Pipeline News January 2012

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PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

January 2012

Canada Post Publication No. 40069240

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Volume 4 Issue 8

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

News

Notes

Southern Paci¿c performs Senlac turnaround At STP-Senlac, near Unity, Saskatchewan, Southern Pacific Resource Corp.’s heavy oil production averaged 3,769 bbls per day for the first quarter of fiscal 2012. In September, a two-week scheduled maintenance turnaround was completed in nine days, coming back online six days ahead of schedule. The bi-annual turnaround identified no major integrity issues. As part of its development strategy, Southern Pacific is now drilling Phase J, a set of three SAGD well pairs, which is scheduled for first production in January 2012. The onstream date has been delayed about one month from earlier projections due to a delay in the drilling rig arriving on site. Once completed, these three SAGD well pairs will be layered into the facility as capacity becomes available from the declines of existing wells.

Premier addresses American leaders Premier Brad Wall addressed the American Legislative Exchange Council’s States and National Policy Summit in Phoenix, Arizona. The summit took place Nov. 28-30. Between 800 and 900 top political leaders from all 50 states attended the three-day Summit which focused on freemarket solutions to creating jobs, improving education and stimulating the American economy. “There are some current challenges in the Canada-United States relationship,” Wall said. “We’ve been excluded from bidding on contracts under The American Jobs Act, Canadians who travel across the border by rail or air now have to pay a fee and there is the political battle delaying the future of the Keystone XL Pipeline project, a project crucial to western Canada’s oil sector. “Americans need to hear that various forms of protectionism will hurt prospects for economic recovery in North America. Rather we must work together - as we have historically - to the mutual benefit of our citizens,” Wall said. Briefs courtesy Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin

Cheryl Knight, executive director and CEO of the Petroleum Human Resources Council of Canada, says attracting and retaining workers will be one of the leading challenges in 2012 for oil and gas companies in Western Canada. Photo submitted

Estevan among hard-torecruit locations in oilpatch By Geoff Lee Pipeline News Calgary – Saskatchewan’s oil and gas industry may need to borrow a lesson from agriculture and grow its own crop of skilled workers to feed the growing demand for labour. Approximately 1,400 workers are needed by the industry in Saskatchewan in 2012, according to the latest 2011 Short-Term HR Trends Report by the Petroleum Human Resources Council of Canada issued in December. Finding those workers will be a struggle with steady industry growth, uncertainty over the global economy and commodity prices driving workforce challenges and shaping human resource trends in 2012. A total of 40 industry companies took part in the survey, representing more than 32,000 oil and gas workers in Canada. The PHRC concluded that attracting and retaining workers in hard-to-recruit locations, and labour and skills shortages will continue to be the top two workforce challenges in 2012, with no easy solution for Saskatchewan. “Saskatchewan is constrained. The oil prices are

attractive which is increasing investments in Saskatchewan oil industry,” said Cheryl Knight, executive director and CEO of PHRC in Calgary. “It’s an industry that’s small, but we expect to see over 10 per growth in 2012 from 2009 numbers. “The 2009 employment in oil and gas was about 11,000 in Saskatchewan, and we expect another 1,400 people will be needed in 2012. “It’s a very competitive environment because of the potash and mining industry.” Knight said filling all those vacant positions and high demand jobs for trades people and experienced service and drilling rigs crews will be harder in 2012 with Alberta in the same boat. “Traditionally, the Alberta workforce supplied work activity in Saskatchewan as well, but with activity in Alberta being so strong, companies just aren’t able to move their crews around as freely,” said Knight. “It’s really important that Saskatchewan is able to grow a skilled workforce. That comes to targeted training for aboriginals in Saskatchewan and ensuring post secondary institutions offer the training that is needed in the province.” ɸ Page A6

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Two studies conclude CO2 not leaking on farm News

Notes

Rig count high Saskatchewan’s drilling rig count stayed right around 94 rigs for the first half of December, the point after which activity typically slows down for the Christmas break. That’s according to numbers listed by RigLocator.ca. With 132 rigs in the Saskatchewan fleet on Dec. 14, and 94 of them working, the utilization rate was 71 per cent. The other western provinces also had high utilization rates, with Manitoba at 85 per cent, British Columbia at 68 per cent, and Alberta at 67 percent.

Sundance drills Muskowekwan land Al Bjornson (left), owner of Border City Drilling in Estevan, worked with IPAC-CO2’s investigation to drill the monitoring and test wells on the Kerr property. Photo by Jon Gillies/IPAC-CO2

By Brian Zinchuk Pipeline News Goodwater, Regina, Calgary – Two studies into the possibility of a CO2 leak from the Cenovus Weyburn miscible CO2 flood have come back with similar conclusions: there is no evidence of a leak. Cameron and Jane Kerr, whose home quarter is 3.2 kilometres northwest of the hamlet of Goodwater, and in the middle of the Cenovus Weyburn unit, believed carbon dioxide injected underground for the purposes of enhanced oil recovery was coming up to the surface at their farm. The Kerrs said they first noticed changes that occurred on their property in 2004, one year after carbon dioxide injection began near their farm. Frustrated with the response from the Ministry of Energy and Resources as well as Encana, Cenovus’ forerunner, they held a press conference in Regina on Jan. 11, 2011. As a result, both Cenovus, and IPAC-CO2 launched studies into whether or not this is the case. As the Weyburn-Midale carbon dioxide storage project is one of largest in the world and often touted as a model to follow in reducing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the implications of CO2 leaking from its geologic storage could be felt worldwide. As an independent party, the International Performance Assessement Center for Geologic Storage of CO2 is an environmental, non-government organization (ENGO) which was created to fill a gap in the understanding and assessment of risk and per-

formance in the Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) chain. CO2 has been injected at the Weyburn Unit since 2000. When CO2 contacts oil at high pressure, it makes the oil thinner and causes it to swell, making it easier for the oil to flow to producing wells. The CO2 that is pumped out with the oil is then recycled. Cenovus was first out of the gate, announcing its study results on Nov. 29. IPAC-CO2 followed on Dec. 12. Cenovus study Third-party research has confirmed that the carbon dioxide used for enhanced oil recovery at its Weyburn operation is not linked to CO2 concentrations in the soil at a nearby property, Cenvous said. “These results provide complete assurance to landowners and the public that the CO2 we’re injecting about 1.5 kilometres below the ground is staying put and that our Weyburn operation is safe,” said Brad Small, Cenovus vice-president, oil & natural gas, Saskatchewan. Cenovus, which operates the Weyburn Unit on behalf of 23 other partners, made a commitment to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources to evaluate whether CO2 in the soil and other reported issues at a nearby property were a result of its operations. Several third-party specialists were contracted to conduct a site assessment. ɸ Page A7

Sundance Energy Corporation has begun completion/evaluation operations on its Ochapowace 6-5-18-3W2 test well. The formations/zones being completed for production testing are the Bakken, Souris Valley/ Lodgepole, Watrous and Second White Specks. The Bakken formation has been perforated and is currently waiting to be fractured and completed. Conventional completion operations will then be conducted on the Souris River/Lodgepole and the Watrous formations. Finally, the Second White Specks formation will be perforated, fractured and completed. Sundance also has completed drilling its Lestock 5-3-27-15W2 test well on its Muskowekwan First Nations permit. The well has been cased to a total depth of 840 metres subsurface. Upon review of log and core information, potential oil and gas pay zones have been indicated in the Second White Specks, Souris Valley/Lodgepole and the Nisku/ Birdbear formations. Further evaluation of the core and log information is underway in order to develop completion and fracturing programs that are expected to begin as soon as services are available. Sundance is encouraged by the initial results of the first two test wells drilled on its southeastern Saskatchewan project areas, Jeff Standen, president and chief executive officer, said in a news release. “Given that we have seen indications of both oil and gas from the well logs and the evaluations from the cores we have cut, we are excited about the potential to develop significant commercial production from our combined approximately 70,000 acres in these areas, which we own 100 per cent and operate.” Briefs courtesy Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin

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EDITORIAL

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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 Cindy Beaulieu Candace Wheeler Kristen O’Handley Deanna Tarnes Teresa Hrywkiw SOUTHWEST • Swift Current 1.306.773.8260 Doug Evjen Stacey Powell NORTHWEST • Lloydminster Randi Mast 1.780.875.6685 MANITOBA • Virden - Dianne Hanson 1.204.748.3931 • Estevan - Cindy Beaulieu 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 Where are the American workers? If there’s a rock around, someone has probably looked under it, looking for workers. The demand for oilfield workers is high in Saskatchewan, particularly in the drilling and service industries. Precision Drilling is offering a bounty on buddies who hire on with the company. Flint Energy Services, which now includes Carson Energy Services, is looking for 10,000 to 14,000 people over the next three to five years to fill growth and attrition positions. Newspapers, ours included, are filled with career ads in the most active areas of the oilpatch. Weyburn-based Sunrise Community Futures has been holding workshops on staffing, with good response. Many businesses are looking overseas, for employees ranging from rig hands to restaurant workers. If you go to a fast food restaurant in Estevan, there’s a good bet a Philippino will serve you. A new heavy duty mechanic is as likely to come from Europe as Ontario. One consultant speaking in Estevan earlier this fall was looking to France for skilled workers. Yet there’s one place very few, if any, oilpatch businesses are actively recruiting from. It’s a place where English language proficiency shouldn’t be a problem. The potential workers don’t need a plane ticket to get here, because for many it would be easier to hook up a U-Haul trailer to the pickup. It’s a place where, in November 2011, there were 20.1 million people on the unemployment rolls, over a quarter of whom had been for over 27 weeks, according to their Department of Labor. It’s the United States. Remember them? Our NAFTA partner? They’ve been hurting for years, but it seems pretty much nobody

in these parts is looking to help them out by offering them a job. Detroit might be withering on the vine with unemployment at 19.2 per cent in October according to the Detroit Free Press, but no one’s going there on recruitment trips. Instead, companies are willing to hire consultants to track down someone overseas, praying they end up with someone who can actually speak English. They’re also praying the consultant doesn’t sell them a bill of goods, too. Asking why it seems no one is actively seeking Americans, and the answer comes back in hushed tones. They kind of look around a bit before levelling with you, as if it’s a dirty secret. Whether it’s true or not, many people feel the American worker is lazy. They’d rather take a chance on someone from the other side of the planet, someone who they feel “wants it more,” than seek out Americans. There was a time in North America when an imported car was seen as second rate. Now conversely, it’s the American worker that is seen as second-rate. Some have noted that if American workers were so interested in working in the oilfield, North Dakota’s booming oilpatch wouldn’t be short of people. It’s our perception that they think we all live in igloos that is much of the deterrent to seeking American workers. “They wouldn’t want to come up here. It’s too cold,” has been an observation often repeated. Yet with 20.1 million people unemployed in America, 1.3 million more than Canada’s entire workforce, surely someone south of the border would be interested working in Saskatchewan. Maybe our recruiters just need to start looking.

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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Opinion Kyoto’s done. No one was serious about it anyhow From the top of the pile Brian Zinchuk

“At an end your rule is, and not short enough it was!” So says Yoda in one of the climatic battles of the final Star Wars movie, Episode III, Revenge of the Sith. He could have easily said the same thing about the Kyoto accord, which Canada formally pulled out of Dec. 13. Not short enough, Kyoto’s rule was. The Globe and Mail quoted Environment Minister Peter Kent, who said staying in Kyoto would force Canada to spend about $14-billion buying carbon credits abroad because the country is so far behind in meeting its targets. He blamed the previous Liberal government, saying it agreed to targets without a plan to achieve them. That would be not too far off what we spend on national defence every year. It’s substantially more than the entire provincial budget of Saskatchewan.

