s a web-based software program designed for landowners, farmers, and ranchers, to better manage oil and gas development on their land.” The program keeps track of surface lease agreements and pipeline right-of-way agreements, creating a database of agreements. The basis of the agreements is keyed in, including highlights of the contract. “We’ll set it up for the landowner,” he said. In Alberta, surface rights agreements are up for review every ﬁve years, and the landowner is supposed to get a letter in the mail, Zeigler

said. In Saskatchewan, that cycle is every three years. However, there is no obligation for the oil and gas company to send a notice. “There are lots of wells in Saskatchewan which have never had a review because people didn’t know to ask, or know when to ask,” he said. While a review doesn’t necessarily mean rates will go up, there is a chance to see if rates are current. What WellTraxx does not do, Ziegler stressed, was get involved in negotiation. “We’re not in it to create conﬂict. We don’t negotiate, and we don’t share rates with anybody.” The system is not integrated with the Petroleum Registry of Alberta, which Saskatchewan is in the process of joining, that deals, in part, with

subsurface leases. They’ve found that landowners often want old issues resolved with existing leases before agreeing to new development, Zeigler said. A second function of the application is in archiving pipeline agreements on land, and where they are located. Automatic alerts can be set to notify when pipeline loss of crop damages are to be paid. They are looking at storing pdf ’s of actual contracts, but aren’t there yet, according to Zeigler. “We do work with landowners to organize their hard ﬁles as well, as an additional service and at an hourly cost,” he said. So far they’ve had over 100 clients, mostly in Alberta, he said. “The potential is greatest in Saskatchewan and Manitoba due to no legislated review.”

This sample screenshot shows how WellTrax keeps tabs on rental renewals and when rent is due. Graphic submitted

Kevin Anderson/Darwin Krall

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306.634.7600

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Weyburn, SK Testing and Production Services

306.842.2699

Secure Drilling Services

306.842.2699

24 hours a day • 8 kw - 350 kw • Pumpjacks • Well Site Shacks • Service Rigs • Construction Sites • Drilling Rigs

Phone Toby: 577-1907

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

From design to final pressure test, we’ll be there every step of the way! ®

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Star® anhydride cured epoxy line pipe has the highest long term hydrostatic strength of any FRP product on the market. Call to discuss installer training (API / ASME B31.3), new taper tools, and general design or installation questions. Calgary Sales

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Tel: (403) 861-9801 Allen Routh

Field Service & QC Tel: (403) 861 9801 Daryl Bambridge

Edmonton 14505—130 Ave Tel: (866) 243-2298 Jared MacKinnon Tony White

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Estevan 294 Kensington Tel: (306) 636 2002 Tim Beatty Lorne Schlemko

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PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

All Aspects of Electrical Construction • Oilfield, Industrial, Commercial, Residential, Agricultural • Fully Equipped Field Units • GPS Equipped for Faster Response Time • Knucklepickers • Excavation Equipment • Generators – 50-200 KW • Directional Boring • Trenchers, Skidsteers, Mini Hoes

Ph: 306.453.2021 Fax: 306.453.2022 Cell: 306.577.7880

Email: southeastelectric1@sasktel.net Box 1238 Carlyle, SK S0C 0R0

PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

D-Section May 2011

Adventures of a cement and tool man

By Brian Zinchuk Estevan – The drilling rig he first worked on didn’t look like much – more like a water well rig – spindly and small. But it got Vern Becker into the oil drilling business in the earliest days. “I started out working for Burggren Exploration and Drilling on a Failing 1500 rig in Alberta. They only drilled 4-3/4 inch holes. I worked with that for four years, then I worked for Dowell Canada for 30 years.” Becker is retired now, and has been since he sold his business in 1994. He shoots a mean game of pool, and his wife, Elma, makes a lovely pound cake. Nowadays, Becker is going through his extensive files of memorabilia, and putting together his memoirs. Leduc “My brother–in-law and I went to Leduc in 1951. When we were coming into Leduc, west of Leduc looked like a battlefield,” he recalled. That was the site of

Vern Becker, right, appeared on the front page of Dowell Xtra, a monthly newsletter, in October 1962. The truck was the Àrst diesel cementer in Estevan.

Atlantic No. 3, an enormous well blowout that had occurred the year before. “They had to turn on the lights in Leduc,” he said. The hotel in town had blown up and burned a month before. Becker was born in 1927, making him too young to ﬁght in the Second World War. “My brother when to work in the coal mines during the war. I was working on a mink ranch at Weyburn. My dad farmed south of Weyburn, at Maxim, where I was born and raised. “Everyone headed for Leduc. It was like leaving for the gold ﬁelds. When we got there, we couldn’t get a job.”

Vern Becker on a cement job for Dowell in October 1963.

They were told to be at the gate of General Petroleum Drilling at 7 a.m. every day. If someone didn’t show up, they had a job. They could have gone to work building wooden derricks at Hanna. Instead, they hired on with Burggren Exploration Drilling. They put that puny rig through its paces, with Becker saying they tried to go too deep for what the rig was capable of. They would hand dig sumps the size of a card table. “We were getting $200 a month. That was big pay, plus any expense,” Becker said. “We moved 32 times in four years,” Becker said. Elma joined him at Leduc later. “We got married Nov. 18, 1950, and move to Leduc in mid-January.” His wife was in the hospital with their ﬁrst born when workers told him “We just dropped a 24inch pipe wrench down the hole,” Becker recounted. He responded, “Just keep turning. If we’re lucky, it might go into the side of the hole. We logged that hole, and it never bothered us.” ɸ Page D2

Vern Becker is pretty good with that cue these days.

PIPELINE NEWS May 2011

36” wrench and a snipe: not fun

14th l nia n e i B

Saskatchewan

Oil & Gas Show Exhibition Grounds Weyburn, SK

June 1&2 2011

John Kmita 2009 S.E. Oilman of the Year John Kmita Ltd.

ɺ Page D1 He found out it was a baby girl from a note left oon his door. He went out and bought two boxes of ccigars. “I was in Devon when they were still grading tthe streets,” he said. Southeast Sask In 1955, Becker began his work for Dowell. It was all service work. “I hired on in Weyburn. We w moved to Weyburn The early rigs Vern from Lestock. When we Becker worked on moved to Estevan, there were a fraction of the was not trailer court. size of current rigs The mayor showed you today. where to park,” Becker said. He parked behind Bud Dean’s place, and used their basement for their water supply. In the spring of Chairman: 1956, the boom started, Ron Carson, Carson and Becker got booted Energy Services Ltd. from the back lane. He Vice Chairman: Dennis Krainyk, would move to Oxbow. Apache Canada Ltd. “I had 28 rigs working Honourary east of Oxbow, from Chairman: Oxbow to the borHon. Bill Boyd, Minister of Industry der. Holy smoke, I was and Resources busy. “I was known as the

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2011 South East Saskatchewan Oilman of the Year

Show Highlights:

• Major industry seminars • Awards ceremony • 24-hour security • Keynote industry luncheon speaker • Golf tournament and barbecue • Excellent show facilities with improved outdoor space and storage • First class show management • Social events to broaden exposure • Complimentary loading and unloading • Latest products and services on display • Industry seminars • Free passes for attendees

Dale Fox 2009 Please download form S.E. Oilman off our website: of the Year www.oilshow.ca Formerly of TS&M Supply Email or send to address below