It’s really rich of the Liberals who signed Kyoto, but did essentially squat to bring it into reality, to moan about Canada pulling out now. The most concrete thing to come out of Kyoto was the $1.2 billion carbon capture project at SaskPower’s Boundary Dam Power Station. Alberta’s CO2 efforts have been largely floundering, despite $2 billion in provincial money earmarked for them. But Boundary Dam Unit 3 makes an awful lot more sense if the captured CO2 is used for enhanced oil recovery. If it’s used simply to pump CO2 into saline aquifers and hopefully to cash in on carbon credits, then it will be a billion dollar boondoggle. Personally, despite talking to a lot of very smart people in recent years about CO2, global warming and the like, I have yet to hear someone explain to me how the two-miles thick ice that covered much of Canada for tens of thousands of years disappeared without coal-fired plants and SUVs heating up the planet. When the United States failed to get on board, Kyoto was doomed. With China not needing to do anything to conform to Kyoto, it was doomed again. Like the aforementioned Liberals, it’s pretty rich for China and India to be blasting Canada’s Kyoto decision as “preposterous” and “irresponsible,” as the Globe and Mail reported Jan. 13. Maybe they should open another coal-fired power plant. Oh wait, give

it a couple weeks, and they probably will. Prime Minister Harper said, “What this government does not favour, what this government has never favoured and has been very clear on, is we do not agree with a protocol that only controls a little bit of global emissions, not enough to actually make any difference but enough to transfer Canadian jobs overseas. “We will never agree to that.” So far, green measures have been essentially a flop. Look at the disaster Ontario’s green energy plan has created. Everyone should build wind turbines and solar farms. Oh wait, we won’t let you hook it up to the grid. Too bad, so sad. If Canada had truly adopted Kyoto in the early Chretien years, would be we better off? Would we have exported our jobs overseas, like Harper intonates? Would we have made one lick of difference when China’s population and energy needs kept growing as its population grew way beyond a billion people? Not bloody likely. When China and India start making cuts, real ones, ones that shut down factories and hamper industries, ones that cause some real pain, then we’ll talk. Until that happens, leave Canada alone. We have oilsands to mine. Brian Zinchuk is editor of Pipeline News. He can be reached at brian.zinchuk@sasktel.net

Help wanted a sign of the times

The oil and gas industry is facing significant human resources challenges with an aging workforce, rapid technology changes and increased competition for skilled labour. The Petroleum Human Resources Council of Canada warns significant labour shortages will hit the industry in 2012, driven by the hiring needs of the services, exploration, production and oilsands sectors. In PHRC’s labour trends scenario of a high energy price market and surging activity levels over the next years, the industry will need to hire 130,000 workers by 2020. Even if commodity prices and activity levels were low, PHRC says 39,000 workers are needed by 2020 just to replace workers lost to retirements. The former situation of high energy prices is more likely in the short term for Western Canada with Royal Bank of Canada predicting gross domestic product grow rates of 4.1 per cent for Saskatchewan, 3.9 for Alberta in 2012. Another recent report by BMO Capital Markets Economics forecasts real GDP growth of 2.9 per cent for Saskatchewan and 2.7 per cent for Alberta. Alberta is also forecasted to post the strongest employment growth and the second lowest unemployment rate nationally in 2012. Producers in Alberta spent $24 billion in 2011, an 18 per cent increase over 2010, with more oilsands capital investment planned in 2012. New developments in unconventional natural

Lee Side of Lloyd Geoff Lee

gas and oil, and in-situ oilsands extraction have increased demand for certain occupations and created a need for new skills and knowledge. Employment could be the leading issue though in 2012 as the industry is faced with the challenges of high turnover rates in some occupations, retaining and recruiting workers, higher labour costs, and competition for top talent from multi sectors of the economy. High demand jobs include experienced engineers, completions and production professionals and steam and power engineers along with maintenance trades and production accountants. Unconventional oil and natural gas developments have also generated a need for software technologists and developers, shale gas geologists and fracking operators in a growing list of help wanted positions. In Saskatchewan, there are usually more than 3,000 jobs posted daily on the Saskjobs.ca government website with approximately 10 per cent of

the help wanted positions posted by oil and gas companies. Filling those positions along with similar ones in Alberta will be a key priority for industry, governments, educators and trades to sustain economic growth and production rates in 2012. Ongoing solutions range from attracting workers from other sectors such as forestry and poorly represented groups in the labour force such as First Nations, to hiring more skilled immigrant workers and developing better recruiting and retention strategies. A sense of urgency has suddenly arrived with awareness the first Baby Boomers reached retirement age in 2011 with a flood of more retirees to follow in the coming years. The prosperity of Western Canada in contrast to high unemployment elsewhere in Canada also suggests there is an opportunity for industry to work with federal and provincial governments to help educate and train eligible Canadians and provide relocation assistance for new hires. There is also an urgent need for industry and different levels of governments to provide affordable and available housing in order for oil and gas companies to attract and retain new recruits from other parts of the country. Maintaining the status quo will not work as the new year gets underway. In 2012, help wanted postings will be a sign of the times for companies seeking new workers and a plea from the industry for solutions to the human resources challenges that lie ahead.

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

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

No sure-¿re solution to labour shortage ɺ Page A2 The looming labour crisis in Western Canada is compounded by the realization that more than 30 per cent of the industry’s core

workforce is expected to retire by 2020, as noted by PHRC’s long term labour market report issued last March. “While the industry is growing and we’ve got chronic labour short-

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think the specific way of stepping up our game is to target under-utilized workers. “Our industry hasn’t hired the number of skilled immigrants that are available to them in the labour market as they ought to. “In some occupations, there are opportunities to hire more women than we do. There are some traditional hiring practices that we need to understand aren’t sustainable and just ramp up costs,” said Knight. Other factors weighing on employment are the emergence of shale oil and gas, the expected growth of Alberta’s oilsands, technological advancements and infrastructure developments to open up Canada’s oil and gas resources to international markets. Knight said many company representatives that she talks with are very worried by the pending labour crisis that took root during the downturn in 2009 when many workers lost their jobs and didn’t return when the good times did. “They understand they saw this coming in 2009, and potentially didn’t do enough to prepare for it, and they understand we really need to start to get creative and diversify our workforce,” said Knight. “We need to ensure the post-secondary educational institutions understand the skills that are needed. There are a lot of companies that are investing money in post-secondary training to increase the supply of workers to the industry. “It’s a multi-pronged approach. There is no one sure-fire solution for the problem – it’s a variety

of solutions at the company level and industrywide level. “We are seeing more industry acknowledgement that collaborating as a sector is extremely important and is the only way to address some of these issues. “Many of the larger companies have hundreds and thousands of positions open.” Knight said hiring and recruiting are driving up labour costs, but she notes in order to compete first with other sectors, the industry needs to keep wages competitive. “Secondly, we are also competing with ourselves,” she said. “The best way to find an experienced worker is to hire from your competition but that also drives labour costs up.” The PHRC survey indicated there is growing concern to better manage employee turnover and retention as well as compensation and benefits expectations. “Having continuous work is one thing,” said Knight in reference to a retention strategy. “You know the service and drilling sector has difficulty with that because it’s seasonal. “Any way companies can move people around and relocate or re-allocate people so they can be employed all year around would be helpful. “Also paying fairly competitive wages is important, but we are seeing much more attention paid to flexibility in work arrangements and getting people the training they need which enables them to advance,” said Knight. Developing a work culture and an environment that are conducive to retaining people are some of the other human resources trends that continue to evolve in a competitive market. While the number of job vacancies in the industries is expected to be high in 2012, Knight defined the employment environment as a skilled employees’ market. “The industry can only absorb so many green hands,” she said.

“We lost people during the downturn – very often people don’t come back. They may have relocated here for work and went back home or their skills were transferable to another sector. “If you lose people that are experienced, then you can’t just simply hire green hands and expect them to take the place of experienced people. “We are looking to attract them back. We are looking to hire skilled immigrants. We are looking to encourage people to relocate and move to oil and gas from other sectors, and encourage young people to come in the industry.” Knight included Estevan with Fort St. John in British Columbia and Grande Prairie Alberta as a hard- to-recruit location for the oil and gas jobs. “Hard-to-recruit is a term that we use that generally defines a location that’s remote where access to service may be limited or where prices may be higher – either cost of living or housing and those sorts of things,” she said. “I have heard specific survey comments about Estevan in terms of prices and housing availability. That’s why it’s a hard- to-recruit location.” Knight said it is easy to talk about hiring workers from central Canada where unemployment is high to fill the gap, but she said even people from urban centres in Western Canada don’t want to move to places like Lloydminster, Grande Prairie or Fort. St. John. “To balance employment in the country, we need a mobile workforce and that comes down to people making tough choices to leave extended families or sell a home or fly-in and fly-out. “There is a variety of work arrangements, but regardless, it requires people to make tough choices. All we can do is make people aware of what’s available and where.” PHRC will issue their next 10 year labour market information report in March.

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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Cenovus and IPAC-C02 both say no evidence of CO2 coming up ɺ Page A3 “Our findings indicate that there is absolutely no way CO2 in the soil at the property in question originated from Cenovus’s operation in Weyburn,” said Dr. Court Sandau, who holds a PhD in analytical chemistry and is founder of ChemistryMatters. Saundau was the lead scientist for the site assessment. “Using isotope dating, we can differentiate between ‘young’ and ‘old’ carbon samples. The CO2 that Cenovus injects comes from coal deposits, which were formed millions of years ago. Our findings assert that the CO2 present at the property was formed recently and is attributed to natural soil respiration processes.” In particular carbon-14 dating was used. Recent carbon dioxide contains carbon-14, while “old” carbon dioxide’ carbon-14 is depleted after millions of years of half-life degradation. Cenovus said its findings of the comprehensive assessment confirm there is no presence of CO2 from Cenovus’s Weyburn operation in either the soil or wetlands of the property; there are no detectable hydrocarbons present in the surface water at the property; and there are no integrity issues with the Cenovus-operated wells and infrastructure located on the property. “We always take landowner concerns about our operations seriously and we felt it was important to commission this additional study to address this concern,” said Small. “We are proud of the work that our Weyburn team has done and their efforts to ensure we are a good neighbour. We look forward to being a member of that community for many years to come.” The scope of the assessment included the evaluation of gas concentrations in the soil at both the property and a control site; characterization of the CO2 that Cenovus injects and the CO2 found in the soil; surface and groundwater testing, and integrity inspection of the oilfield infrastructure in the area. Soil testing was done below the B-horizon and above ground water. Real-time field analysis took place, and selected samples were sent in for lab analysis. Due to the wet spring and summer, testing was delayed for several months. “We did not detect any hydrocarbons when conducting surface water sampling," said Sandau. “Cyanobacteria and phytoplankton were detected, which are common to relatively stagnant water bodies in southern Saskatchewan and are known to cause a ‘sheen’ on water surfaces, similar to what was initially reported on the water body.” Cenovus also added a frog habitat and wetland evaluation after northern leopard frogs were found in the study area.

Dr. Brad Wolaver Ànishes collecting a soil sample. Photo by Jon Gillies/IPAC-CO2

“Frogs are sensitive to low levels of contamination. Their presence in the area is a strong indicator that a healthy ecosystem is present," said Sandau. Weyburn is one of Canada’s largest enhanced oil recovery operations and the site of the largest geological greenhouse gas (GHG) storage project in the world. There are currently more than 17 million tonnes of CO2 stored at the Weyburn site. Scientists from 30 countries working under the International Energy Agency GHG Weyburn-Midale CO2 Monitoring & Storage research project, an international program led by the Petroleum Technology Research Centre, have been studying the project for a decade. Their past research indicates that the CO2 is remaining underground. The CO2 produced at Beulah, North Dakota, that goes into the Weyburn project is 96 per cent pure, with a substantial portion of the remaining gas hydrogen sulphide, or H2S. As such, the entire CO2

injection process is considered sour. When asked if they tested for H2S, Cenovus officials said yes. Soil gas samples had a few hints of sulphur compounds from natural gas, they noted, adding that carbon-14 testing was a more effective tool, however, in this testing. “If there was a migration of H2S, we would be able to detect it,” Sandau said. Small would not say how much the study cost, other than, “To us, that’s really not the issue. We have an obligation as the operator to incur the costs.” A copy of the Cenovus report was forwarded to the Kerrs, he noted. “The scientific study as definitely determined the CO2 at the landowners’ property is not what comes from our operation,” Small concluded. “It is our obligation to ensure our operations are safe, and we take that very seriously. IPAC-CO2 report Next up was IPAC-CO2. Its 180-page report concluded carbon dioxide is not leaking from depth on the farm owned by Cameron and Jane Kerr. “The CO2 injected by Cenovus Energy as part of its enhanced oil recovery project is not the source of CO2 found on the Kerr farm,” said Dr. Carmen Dybwad, chief executive officer of the environmental non-government organization. “The levels of natural CO2 we found were normal.” Under the direction of Dr. Jerry Sherk, the chief operating officer of IPAC-CO2, a team of international experts was assembled to conduct an independent investigation of the Kerr farm. Dr. Katherine Romanak of the Gulf Coast Carbon Center, Bureau of Economic Geology, University of Texas at Austin, U.S.A., led the investigation into soil gases. ɸ Page A8

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Oily sheen found to be bacteria Éş Page A7 She concluded that the ďŹ xed gas relationships and carbon isotope geochemistry of soil gas at the Kerr site “strongly and consistently show that CO2 on the Kerr property is biological in origin and not the result of leaks associated with the CO2 storage reservoir.â€? “The evidence clearly showed that CO2 is from natural biologic respiration modiďŹ ed by mixing with atmosphere and dissolution of CO2 into recharging groundwater,â€? Romanak concluded. Dr. Stuart GilďŹ llan, Scottish Carbon Capture and Storage, School of Geosciences, from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland tested the Kerr site for noble gases, carbon stable isotopes and hydrogen carbonate (HCO3). “We ďŹ nd no evidence in any of the noble gas data derived within the ground waters surrounding the Kerr quarter that there is a detectible presence of noble gases derived from the deep injected water or CO2 or the uids produced from the Weyburn ďŹ eld,â€? GilďŹ llan concluded. “The absence of crustal derived noble gases derived from depth means that there is no evidence of the migration of CO2 from the Weyburn oil ďŹ eld into the groundwater on the Kerr quarter or surrounding area.â€? Dr. Brad D. Wolaver and Dr. Changbing Yang, also from the University of Texas at Austin, and Dr. Janis Dale, Department of Geology, University of Regina, conducted the hydrogeological analysis of the Kerr site. Their research concluded (a) that shallow groundwater quality at the site meets Saskatchewan’s Drinking Water Quality Standards and Objectives for the analytes tested, and (b) that the ďŹ lm on gravel pits and in the Kerr well was not a petroleum prod-

uct but instead was oating colonies of both ironreducing and iron-oxidizing bacteria. “Our goal was to reduce uncertainty regarding the sources of carbon dioxide detected on the property owned by Mr. and Mrs. Kerr,â€? said IPAC-CO2’s Dybwad. “Our results are conclusive and provide scientiďŹ c evidence that any such incidents cannot be attributed to leakage of injected CO2 because there was no leak at the Kerr property.â€? Asked if IPAC-CO2 tested for H2S, Dybwad told Pipeline News, “We were strictly interested in terms of CO2,â€? and although they went through all the required H2S safety training, they did not test for it. Part of the reason for that was to use protocols that could be applied for soil gases and noble gases anywhere in the world, including places where H2S would not be in the equation. Regarding some of the concerns the Kerrs had raised, such as dead animals and â€œďŹ zzy water,â€? Dybwad noted the dead goat died of natural causes and belonged to a neighbour and was disposed of. There were no blooms of â€œďŹ zzy waterâ€? when they were present, she said. It was an important project for the organization, its ďŹ rst opportunity to establish its credibility in the ďŹ eld. “We’ve got the credentials to go anywhere in the world,â€? Dybwad said. “If there’s an allegation of a leak, we can go and investigate.â€? To underscore that, she said, “We self-ďŹ nanced this because we thought it was worth it. At the end of the day, it cost us about $250,000.â€? On Dec. 12, IPAC-CO2 held a town hall meeting in Weyburn to discuss the results of their study. Response While the Kerrs were at the IPAC-CO2 press

conference in Regina, they did not immediately respond to the reports. Reached briey by phone, their lawyer, Barry Robinson of Ecojustice told Pipeline News, “We need some time to work through it.â€? He noted there were questions on sample size and hydrocarbons indicated. Ecojustice characterizes itself as a national charitable organization dedicated to defending Canadians' right to a healthy environment, stating on their web page, “We are an independent organization and 100 per cent of our funding is provided by our generous donors.â€? In a press release, Robinson said, “Without a full scale of investigation, it has been impossible until now to rule out CO2 contamination as the cause of the Kerrs’ concerns. “It took widespread media scrutiny to trigger these investigations, but the fact they took place at all is a win for all Canadians. Government and industry must be open and transparent in addressing the concerns of citizens aected by their actions.â€? Robinson indicated that Ecojustice and the Kerrs will review the IPAC-CO2 results in detail before providing further comment. “The reality is that Cenovus Energy and the Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources failed to properly investigate the Kerrs’ concerns during the last six years,â€? Robinson said. “The Kerrs appreciate IPAC-CO2’s eorts, although there are still many unanswered questions about what caused the disturbances observed on their land.â€? On the Web: Full reports can be found at www.cenovus.com and www.ipac-co2.com. Ecojustice can be found at www.ecojustice.ca.

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A9

CNRL chair helps Lakeland’s heavy oil operations technician plans Lloydminster – An early Christmas gift of $200,000 to Lakeland College by oilman Allan Markin, chairman of Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., will bring tidings of good cheer to heavy oil operations technician (HOOT) students in 2012. The charity funds allow the college to fast track its curriculum development to expand its one year HOOT certificate program into a two year diploma at the Lloydminster campus starting in the fall. “For students, it means that they will be prepared to write the fourth-class and third-class power engineering certificate exams right here at Lakeland College’s Lloydminster campus,” said Phil Allen, vice-president of Advancement, in a news release. “It also means that they will not have to relocate or disrupt their lives to advance their career ambitions or salary potential.” The HOOT program focuses on training students for careers in the safe and effective operation and maintenance of industrial equipment such as boilers, turbines and internal combustion engines. Allen says Markin’s donation has put the college one year ahead of schedule in its plans to transition the HOOT program from a one-year to a two-year program. Students who are currently in the program will be able to write their third-class power engineering exam in spring of 2013. Forty students will be accepted into each of the program’s first and second years starting in the fall. Those new students will have the option of graduating with a certificate after year one if they choose.

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In recognition of Markin’s generosity and level of contribution, the Lakeland College board of governors renamed the main floor conference room at the Lloydminster campus the Allan Markin Conference Room. Markin has been chair of CNRL since 1989 and is well known for his support of post secondary education as well as several service and non-profit organizations. He also owns a stake in the Calgary Flames. CNRL previously made a corporate donation of $200,000 to Lakeland in 2006 for the construction of the Bill Kondro Wing at the Lloydminster camp. The student study lounge at the wing is named in CNRL’s honour to recognize its significant level of support. The donation by Markin complements a $25,680 donation in October by the ADM canola processing facility in Lloydminster to fund the development of six new second-class power engineering courses which will be delivered online beginning this month.

Allan Markin, chairman of CNRL, recently donated $200,000 to Lakeland College to fund the curriculum for its new two year heavy oil operations technician program starting in the fall in Lloydminster. Photo submitted

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Denmax HR strategy tied to bottom line By Geoff Lee Wainwright, Alta. – They say those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. That’s not the case for Denmax Energy Services

Jim McKinnon, HR manager at Denmax Energy in Wainwright, is the braintrust behind a multipronged HR strategy to recruit and retain workers with individualized career and skill development programs and opportunities for new and experienced hires.

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near Wainwright that, as a result of the last downturn, learned a lesson to diversify its services and provide a one-stop solution for customers in the upstream oil and gas sector. Pipeline and facility construction, road and lease construction, heavy hauling and tank moving and civil demolition and construction, are now part of the growing Denmax mix of services. The diversification process began in 2010 to allow the company to leverage and retain its personnel and equipment throughout its divisions in order to survive and grow in the aftermath of the downturn. “It was one of the lessons we learned coming out of that,” said HR manager Jim McKinnon who happens to have a degree in history. “Now, it has motivations from a revenue standpoint that we can offer a one-stop shop. “From an HR standpoint, it allows us to retain skilled people so we not constantly retraining new employees. “What we’ve seen is a lot of growth, particularly in our road and lease construction. It’s something

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that we’ve put a lot of effort into this year. We are seeing that rewarded. “One of the nice things about our road and lease division is that we are sending operators out with heavy equipment and utilization is better because we can use those same operators in other aspects of our company. “In diversifying our service offerings, if we have a slow portion or a project that comes to completion, we can transition those people easier into another segment of our business,” McKinnon said. The key part of the Denmax plan to diversify and expand is an evolving HR strategy that seeks to attract and retain employees to sustain its rapid growth. “In 2011, we experienced a 50 per cent fulltime equivalent increase within our company, and we will be at 50 per cent growth in 2012 in our projections,” said McKinnon. “One of the challenges we have, the same as most other companies in Alberta, is that manpower is hard to find. ɸ Page A11

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A11

Making sure the employees aren’t just a number ɺ Page A10 “We can buy equipment, tools and vehicles, but if we don’t have the quality individuals to put inside them, we can’t offer the quality product to our clients that we have put our name on. “We have put a lot of effort into trying to provide programs to reward people that are here and to recruit people from the outside,” he said. Denmax has openings for every position including pipefitters, truck foremen, labourers, operators and welders who value the chance to move up and develop new skills. “One of the things we found is that we wanted to make sure that we are providing our people with opportunities for growth,” said McKinnon. “In order to do that, we had to define what their objectives were and look at the tools we have to give them in order to help them get to where they wanted to be. “We look at it as individual career planning where we bring individuals in and talk with them, and see what their objectives are career-wise, and put in place the education and tools to help them get there. “We think that has gone a long way by word of mouth by our employees to other people. We have a fairly steady flow of individuals sending their resumes in and contacting us because of referrals from our existing employee base.” The company also introduced a learning portal for employees on its website called Denmax University that is a gateway to online courses for skills improvement and professional development. Some of the topic modules are Microsoft Office training, strategic planning, project management and problem solving. “We also have job specific modules in safety and quality control, so we are providing them with the resources that allow them to succeed and providing them what they need to move forward and look at other opportunities in our company,” said McKinnon. “We want our employees to know at all times that we appreciate them and that they are individuals.” Denmax also provides training and safety training opportunities for employees new to the industry along with a mentorship program to team a company rookie with an experienced employee. New, more-seasoned employees are also given the opportunity to start a new career path in any one of their oil and gas related divisions including the pipeline facility construction and tank hauling divisions that showed strong growth in 2011. “Our civil construction is also making grounds now as aggressively as our road and lease construction,” said McKinnon. “For the last two years, for example, we’ve done the landfill cells in Camrose. “We’ve done a lot of civil projects on base (CFB Wainwright) so that element of our offering is growing. We are becoming adept, especially in landfills and waste management areas.” As a recruitment incentive, Denmax provides

A Denmax equipment operator cuts down a hill during new lease construction. Photo submitted

full benefits for all management and operational employees after their probation period along with a competitive salary. “We survey our competitors on a consistent basis to make sure our wage levels are consistent in the industry,” said McKinnon who noted wages alone are not enough to retain employees. “It’s a very risky business if all you are doing is offering people more money because that never ends. It’s a cycle. “We provide people with a salary that’s competitive in the industry. We reward them based on their ability to meet certain targets within our company. “At the same time, we provide them with the tools necessary to achieve those benefits and to move forward in their careers.” McKinnon said the company has an excellent

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Boyd expects a strong and Ă€ood-free year in 2012 „ By Geo Lee In with the new and out with the old. In our annual year-end review and outlook for the coming year, Pipeline News interviewed Energy and Resources Minister Bill Boyd on Dec. 9. Boyd says 2011 will go in the history books as the year that spring ooding in southeast Saskatchewan curtailed oil operations for weeks. Looking ahead to 2012, Boyd foresees the build-up of strong drilling from the fourth quarter of 2011 continuing on pace into 2012. He also expects a much drier spring in 2012 – but only time will tell if he is right! PN: What was the energy highlight for you in 2011? Boyd: I’d say the highlight, although it was not a positive thing, was the ooding that we experienced in the southeast part of the province in a very wet spring. It was certainly noteworthy and resulted in a lot of curtailment in the activity of the oilďŹ eld in the southeast part of our province. That was certainly a bit of a challenge. As the summer went along, we started to see the land drying up a little bit and activity starting up, and now (December), we are into pretty strong activity once again. PN: Did the ooding also impact revenues from oil and gas activity? Boyd: Absolutely it did. We saw land sale numbers being aected. We saw drilling numbers to a degree being aected and certainly royalties being aected as well. PN: What is the eect of the Keystone XL pipeline delay on jobs in the province? Boyd: Well, it’s not a positive one, that’s for sure. We were optimistic that we would see that pipeline moving forward sooner. I still think it will be at some point in the future. However, we’ve got a lot of oil and gas activity – oil in particular, and because of that, we want to have access to good solid markets to the south of us. That pipeline is certainly needed. PN: What are your thoughts on the lower land sales in 2011 ($248.8 mil-

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lion versus $463 million in 2010)? Boyd: I think it’s a combination of a few things. Certainly, the spring ooding in the southeast of the province deďŹ nitely aected that. I think we are also seeing concern in the industry in the economy – in Europe – Greece and Italy and other places, and the eect that they’re having on markets around the world. It think there’s a combination of a lot of things that are at play. Clearly, oil companies have invested signiďŹ cantly in land sales before, and so, as a result of delays with ooding, they haven’t had the opportunity to explore those properties. I think we will start to see a recovery in that respect, but it’s a little bit slower than we were hoping. PN: What does strong drilling activity in the fourth quarter of 2011 tell you about the industry heading into 2012? Boyd: Well, I think it’s a very healthy industry, one that has the resources and capital to be able to invest. They are certainly doing that in Saskatchewan. Drilling activity is strong and we anticipate that going forward as well. PN: What is your reaction to projected GDP of more than ďŹ ve per cent in 2012 by the Conference Board of Canada? Boyd: We are very happy about that. The GDP growth is going to be strong – projected to be the strongest in Canada. I think it points to a business friendly province that people are looking at in a far dierent light than they have in the past. They are seeing Saskatchewan as a good place to do business and making record investments here. ɸ Page A13

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

A13

Little natural gas activity expected ɺ Page A12 PN: Where do you see the industry headed in 2012? Boyd: I think we will see more of the same. I think you will see continued investment in Saskatchewan through the land sale process and through properties that oil companies have acquired in the past. I think we will see continued strength in terms of drilling. There are more and more horizontal wells being drilled all of the time which are expensive wells to drill, but have higher recovery rates which are very good for our economy. We will see more people being employed in the industry and continued growth in our communities that are close by the oil industry. PN: Will housing and employment continue to be leading issues in 2012? Boyd: Yes, I think so. That is a challenge. We need more and more people working in the industry. It’s a quickly growing industry. As a result of that, they need somewhere to live and there’s going to be pressure in those areas. The system responds in time. You will see more apartments being constructed and you’ll see more homes being built. These are positive things for our economy. It’s always a bit of a challenge when you have an employment issue or you have housing concerns. It’s much better than seeing the industry not doing well. PN: Is your Energy and Resources Ministry experiencing hiring shortages? Boyd: Certainly geologists and engineers are in hot demand, so that’s a bit of a challenge. I think that’s across the board in all industries here in our province now. PN: Do you see any prospects for gas in 2012? Boyd: I think we are going to see continued low prices for gas – not a lot of drilling activity. It’s an industry that’s pretty challenged right now. PN: Will you be contemplating any royalty changes in oil that were discussed for potash during the fall election? Boyd: No, we are not making any changes in the royalty structures. We committed to that in the election campaign in the area of potash or oil. We feel that our royalty levels are the appropriate level. I think it’s a good return for the people of Saskatchewan and provides for opportunity for companies to make some money and further reinvest and create employment for our people here. PN: Do you see the Battlefords as a potentially emerging oil play? Boyd: Yes, we do. I think that is an area that

The lowlight of 2011 for Energy and Resources Minister Bill Boyd was the extensive spring Áooding in southeast Saskatchewan that curtailed many oil operations for weeks with several states of emergency declared throughout the Estevan-Weyburn area. File photo

could be pretty hot in activity in the future. We are seeing some pretty good results coming out of that area particularly, and we are optimistic that we will see continued strength there. The existing areas are all doing pretty well. I think the southeast Bakken area will continue to be a very strong area. On the west side, there is going to be lots of activity in the Viking formation and in the Lower Shaunavon as well. The traditional areas, I think, are going to lead the way. PN: Do you see more solar developments or power deals with First Nations in 2012? Boyd: Perhaps in the areas of hydro developments and biomass projects. I think solar is still a

little ways off and is very expensive compared with other generation sources. PN: How would summarize prospects for Saskatchewan in 2012? Boyd: I think 2012 is going to be a very good year for our province. I think we see a lot of drilling activity and exploration. The resource sector is driving our economy and I think it’s going to continue to do so. PN: I guess you will be keeping a close eye on Environment Canada (weather) this spring? Boyd: These kinds of events in terms of flooding in 2011 are one in 500 year events, so I think we are probably OK for a while again.

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ILC to recruit more nationalities in 2012 By Geoff Lee

Richard Polinsky, left, operations manager for Royal Well Servicing in Lloydminster welcomes a new Ukrainian Áoor hand at the Saskatoon airport with assistance from Iryna Matsiuk, ILC general manager from Saskatoon and Nadiya Neshcheretna from the Ukrainian Canadian Congress. Photo submitted

and gas development.” Approximately, 20 oil rig Saskatoon – The International La- floorhands from the Ukraine were rebour Centre (ILC) will step up its re- cruited for a Lloydminster company in cruiting of immigrant workers from 2011 and more are on their way. “We are targeting to bring in eastern European countries other than about 50 floorhands and possibly more Ukraine in 2012 for a variety of oilfield jobs and related positions in Western to Alberta and Saskatchewan in 2012. That’s part of our plan,” said CharpenCanada. Since opening an office in Sas- tier. Charpentier says ILC can help rig katoon in May after seven years of recruiting Ukrainian workers in Kiev, operators replace those skilled workers ILC began to broaden its recruiting who didn’t return to the industry after scope to fill the hiring needs of oil and the recession hit in 2008, forcing comgas companies and associated busi- panies to compete for workers. Since 2004, ILC has helped comnesses in transportation and trades. panies in a variety of economic sectors “The main development for us in 2012 is expanding to recruiting from in British Columbia, Alberta, Sasnot only Ukraine, but also other na- katchewan, Manitoba and Ontario hire tionalities, to provide employers with over 1,100 Ukrainian skilled workers. ILC’s focus is to find the right more choice and different levels of experience and different levels of Eng- worker for an employer’s needs. “I think that the big success about lish as well,” said Gareth Charpentier, our work is that we are very much a marketing and sales manager. The first wave of experienced truck labour market kind of business,” said drivers of Polish, Lithuanian, Latvian, Charpentier. “We are not only just looking Slovakian and Irish descent recruited from Ireland for a Saskatchewan- at what’s right for the candidate, but based transportation company arrived what’s right for the employer. Hiring a in Saskatoon in August and Septem- worker is a lot of work and you want to make sure you get the right person. ber. “I think a lot of companies just go The fact that all of the drivers had work experience in Ireland for at least and find workers and just try to push the past three to five years means their the workers through to different comEnglish speaking skills have not been a panies. “We have a much more consultabarrier like it can be when hiring other tive process where we are looking at nationalities. “We are going to be continuing to the labour needs of the company and recruit from Ireland for truck drivers,” trying to find the right worker for that company based on their skills.” said Charpentier. For example, the Saskatchewan “Mainly in 2012, we are focused on recruiting eastern Europeans for a Institute of Applied Sciences and variety of jobs because we found that Technology works with ILC to prewe have the ability to understand their pare benchmark learning and skill levculture and communicate with them els for welders recruited from Kiev. “We can also ask employers what when they arrive. are the most important welding tasks “We have people in our office who speak Ukrainian and Russian, and in that you do in your business and we a lot of places in eastern Europe, they will have these welders in Ukraine tested to see if they have the skills to speak Russian. “We see that there is a really strong be able do these processes,” said Chardemand in transportation, but as well pentier. “The employer is able to choose a we are going to be continuing to target the oil and gas sector because of the welder that they know is going to be fact there is such a demand, especially able to do the work before they arɸ Page A15 in Alberta, where there is a lot more oil rive.”

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A15

Finding the right worker for an employer’s needs ɺ Page A14 ILC recruited about 200 skilled workers for jobs in Saskatchewan in 2011 and approximately 600 to 700 workers and their families since 2004. About 70 per cent of successful recruits and their families come to Canada with the assistance of the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program and receive settlement support from the Ukrainian Canadian Congress. Approximately 30 per cent of successful recruits are hired through the federal government’s Temporary Foreign Worker Program. Charpentier says companies in Western Canada widely apply to recruit immigrant rig floor hands in Ukraine because they are able to show the federal government they can’t fill these entry level positions locally. “We were approached recently by a company that had positions for a rig operator, derrick hands and floor hand positions,” he said. “The fact they are coming from abroad and coming into an entry level position, it’s kind of easier for them to work their way up after they have come. “The guys that we have been bringing in to these positions definitely have the qualifications of a rig operator.” Charpentier says the new floor hands hired by ILC’s client in Lloydminster are exceeding expectations since many of the recruits were educated at the Ivano-Frankivsk National Technical University of Oil and Gas in Ukraine. “A lot of these guys have at least five years of experience before they come over,” he said. “These guys are kind of blowing the local guys out of the water because of the fact they are motivated to make Canada their home,” he said. “They are also motivated to earn money and work overtime, and the employer is very happy with their skills, and says from the beginning you could tell they know what they are doing.” The number of recruiting inquires to ILC has increased since the opening of the Saskatoon office including calls for skilled positions in other sectors such as meat processing, agriculture, health care, construction, hospitality, manufacturing and transportation. “We have been working to recruit a lot of welders, machinists and industrial

painters – just a lot of trades – for workers that are working in industries that are supporting the oil and gas industry and truck drivers as well,” said Charpentier. “It’s not necessarily all oil and gas related, but currently, we are working to recruit truck drivers for a company in Saskatchewan that does liquid and dry bulk transport, and part of that is hauling petroleum and fuel. “We are getting a lot of demand for a lot of trades people.” ILC is also looking to hire another office employee in Saskatoon to allow Charpentier to focus on managing a growing project list that includes promoting ILC’s services to more clients. “December is meeting month and planning for 2012. In the new year, we are planning to go out and knock on doors a lot more,” he said.

Since the opening of the ILC ofÀce in Saskatoon, Iryna Matsiuk, general manager and Gareth Charpentier, marketing and sales manager have been Àelding an increasing number of inquiries for their immigrant worker recruitment services. Photo submitted

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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A17

Recruiter eyes cutthroat job market in 2012 Lloydminster – There is little doubt oilfield employment is a hot button issue when a recruiter such as Your Recruitment & HR Division Inc. that opened in Lloydminster in 2010 is already looking to expand to another city. The days of operating in one location as a three person shop are numbered for Your Recruitment, a business that is growing in pace with the recruitment

Kathy Kennedy, left, and Rachelle Bygrove took a break from their computers to pose for a photo at the busy Your Recruitment & HR Division Inc. ofÀce in Lloydminster.

demands for temporary and permanent professionals from oil and gas companies throughout Western Canada. All those help wanted signs in Lloydminster are no surprise to Your Recruitment that receives new resumes and hiring requisitions on an almost daily basis. “It’s busy here and I suspect it’s going to get really busy,” said Kathy Kennedy, president and CEO. “We thought it was bad in the summer. I think in the spring it’s going to be cutthroat. People are going to want those employees even more than they think they do now. “There is a heavy demand right now for technical skills – engineers and professionals – people with designations in the accounting field. “The professional, technical senior type people are the hardest to find, but we get lots of phone calls for the general labourers, receptionists, administrators – you name it.” Kennedy is assisted by Maureen Tkachuk, recruitment and business development manager, and Rachelle Bygrove, HR administrator, who also have their plates full with administrative hiring and HR consulting requests. “Right now, we have about 36 active files and that’s because I have been turning away stuff. I don’t take on any more than I want to be able to be successful at,” said Kennedy. “If I leave a client hanging, that’s not good for business or your reputation, so I don’t take on any more clients.” Kennedy also works from her home in Canmore, Alta., to connect with the Calgary job market and source the hard-to-find professional engineers and senior executives for clients in a variety of competi-

tive positions and locations. “We do a lot of recruiting for the Fort Nelson area as well as Edmonton, Calgary and Red Deer,” said Kennedy. “We have placements in Swift Current and in Lone Rock and Macklin – all over those areas as well.” Kennedy is well connected in the oil and gas industry in Western Canada. Her experience includes 25 years in HR administration in Lloydminster, serving a variety of business clients in Edmonton, Calgary and Red Deer. In 2003, she launched Kennedy Personnel Solutions Inc. in Lloydminster until January 2010 only to discover her phone in Canmore never stopped ring-

ing in her semi-retirement. “In August 2010, I decided to bite the bullet because I was working just as hard at home trying to refer people, so I opened the office and it’s just been gangbusters,” she said. “When I first opened up again, it was just me, and now we’re at three, and we are looking at expanding in another city.” Kennedy divides her time between Canmore and Lloydminster and stays in touch with her staff and clients with Skype and telephone connections. “The girls and I Skype every day, so we are basically face to face. I try to stay very connected to the Lloydminster area,” said Kennedy. ɸ Page A18

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Housing costs drive up salaries: $18/hour for a receptionist ɺ Page A17 Kennedy’s own work arrangements are in line with new HR employer trends that include offering flexible work schedules and letting people work from home with the proper IT support. Aside from pay, Kennedy said employees are looking for flexibility, quality of supervisors and a positive work environment. When it comes to status locations for professionals, Kennedy said Lloydminster tops Fort Nelson and Fort McMurray but lags behind Edmonton or Calgary. “Calgary is definitely more attractive for the professionals,” she said. “People coming from Lloydminster to Calgary, that’s a nice funnel. “The Calgary back to Lloydminster – there aren’t a lot of people interested in doing that right now, but I still hope that will happen.” She said the key to attracting urgently needed municipal engineers and project engineers to Lloydminster is to sell candidates on the quality of life that is available here. “The commute time is minimal and the companies here are extremely flexible and are willing to do whatever they need to do to keep you,” said Kennedy. “We are finding that flexibility is going to attract employees.” Your Recruitment outsources some of its HR functions to a variety of companies that lack the time or expertise to manage the workload themselves. “We are really trying to focus on the smaller companies for the HR support – the guys who have

20 people in their offices and just need some help a couple of hours a month,” said Kennedy. “We do a little bit more digging than they have time to do on hiring. Our specialty is to network and make sure we know who might be looking to hire, and just ask the right questions at the right time.” Your Recruitment also provides a variety of HR consulting services including conducting employee surveys and team building. Their ombudsman service allows a client and their employees to phone them to seek solutions to every day employment problems. One the recruitment side, the company can manage everything from recruiting advertising and first interviews to employee orientation. “We do a fair of bit of consulting, helping owners to make sure their offer letters are done properly, talking to them about policies and procedures and making sure they have got processes set up so that they are not violating any legislation,” said Kennedy. Kennedy said Your Recruitment has the ability to carefully screen candidates in the selection process. “We have started doing drug testing, physical fitness testing and making sure our candidates are put through computer testing and skill testing, so that when we are taking someone to a client, they are the cream of the crop,” she said, noting their hiring track record is good. “I would say we are probably around the 80 per cent success rate. You are going to have some fall-offs because the market is so tight. “People will be offered another position just after they have been placed for more money, so we have

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little control over that.” Kennedy said companies in Lloydminster are having to pay more today for a shrinking labour pool of qualified professionals and experienced administrative staff. “Housing is tight here and the cost for rental accommodations is extremely high, so that is pushing up the labour market salaries because it is a high cost of living right now,” she said. “In 2003, I could get a receptionist for $12 an hour. Now I can hardly get a receptionist for $18. “I wouldn’t say the benefits side has changed significantly. I would say the gross compensation has changed – lots more perks with extra time off and more flexibility – those are important right now.”

Kathy Kennedy, owner of Your Recruitment & HR Division Inc. in Lloydminster.

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Husky to invest $1 billion in Western Canada

Husky is allocating $1 billion in capital expenditures in 2012 to “reinvigorate and transform” its foundation in Western Canada with continued focus on heavy oil production from thermal projects. Pictured is an aerial view of the Lloydminster upgrader. Photo submitted

Calgary – Husky Energy Inc. has a $4.7 billion gross capital expenditure program for 2012 for its global oil and gas projects. The investment

budget includes $1 billion to “reinvigorate and transform” its foundation in Western Canada while sustaining production levels. Husky will continue

to make progress in its strategy to transition a greater percentage of its heavy oil production to long-life thermal in 2012. The 8,000 barrels of

oil per day Pikes Peak South thermal heavy oil project south of Lloydminster in Saskatchewan is expected to become operational in mid-2012. The 3,000 bopd Paradise Hill thermal project in Saskatchewan is on target for first production in the third quarter of 2012. A substantial oil and liquids-rich natural gas resource play land base has been acquired and drilling is scheduled to take place across its properties in Western Canada in 2012. Husky’s capital expenditure program for 2012 builds on the momentum the company achieved over the past year to increase shortterm production and supports the continued execution of its mid and

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long-term growth initiatives. “This has been a year of significant progress as we achieved a number of milestones in our growth plan, delivered a solid increase in production, strengthened reserves replacement and reported strong financial results,” said Husky CEO Asim Ghosh in a Dec. 1 news release. “Our business strategy is on course and demonstrating its ability to deliver value to shareholders. Our 2012 program will build on that progress as we remain focused on execution.” Approximately 60 per cent of the upstream gross capital expenditure will go toward Husky’s main growth projects including $610 million for the Sunrise oil sands project in Alberta. Sunrise is a joint venture with British oil giant BP PLC. Construction is ramping up at Sunrise towards planned first production in 2014. The first phase of Sunrise will produce 60,000 bopd and is expected to cost $2.5-billion. Just over $1 billion is allocated for Liwan gas project in the Asia Pacific region as fabrication of deepwater and shallow water facilities accelerates. Liwan remains on target for first production in 2013/2014. Husky plans to keep its growth at 3 to 5 per cent every year over the next three years and expects to exit 2011 with a production total of approximately 312,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. The company expects to drill approximately 850 oil and gas

in 2012 throughout its areas of operation, a 15 per cent decrease from 2011. The lower number reflects the greater percentage of horizontal wells in the program, a shift in heavy oil towards thermal and an increase in resource play development. Husky expects to a decrease in the number of conventional wells drilled in 2012 in line with its strategy to transition to a greater percentage of oil and liquids-rich natural gas resource plays in Western Canada. Approximately 90 wells are planned in oil resource plays and 60 in gas resource, including 50 development wells at the Ansell project in Alberta. Consistent with the strategy for heavy oil, the number of cold heavy oil production with sand (CHOPS) wells planned is being reduced to about 250 from 306 in 2011, while the number of horizontal wells is being increased to the range of 150. In addition to the producing Tucker oil sands project in Alberta and the developing Sunrise oil sands project, Husky has approximately 15 properties in its emerging oil sands portfolio. Husky’s total best estimate contingent resource holdings in its emerging oil sands portfolio now stands at 11.4 billion barrels. The resources are classified as contingent as Husky has not sanctioned commercial development nor submitted applications for approvals.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Drill record tops land sale news „ By Geoff Lee Regina – File this under breaking news to ofďŹ cially break in January. Saskatchewan has set another record for drilling horizontal wells in 2011, topping last year’s record of 1,531 wells – with the ďŹ nal year end tally yet to be released. Energy and Resources Minister Bill Boyd revealed that fact in his comments on the modest sale of December Crown petroleum and natural gas rights that bought in $20.8 million in revenue. “Our drilling numbers, especially those for horizontal wells, continue to track well ahead of last year’s pace and the demand for drilling and service rigs remains higher here than in Alberta and British Columbia,â€? said Boyd. “This activity and these recent land acquisitions bode well for an industry that helps drive our economy and which invests more than $4 billion into exploration and development work each year.â€? Total land sale revenue for the 2011 calendar year amounted to $248.8 million, making 2011 the fourth-best on record for land sale revenues. “We’re pleased by the strong interest companies expressed in the parcels on oer in the December sale,â€? Boyd said. “We’ve seen a trend in the latter part of the year of companies concentrating on working the assets they have already acquired. December’s sale included 212 lease parcels that attracted $20.3 million in bonus bids and three petroleum and natural gas exploration licences that sold for $486,000.

The Weyburn-Estevan area received the most bids with sales of $13.2 million. The Lloydminster area was next at $4.1 million, followed by the Kindersley-Kerrobert area at $2 million and the Swift Current region at $1.5 million. The highest price for a single parcel was $905,000. Villanova Oil Corp. acquired this 259-hectare lease parcel east of Estevan. The highest price on a per-hectare basis was $7,878. Midale Petroleums Ltd. bid $255,000 for a 32-hectare lease parcel southeast of Oxbow. An oil shale special exploratory permit block on oer east of Nipawin received a work commitment bid of $2 million from Prairie Land & Investment Services Ltd. The next sale of Crown petroleum and natural gas dispositions will be held on Feb. 6, 2012. Weyburn-Estevan area The total bonus received in the area was $13.2 million, an average of $648 per hectare. This compares to $3.3 million, an average of $489 per hectare at the last sale. The top purchaser of acreage in this area was Villanova Oil Corp, who spent $2.7 million to acquire 13 lease parcels. The top price paid for a single lease in this area was $905,000 by Villanova Energy Corp. for a 259 hectare parcel situated within the Pinto Midale and Frobisher Beds Pools, 30 km east of Estevan. The highest price paid for a single licence in this area was $325,567 by Prairie Land & Investment Services Ltd. for a 905 hectare block oering deeper rights beneath the Tatagwa Midale Beds Pool, 30 km southwest of Weyburn.

Lloydminster area (numbers rounded up) The top purchaser of acreage in this area was Plunkett Resources Ltd., who spent $1.3 million to acquire six lease parcels. The highest op price paid for a single lease in this area was $610,666 by Windfall Resources for a 194 hectare parcel situated partially within the Mervin East Waseca Sand Oil Pool Pool, 15 km southeast of Turtleford. Kindersley-Kerrobert area The total bonus received in the area was $1.9 million, an average of $287 per hectare. This compares to $2.6 million, an average of $215 per hectare at the last sale. The top purchaser of acreage in this area was Prairie Land & Investment Services Ltd., who spent $475,912 to acquire ďŹ ve lease parcels. The top price paid for a single lease in this area was $266,493, paid by Devon NEC Corporation for a 259 hectare parcel situated 2 km north of the Forgan West Viking Sand Oil Pool, 12 km southeast of Elrose. Swift Current area The total bonus received in the area was $1.5 million, an average of $169 per hectare. This compares to $4.3 million, an average of $486 per hectare at the last sale. The top purchaser of acreage in this area was Ranger Land Services Ltd., who spent $406,000 to acquire four lease parcels. The highest price paid for a single lease in this area was $210,458 by Whitecap Resources Inc. for a 259 hectare parcel situated 2 km east of the Verlo Roseray Sand Oil Pool, 27 km north of the Town of Gull Lake.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

A21

West is the best for Q1 hiring Toronto – Employers in Western Canada anticipate the strongest hiring environments in Canada in the first quarter of 2012, according to the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released Dec. 13. The forecast for the region is due in part to the robust hiring forecast reported by employers in the mining industry sector. “The seasonally adjusted data indicates employers expect an upbeat environment for job seekers, reporting a net employment outlook of 16 per cent,” said Byrne Luft, vice-president of operations, staffing services for Manpower Canada. The survey of more than 1,900 Canadian employers reveals that 16 per cent of employers plan to increase their payrolls in the first quarter of 2012, while 10 per cent anticipate cutbacks. Of those surveyed, 71 per cent of employers expect to maintain their current staffing levels and three per cent are unsure of their hiring intentions for the upcoming quarter. “The upcoming quarter’s net employment outlook suggests some gains in employer optimism, particularly in the manufacturing and durables sector,” said Luft. “Although Western Canada anticipates the most favourable hiring climate, employers in all regions and sectors are telling us that they plan to hire at a more cautious pace from January to March compared with the previous quarter. “Despite slight improvement overall, many employers are evidently taking time to evaluate current market conditions and demand for their products and services before committing to additional employees. “It will be interesting to see how employer optimism develops through the rest of the year.” Mining: Employers in the mining sector in Canada anticipate an upbeat first quarter in 2012, reporting a net employment outlook of 16 per cent once seasonal variations are removed from the survey data. This is a nine percentage point decrease from the outlook reported in the previous quarter. However, it is a two percentage point improvement from the outlook reported during the same time last year indicating a positive hiring climate for the first quarter of 2012. ɸ Page A22

Help wanted signs like this one for Weatherford in Lloydminster are popping up like daisies throughout Western Canada. The West could lead all regions of the country in hiring in the Àrst quarter of the year

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Widespread hiring needs in the West ɺ Page A21 Transportation and public utilities: Employers forecast a steady hiring climate, reporting a net employment outlook of 13 per cent for the first quarter of 2012. This quarter’s outlook is a seven percentage point drop from the forecast reported for the previous quarter and also a five percentage point decrease from the outlook reported during the same time last year. Manufacturing/durables: With a net employment outlook of 19 per cent, employers in the manufacturing/durables sector anticipate a respectable hiring climate for job seekers. This outlook has increased from the previous quarter, which reported a net employment outlook of

17 per cent. It is also an improvement from the same time last year when industry employers reported an outlook of 13 per cent. Public administration: In the public administration industry sector, employers anticipate a steady hiring environment for the first quarter of 2012, reporting a seasonally adjusted net employment outlook of 10 per cent. This is a slight drop from the previous quarter when employers reported a seasonally adjusted outlook of 14 per cent. It is also a five percentage point decrease when compared to the same period last year. Construction: Reporting a net employment outlook of 13 per cent, employers in the construction sector anticipate a favourable hiring climate for the upcoming quarter.

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This forecast is an increase from the outlook reported during the previous quarter and is on par with the outlook reported during the same time last year Services: In the services sector, employers anticipate a hopeful hiring climate for the first quarter of 2012, reporting a seasonally adjusted net employment outlook of 12 per cent. This forecast remains the same from the outlook reported in the previous quarter. However, it is also a three percentage point increase from the outlook reported during the same time last year Finance, insurance and real estate: Employers report a net employment outlook of 10 per cent for the first quarter of 2012, indicating a positive hiring climate. This outlook is a slight drop from the forecast of 12 per cent, which was reported for the previous quarter. It is also a four percentage point decrease from the outlook reported during the same time last year. Manufacturing/non-durables: In the manufacturing /non-durables industry sector, employers report a seasonally adjusted net employment outlook of 13 per cent, indicating a positive hiring climate for the first quarter of 2012. This outlook is a slight increase from the previous quarter when employers reported an outlook of 12 per cent. It is also a six percentage point improvement from the outlook reported during the same time last year. Wholesale and retail trade: In the wholesale and retail trade industry sector, employers anticipate an upbeat hiring climate, reporting a net employment outlook of 13 per cent. This quarter’s forecast is an increase from the previous quarter when employers reported an outlook of 11 per cent. It is, however, a two percentage point decrease from the outlook during the same time last year Education: Employers report a seasonally adjusted net employment outlook of five per cent, indicating a modest hiring climate for the upcoming threemonth period. This quarter’s outlook is a slight decrease from the previous quarter when sector employers reported an outlook of seven per cent. It is also a decrease of four percentage points from the seasonally adjusted outlook reported last year during the same time last year.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

A23

Oilsands Quest crippled by failed sale Calgary – Oilsands Quest Inc. could face receivership or bankruptcy if stakeholders fail to approve a court monitored financial restructuring plan with an initial Dec. 21 deadline under creditor protection. That was the situation facing the company at press time after the company acquired creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act on Nov. 29, one day after a deal to sell its Wallace Creek bitumen asset fell through. While under CCAA protection the company is able continue its day-to-day operations. “We made the difficult decision to seek creditor protection because we believe this step to be in the best interest of all our stakeholders,” said Garth Wong, Oilsands Quest chief executive officer in a news release on Nov. 29. “We have been actively seeking options to manage our liquidity and to raise the capital we need to proceed with developing our assets. “To protect those assets and find a solution that will enable them to be developed, we are seeking options to restructure our affairs up to and including the sale of the company.” The move to seek CCAA protection was a must when they were notified by a third party that had signed a letter of intent to purchase the Wallace Creek assets in Alberta that it could no longer meet the terms of the transaction. Oilsands Quest noted the failed deal ended ne-

gotiations on the proposed Wallace Creek sale ended and triggered its board of directors to seek CCAA protection from the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench after considering all available alternatives. If Oilsands Quest fails to file a financial restricting plan or is not granted an extension of CCAA protection by Dec. 21, creditors and others will be allowed to assert their legal rights. The company announced they would issue another press release on or before Dec.21 to update their next move. While under CCAA protection, the board of directors maintains its usual role and management of the company remains responsible for the day to day operations, under the supervision of a courtappointed monitor, Ernst & Young Inc.

Ernst & Young will be responsible for reviewing the company’s ongoing operations, assisting with the development and filing of a plan of arrangement that is established by management, liaising with creditors and other stakeholders and reporting to the court. The board of directors and management will be primarily responsible for determining whether a plan for restructuring the company’s affairs is feasible. The NYSE Amex has halted trading in the common shares of the company and may proceed to delist the company for failure to meet the continued listing requirements of the NYSE as a result of the company seeking CCAA protection. The common shares will remain suspended from trading until a delisting occurs, or until the NYSE permits the resumption of trading.

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Torquay Oil Corp. reported Dec 12 it was producing approximately 520 boepd (97 per cent light oil). At Midale, Saskatchewan, the company has completed the tie-in of its first 100 per cent working interest well targeting the Midale “Marly” and “Vuggy” zones. The well has been averaging approximately 53 (net) bbls of oil per day over the last 10 weeks. Torquay has identified an additional eight development locations on this property. At Alameda, Saskatchewan, Torquay has tied-in the first Midale development well to its 74.9 per cent working interest battery. This Midale producer has averaged 17 bbls of oil per day (net) over the last two weeks. An additional 13 development locations have been identified on this property. Torquay’s first 100 per cent working interest well at Queensdale, Saskatchewan, was drilled into the Alida formation and has averaged 145 (net) boepd over the last 12 weeks. The company is currently testing its second Alida well at Queensdale and expects to have the well tied-in to its battery in approximately seven days. On the exploration side, Torquay remains committed to unlocking the hydrocarbon potential at Lake Alma, Saskatchewan, where the company holds an interest in over 55,000 net acres of land with no expiry issues until March 2016. Management continues to explore various alternatives that will allow the company to economically produce oil from the Bakken and Ratcliffe formations in this area.

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A24

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

U of S catalyst could fuel gas jobs Santa Barbara, CA. – A catalyst developed by the University of Saskatchewan that helps to turn greenhouse gases into gasoline and other fuels could also act a job creator for the natural gas industry. U of S licensed its catalyst to California-based Carbon Sciences in December, 2010 in that company’s continuing quest to make liquid transportation fuels from natural gas and carbon dioxide. Gas to liquid (GTL) technology has the potential to create thousands of long-term jobs in United States according to Byron Elton, CEO of Carbon Sciences. Currently, the U.S. natural gas industry employs over 600,000 workers and that number is expected to grow significantly. Job creation related to natural gas drilling, however, is only a small fraction of the job creation potential, and the true key to long-term job growth is lies in developing GTL technologies.

PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

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“The number one challenge facing the country today is job creation,” said Elton in a news release. “No industry has a better story to tell right now than natural gas exploration and development. While gas resources are generating new jobs by the tens of thousands, GTL operations would increase that number exponentially.” Gas-to-liquids is a technology that makes liquid transportation fuels and other valuable products out of natural gas (methane) instead of crude oil and has the potential of creating thousands of permanent, high-paying jobs. “We believe that the country’s energy policy, or lack thereof, will continue to be a key issue in the job creation debate,” added Elton. “Hopefully, the debate will centre on energy development, particularly on natural gas and GTL technologies. GTL is the best choice for high wage job creation, energy independence and energy security.” Royal Dutch Shell has a working facility in Qatar that has created a virtual city and employs 35,000 workers. Sasol, a South African company, recently announced an agreement with the state of Louisiana for a feasibility study to build a $10 billion GTL plant, creating 5,000 total jobs. The U of S catalyst eliminates a major development hurdle for Carbon Sciences’ dry reforming of methane technology. This technology transforms carbon dioxide and natural gas (methane) – potent greenhouse gases – into synthesis gas or syngas, a basic feedstock for producing gasoline and other fuels. While the company had made some progress in developing a catalyst, it was stymied by problems such as carbon deposits that fouled the catalyst. U of S engineering professor Hui Wang and his team had developed a catalyst – the product of a decade of development – that fit the bill for Carbon Sciences. It offers high conversion rates with no significant carbon build-up, which means the catalyst remains active over long periods of time. The catalyst being developed by Carbon Sciences is comprised of inexpensive and abundant metals. It is anticipated that it will involve low steam usage, making it a less expensive, and a more energy-efficient process. The overall process is expected to be close to CO2-neutral, making it more environmentally friendly than current reforming/GTL technologies.

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BP to use PC pumps in Alaska Lloydminster – Jennifer Julian from Anchorage, Alaska, was excited to be in the company of fellow innovators as the distinguished guest lecturer for the December technical lunch of the Lloydminster Society of Petroleum Engineers. It brought her close to the heavy oil capital of Canada and the chance to draw on new ideas and technology in her job as a well intervention advisor for BP at Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, and her goal to boost the economic recovery of mature oil wells. “Even though I have been in well work for 25 years, every day is exciting and every conversation I have with other people in the petroleum industry I have learned something; I have borrowed something from them; I improve it – we work back and forth together,” she said. “It’s really this process of innovation and my passion for that is one of the main reasons I am here.” Her topic, “Twenty Years of Well Work: Interventions and Innovations at Prudhoe Bay, Alaska” included her plans to adapt PC pump technology developed in Lloydminster for cold heavy oil production with sand (CHOPS). PC pumps will be used by BP for CHOPS production at its smaller Milne Point field (100 wells) near Prudhoe Bay where BP operates 2,000 wells. An insertable PC pump developed by Weatherford in Edmonton is also being looked at by BP to save costly rig workovers when their own ESP pumps (electric submersible pumps) at Milne Point fail. Julian says innovation is the key as BP has already produced 13 billion barrels of oil in the last 30 years from an expected initial recovery of jus t 10 billion barrels, with another couple of billion barrels of oil recoverable.

Jennifer Julian, a well intervention advisor for BP at Prudhoe Bay Alaska, plans to use PC pumps developed in Lloydminster for a couple of applications in Alaska. Julian also addressed SPE chapters in Edmonton, Calgary and Seattle in December. She works from Anchorage.

“Most of that is in well work opportunities and the way that we’ve drilled our wells,” said Julian, who defined well intervention as operations that add or restore the production rate. “Well intervention is 20 per cent of base production.” Prudhoe Bay is the largest oilfield in North America that originally had 25 billion barrels of oil in place with the largest operators being BP, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips Alaska. “We need to figure out what we are going to do after the light oil declines and a big part of that is

the heavy oil,” said Julian, who said Alaska has a lot of heavy oil. “The PC pump is something Alaska is very excited about because they are able to handle high solids and that’s really what they were developed for. “So, for our CHOPS wells, this is really the form of artificial lift that will work for us up there. “The great thing about what you’ve done in Canada is that you have got the costs so low they have become competitive. “What we are doing in Alaska is simply taking the technology you have developed here then putting it in a little bit deeper wells.” Some of keys to successfully implementing new technology according to Julian include having strong economic justification, strong relationships with field personnel and well-designed field trials. With more than 4,000 well interventions a year at Prudhoe Bay, Julian says it is also important to develop vendor partnerships and have an open and investigative mind for solutions with well integrity top of mind. “Just as the rest of the industry has, we have ageing tubular,” said Julian. “We need to find solutions that we can ensure we can maintain the highest degree of integrity. “So, a lot of the innovation we did was around repairing these wells and leaks.” The innovative driver behind leak detection that Julian spoke about is the fact a rig workover can cost about $2 million in Alaska. “It costs a lot of money to pull tubing and replace it,” said Julian. “So if we can identify a leak in a well in the tubing, we can actually run a straddle across it and we can isolate that leak and keep that well on line safely. ɸ Page A26

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Alaskan rig costs $750,000 ɺ Page A25 The innovation process led to using ultrasonic leak detection logs in 2005 to identify small leaks with pinpoint accuracy. “Once we know where the leak is, we can do a tubing caliper survey and determine what the condition of the pipe looks like. “Once we know the tubing is good, we can run a tubing straddle. The main benefit is that they are inexpensive compared to a million dollar rig workover.”

Julian says conventional straddles are about 40 ft. long but BP has deployed these retrievable patches up to 3,500 ft. with jointed spacer pipe deployed with coiled tubing. It’s an attractive non-rig solution for repairing leaks for arctic, offshore and remote locations. Julian says the PC pump is being looked at to save costly rig workovers when their own ESP pumps (electric submersible pumps) at Milne Point fail. An ESP is a pump, motor and electric cable connected to electric

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power at surface. “They have great draw downs, but require a workover rig to replace failed components,” said Julian. “I decided I was going to come up with a non-rig solution. A rig workover to replace an ESP at Milne Point is $750,000.” “The main cause of failure was either pump-related or well conditionrelated.” Some of the solutions developed by a vendor in the area included a thru-tubing conveyed ESPs modified for 7 inch completions that have been successfully deployed to depths of 12,000 ft. Julian wrapped up her talk the same way she began, expressing her enthusiasm for PC pump technology developed in Western Canada. “So why I am excited about Lloydminster?” she asked. “I’m excited about this. There’s a man that many of you know named Jim Young (BP petroleum engineer Milne Point). What he’s trying to do is copy what you guys have done in Canada. “We’ve got a lot of heavy oil and cold oil up here. In fact it’s really the future of Alaska that depends on us producing.” “So out of Milne Point he’s actually drilled four CHOPS wells. They recently put them on line. “He came down to Canada to see what you were doing in Lloydminster

and he stole your idea for a co-rod PC pump which is the first time we have ever seen anything like that ever. “Most people don’t ever know what a sucker rod is. He actually deployed those.” Julian said Young’s contact at Weatherford sent her information in September about the insertable PC pump that fits her need for a non rig solution to keep Milne Point going. “You can insert these after the fact – you don’t have to run these on a rig,” she said. “I’m looking for a non-rig solution. “So that’s why I am excited to be in Lloydminster. I didn’t know anything about co-rod PC pumps. “I will learn exactly what you guys have done here and then back at Prudhoe Bay and we will deploy those in our ESP wells. “When they fail, and I am waiting six months for the rig, I am going to put an inserted PC into my 2 7/8” tubing and I will perforate above it to so I get flow in and I can produce that well until I get that rig on. “I actually think PC pumps will do such a fantastic job that we will actually end up changing our completions so we prepare for when the ESP dies and we can run a PC pump in there. “Right now we are limited by the 2 7/8 inch, but once we have 3.5 inch, we can get bigger pumps and more production,” Julian concluded.

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A27

Nordic scores a ¿eld goal on home turf Winnipeg – Nordic Oil and Gas Ltd., a Winnipeg-based junior oil and gas company, now has its first property

in southwestern Manitoba with the acquisition of petroleum and natural gas rights on four quarter sections in the Vird-

en oilfield. Nordic will be seeking to acquire existing seismic to identify the best location for the first

Diaz announces success at Macklin Diaz Resources Ltd. has participated in drilling two additional Dina horizontal heavy oil wells at Macklin, Saskatchewan. The two wells were placed on production in December and each are currently producing at a flush production rate of 120 bbls of oil per day (54 bbls of oil per day net per well). These two wells are 50 metre off set wells to a Dina oil well that Diaz drilled and placed on production Sept. 18, 2011, which is currently producing 80 bpd (36 bpd net), and to date has produced 7,000 bbls of oil. Diaz has a 45 per

cent working interest in the project. Further development at Macklin is scheduled for the second quarter of 2012. With the addition of these two new oil wells at Macklin and

the four recently drilled oil wells at Lloydminster, Alberta, Diaz expects to exit December with a net oil production rate of 225 bpd contributing to a company net total of 450 boepd.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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Lakeland College paid tribute to seven retirees and Àve Green ‘n’ Gold recipients and recognized 37 employees for service milestones at its annual Employee Recognition Awards ceremony Nov. 24 at the Vermilion campus. Among those honoured for 25 years of service was Bert Samuelson dean of the School of Trades and Technology. Presenting his award is Milt WakeÀeld, left, chair of the Lakeland College Board of Governors, and Glenn Charlesworth, Lakeland’s president.

Lakeland College auto and diesel instructor Randy Hobbis received a 25 year service award from Milt WakeÀeld, left, chair of the Lakeland College Board of Governors, and Glenn Charlesworth, Lakeland’s president during an annual Employee Recognition Awards ceremony Nov. 24 at the Vermilion campus. Photo submitted

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

PetroBakken spending to up production in 2012 $545 million. The plan also includes investments of approximately $155 million in facilities, land, seismic, recompletions and direct administration capital. In southeast Saskatchewan, the company expects to drill 96 net Bakken wells (including approximately 58 net bilateral wells) and 35 net conventional wells. O v e r a l l , PetroBakken plans on spending $290 million of DC&E capital in southeast Saskatchewan. That amount is comprised of $225 million in the Bakken (including enhanced oil recovery or EOR spending) and $65 million in their conventional Mississippian plays. The company will also continue to invest in its EOR pilots to evaluate several injection conďŹ gurations, primarily using natural gas. C u r r e n t l y, PetroBakken has ďŹ ve pilot projects underway that are in various stages of implementation.

It is expected there will be a second pilot on injection in the ďŹ rst quarter of 2012, with three others being added by the end of the third quarter. In Alberta and British Columbia, PetroBakken plans to drill 49 net wells for DC&E capital of $225 million in its Cardium business unit and three wells in its Alta./B.C. business unit for $30 million. The majority of the Cardium drilling will be focused on West Pembina. In the Alta. /B,C business unit, activity will further delineate and evaluate new oil resource plays building on PetroBakken’s 2011 drilling program where they have drilled three wells and are currently drilling one additional well. The company estimates they have identiďŹ ed over 100 drilling locations in the new oil resource play areas. Custom Truck Sales Inc.

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40242872•03/06/09

Calgary – PetroBakken Energy Ltd., heads into 2012 with an initial capital spending plan of $700 million primarily focused on horizontal drilling and completions in the Bakken and Cardium light oil plays. The Calgary-based company, a 59 per cent owned subsidiary of Petrobank Energy and Resources Ltd., has also added North Battleford native W. Brett Wilson to its board of directors. Wilson has more than 25 years of investment banking experience, primarily as the cofounder of FirstEnergy Capital Corp. He is also well known as a former panelist on the CBC Dragon’s Den show. In November 2011, Wilson purchased a 5 per cent interest in the Nashville Predators of the NHL The naming of Wilson to the board was part of PetroBakken’s news announcement Dec. 13 about its capital spending plans for 2012 which will allow the company to build on its

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

B-Section

January 2012

Crude by rail runs into roadblock A 30 tanker cars could be found being loaded at Canadian National’s Willmar transload facility on Dec. 8.

Story and photos by Brian Zinchuk Willmar – With burgeoning oil production in North Dakota, Bakken crude has been pouring across the 49th parallel into Canadian pipelines and rail cars, only to eventually find its way south again. Since October 2010, Canadian National Railway has been using a truck-to-rail transloading site on an otherwise little-used siding in the middle of the southeast Saskatchewan prairie, at a little dot on the map known as Willmar. Now concern over the road leading to the site has led to some hardball tactics, with the Rural Municipality of Browning reducing allowed road weights to secondary weight levels on the main road leading to the Willmar siding. Northeast of Lampman, the hamlet of Willmar lies in the northeast corner of the RM of Browning, along Highway 604. It’s not a provincial highway, but a municipal one. A drive on it in early December found a nice, smooth surface for a roadway that had been, until recently, designated for primary weights. The RM would like to keep it that way, having rebuilt it in recent years. Randy Fleck, reeve of the RM, explained how the increasing traffic of heavy tanker trucks leading to the Willmar siding has become a concern. “We did not expect to have that kind of traffic on the 604,” he said. The RM has proposed a few different solutions, such as putting another lift of asphalt on the road, running from Willmar south to Highway 361. That provincial highway connects to Highways 47 and 9, both corridors running south to the border. Another option would be to build up the seasonal road from the Plains Environmental facility just a few miles to the southeast. Plains Environmental had paid to build up two miles of road leading to their facility from the south, and Fleck suggests CN could do the same, continuing on that path.

“They could probably build that for a little over $1 million. They would build it, and we would gravel it and maintain it. In the long run, building is the cheap part. Maintenance costs money,” Fleck said. Another route into Willmar would be to turn off Highway 9 from the east, but that would involve the RM of Moose Creek as well. Fleck noted there is a natural inclination for drivers to want to remain on pavement. “We gave them the road maintenance agreement in October. They had until mid-November. We haven’t heard back,” Fleck said on Dec. 8. Is the traffic leading to Willmar all CN’s? “Of course not,” Fleck said, but added, “Is the majority CN’s? Yes.” Generally speaking, getting around the RM of Browning would not normally be a weight issue. “We’ve gone primary weights on all our gravel roads, except for our thin membrane roads,” Fleck said. Highway 604 was built to last 25 years, he noted. “We haven’t had any trouble with any of the oil companies in the RM. It’s never been a problem,” Fleck said. “We’ve never had road maintenance agreements. We tried to shy away from them,” he said, noting the complexity of such agreements. While other rural municipalities have asked for road maintenance agreements, Browning has been able to get by without them, until now. With wells and pipelines throughout the RM, he noted commercial property already pays its fair share of tax. But the taxes paid for the Willmar facility are just $400 a year. That’s less than one load of gravel. Fleck also noted it’s not fair to agricultural producers who pay property taxes to pay for CN’s use of the road. ɸ Page B2

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

RM of Browning concerned over roads being damaged ɺ Page B1 Another major facility in the RM which takes in similar truck traffic is the Enbridge Steelman terminal. But with substantial assets on the ground as well as numerous pipelines, Enbridge already pays significant taxes. The CN Willmar facility, on the other hand, is essentially a rail siding, some roadway beside it, office trailers, a few shipping containers, and a handful of portable pumps. Pipeline News has been in contact with CN almost every month since the Williston Basin Petroleum Conference in May regarding doing a story on the Willmar facility. While initially forthcoming, the response changed of late. Finally on Dec. 9, Mark Hallman, director of communications and public affairs for CN e-mailed, “I appreciate your persistence, patience and interest in CN. At the present time, however, CN has decided not to do media interviews on its oil transloading activities in Saskatchewan.” The company’s website notes, “We are committed to supporting the Bakken formation by providing fast and scalable transportation options to destination markets.” CN says the benefits of shipping crude by rail include: • Switch markets quickly to maximize netback • Service to match your evolving needs • Capital expenses are significantly less than pipeline • Ability to ship crude, diesel, and diluent in the same rail car • Existing assets for multiple commodities • No transmix or product downgrade on delivery • Source your products from further afar than truck Noting the “Transload at your doorstep,” the website adds, “CN's truck to rail transload location in Willmar is within 30 miles of most Saskatchewan Bakken production. Our transload facilities are open to anyone and provide a turnkey service with the help of our Cargoflo terminals and trucking partners.”

Tanks can be seen idle at Willmar.

There’s not much to the CN Willmar facility. Unlike rail loading facilities like the large one at Stanley, North Dakota, which has mammoth storage tanks, a circular track and indoor loading facilities, the Willmar location is simply a siding and a few pumps.

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CP starts shipping crude out of Estevan By Brian Zinchuk Estevan – Crude by rail has come to Estevan. Canadian Pacific announced on Dec. 7 it is expanding the transportation of crude oil by rail from the Saskatchewan Bakken formation. The Estevan transload has a maximum of 15 rail cars, said Ed Greenberg, media spokesperson for CP. “We built it to the current requirements of the customer,” he said, adding it was built to be scalable. That customer turns out to be Cenovus Energy, who revealed their intentions during their investor day on Dec. 7. Don Swystun, executive vice-president refining, marketing, transportation and development, said, “We are developing rail options with a focus on Saskatchewan crude production.” RigLocator.ca records show Cenovus has been drilling south of the Shand Power Station over the past year, just southeast of Estevan. The facility is in the heart of Estevan, accessible by private road heading west from Estevan’s Kensington Avenue. The new transload facility will be operated by Bulk Plus Logistics in Estevan. There will be no tankage, and rail cars will be loaded directly from trucks. A typical rail tanker car is 600 to 650 barrels in capacity, the equivalent of roughly three fully-loaded tridem tanker trucks, or two truck-and-pup A-trains. The Estevan location is CP’s second crude-by-rail location in southeast Saskatchewan. The railway is already moving crude out of transload facility at Dollard, Sask. It is located on the Great Western Railway, a short line partner of Canadian Pacific. The oil is destined to various refineries in both Canada and the United States. Greenberg said it will be going to Eastern Canada, the U.S. Midwest and West Coast. In 2010, Pipeline News reported that Global Companies LLC, of Boston, Mass., part of Global Partners LP, was also looking into providing oil on rail service, and that they were partnering with CP to ship into New York and Rhode Island. Canadian Pacific also ships crude oil out of the ever-expanding North Dakota market, and has a terminal in the heart of the Bakken oilpatch, at New Town. That oil mostly gets shipped to the Gulf Coast, according to Greenberg. “This is the next step for us for our energy portfolio in the Bakken,” Greenberg said of the Estevan facility. “It’s Saskatchewan Bakken oil. “We’ve had close discussions with the province of Saskatchewan to ensure there’s a comfort level,” Greenberg said.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Cenovus Bakken oil catches the train

Tanker cars like these are now being loaded in the heart of Estevan, part of Canadian PaciÀc’s foray into crude by rail.

ɺ Page B3 However, similar discussions had not been resolved with the City of Estevan, as of Dec. 12. The city was still waiting to hear from CP on issues like fire protection, according to Mayor Gary St. Onge, and as such was still determining its response. “We’ve heard about it for quite some time,” he said, noting there was a meeting scheduled for Dec. 20 between Estevan city council and the CP advisory committee. St. Onge understood there would be three to four cars a day initially, but it would not become unit trains. If the services level grew to that point, it would be moved out of the city. “If it gets to the case of 100 car trains, it would be out of town,” he said. Kensington Avenue, he noted, was built for trucks, and has a double thickness of asphalt. There are some concerns about safety, he noted, such as possible H2S exposure. St. Onge has been told the pump system should deal with vapours. The Estevan location has the benefit of being located near primary weight highways and adjacent to a primary weight street. Canadian National has

encountered difficulties with the local RM for their Willmar transload facility due to concerns over road maintenance. (see related story page C1) In a press release, CP said, “The Bakken Formation, encompassing sections of Saskatchewan and North Dakota, is a key area of focus for Canadian Pacific and part of the railway’s growing energy portfolio. In the past three years CP has demonstrated its ability to deliver crude oil by rail. Volumes of rail shipments out of North Dakota, for example, have grown from roughly 500 carloads in 2009 to more than 13,000 carloads in 2011. This is expected to grow to 70,000 annual carloads in the future.” “To move the crude by rail opportunities to the next level, CP will take what it has learned and the products developed in North Dakota and apply them in the emerging Saskatchewan and Alberta Bakken markets,” said CP energy and merchandise vice-president Tracy Robinson. “The model we developed in North Dakota is proven and we’re now bringing that north. To fully capitalize on these opportunities, CP has established a specialized Energy Development Team to proactively position CP’s products and ca-

pabilities in this rapidly emerging market place.” CP said it provides crude shippers with supply chain options that are flexible, reliable, and offer short lead times from production to transportation. “The Bakken formation represents significant growth opportunities for the people of Saskatchewan and those involved in the development of this emerging market,” said Saskatchewan Energy and Resources Minster Bill Boyd in a release. “I’m certain that CP’s experience and leadership in crude by rail transportation will prove effective in helping Saskatchewan producers with similar solutions, allowing them rapid entry into new markets.” CP is investing more than $90 million to enhance capacity on its U.S. main line south of Saskatchewan, through North Dakota and into Minnesota to handle anticipated increased Bakken crude shipments. This includes upgraded track and sidings. Of the 140 million tons of freight shipped annually on CP, hundreds of thousands of carloads are directly related to energy production and distribution. This includes crude oil, sulphur, fuels, diluents and materials key to the energy industry such as pipe and frac sand.

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Colin Brownridge grew up in the custom combining business, before becoming a Áuid-hauler full time. Now Colidge Trucking operates 12 units. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Always challenges in the oilpatch Arcola – Colin Brownridge spent much of his earlier life custom combining with his family. Now he still spends a lot of time in a truck, but now it’s hauling oil, equipment, or towing heavy trucks with his own tow truck. Brownridge owns and operates Colidge Trucking Inc., based in Arcola. “I started this in June 2006. We were some of the first guys to haul some of those initial Bakken wells Petrobank had drilled in the Griffin area.” Prior to that he drove with Cliff Nankivell Trucking in the combining off-season from 2002 to 2006. He signed on as a leased operator with the firm in 2006 as their first leased operator.

Now Colidge, 28, operates a dozen trucks. One unit is a Super-B, the rest are tridems. “I some of my own trailers daily, with the others being supplied by Nankivell,” he said. “Currently I’m at seven people. Usually I’m around eight, including myself.” Brownridge said, “The bulk of our work is in the Carlyle, Kisbey and Stoughton area, close to home, usually within a 60 mile radius.” The work is primarily transferring oil and water, offering 24 hour service. There’s enough work to keep them working close to home. “My guys run seven and three, seven and four rotations. That seems to be what they like. They can have a

life too. “I’ve been pretty fortunate to have a lot of tremendous help. I’ve had two guys pretty much from the start. There’s not a lot of turnover, but I’m so much smaller than everyone else.” Brownridge put up a shop along Highway 13 in the fall of 2008, and moved in the new year. “I keep everything inside. It’s over 12,000 square-feet. After two years in the winter, I couldn’t imagine being outside again,” he said. Two years ago he picked up a selfcontained tow truck unit that will fit on any truck, mounting on the fifth wheel. Since there is a lack of heavyduty tow trucks in the area, there was an opportunity in the market. While it’s not capable of taking on the heavi-

est trucks, it can handle your typical highway tractor. He bought it for his own use, but has since found others have a need. With all the flooding in the region last spring and summer, work slowed down. “This summer was the ultimate. A load a day here or there. That was about it,” he said. It did provide a bit of a relief, however. “My employees were ready for a break. “Every day’s a surprise. Keep working hard. The days’s over, start the new one tomorrow.” There have been lots of hurdles along the way. Noting it’s important to keep money for a rainy day, Brownridge concluded, “It’s the oilpatch. Anything can happen.”

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Record year for Manitoba By Brian Zinchuk Winnipeg – Despite spring flooding which all but cut off the Waskada field from the rest of the oilpatch, Manitoba will have set several records in 2011 in terms of drilling and production. More pipeline activPipeline News spoke to Manitoba Petroleum ity is expected in Branch director Keith Lowdon on Dec. 3, and by Manitoba in 2012. that date, things were shaping up to set several reFile photo cords for the year. Manitoba had 27 drilling rigs, 24 of which were listed as active. That was nearly double the number of active rigs at the same time last year, and triple what the province saw in 2009. Indeed, in the summer of 2010, www.riglocator.ca had to rejig its graphs to show the higher number of active rigs, and since then, Manitoba has been going strong. It did see a very long spring breakup in 2011, however. By the end of March, everything was shut down, and no one spun a wheel until mid-June. Even then, it took until mid-August for the drilling fleet to fully get back on its feet. “It’s been a consistent rig count for some time since the spring flooding,” he said. Discussions the province has had with the Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors (CAODC) indicated the association expects several years of continued drilling activity “They don’t see an end to it for seven years,” Lowdon said. “We expect it should be this busy for the next three years anyway.” He pointed out that an indication of the growth of the industry is Trican’s establishment of a base in Brandon, he pointed out. Thirty to 50 people are expected to work out of that location. * Formerly “Three Star Environmental” While Brandon is * Environmental Protection Plans * Impact Assessments not considered an oilfield * Pre-Site Assessments * Environmental Audits & Assessments town, it’s anticipated the * Well Site & Battery Abandonments * Drilling Waste Management larger population will al* Pre/Post Water Well Testing * EM Surveying * GPS Mapping low the company to draw from a larger manpower pool. Brandon is an hour and a half drive from FAX: 306-453-4476 Waskada, making it closer BOX 40, CARLYLE, SASK. S0C 0R0 than Estevan. The Virden www.evergreenenviro.ca

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field is only a 45 minute drive from Brandon, and Lowdon noted, “There’s lots going on in Virden.” One area to the northwest of Virden is seeing attention. “There’s been a fair amount of activity in the Manson/Birdtail field,” Lowdon said. Husky was the initial producer working in the area, but more recently Tundra and Crescent Point have been drilling there too. Private producer Fort Calgary Resources has also shown substantial interest there, having drilled 19 wells. The area is sufficiently new that it has not yet been designated as an established oil pool. There are at least four townships involved. Province-wide, Lowdon said, “We’ve had 28 companies so far drill wells.” That put the province on track for a record number of wells drilled. As of Dec. 1, there were 508 wells drilled. “Last year was the record, at 516. We’re pretty much there. We had 480 at the same time last year.” It takes several months to get production reports in, but Manitoba was averaging 37,500 bpd production, putting the province on track for about 13 million barrels produced for the year, and possibly a bit higher. In 2010, the total production was 11.79 million barrels. Should 13 million barrels be achieved, that will be a 10 per cent increase. Land sales record Manitoba holds substantially fewer land sales compared to Saskatchewan or Alberta, but it’s four sales in 2011 resulted in a record year, at $13.3 million. That’s $1.2 million over last year. Since roughly 80 per cent of Manitoba’s petroleum producing land is under freehold mineral ownership, the provincial land sales are substantially smaller in comparison to other Western Canadian provinces. As for where that land was sold, Lowdon said, “It was all over the place.” Quite a bit of that land was in the Coulter/ Pierson area in the extreme southwest corner of the province, seeking the Spearfish/Lower Amaranth formation, while the Bakken was sought in the aforementioned Manson/Birdtale area northwest of Virden. Legacy Oil & Gas and EOG Resources are the most active players in the Coulter/Pierson area. Australian-based Molopo sold its assets in the region to Legacy earlier in the year. Legacy drilled 13 wells in 2011 as of Dec. 1. The Spearfish formation, also known as the Lower Amaranth, is the target of the Waskada area drilling, which continues to be a hot spot. “It’s sort of the busiest area,” Lowdon said. Penn West Exploration and EOG Resources are the main players in that region, with ARC Resources, Red Beds and Renegade also taking part. Pipelines On the pipeline side, Lowdon said a few pipelines are in the works. Tundra applied to do a gathering system for its batteries in the north Sinclair/Daly field, running the the Enbridge terminal at Cromer. Enbridge, itself, has been working with Provident, who has an NGL plant near Sinclair. Enbridge’s line has been approved, Lowdon said. ɸ Page B7

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Drilling up, land sales up, production up in Manitoba

Keith Lowdon is director of the Manitoba Petroleum Branch. File photo

ɺ Page B6 While there’s not a lot of gas in Manitoba, there apparently is enough to warrant a second gas plant. EOG is currently working on a gas plant approximately three miles southeast of Waskada. “The work started. They’re hard at it now,” Lowdon said. Another transportation development has been the recent establishment of an oil-on-rails facility at Woodnorth, seven miles from Virden, on the CN line. “That caught us by surprise. It falls under federal jurisdiction,” he said. Manitoba held an election this past fall, with the NDP returned to government. David Chomiak remains Manitoba minister of Innovation, Energy and Mines. As for 2012, Lowdon expects it to be “Exactly the same as 2011.” The province expects $1 billion to be spent in Manitoba over the next year, not counting National Energy Board approvals. Numbers aren’t available yet for 2011, but that would be up from the $894 million spent in the province in 2010. There is an expectation for 500 to 600 wells drilled in 2012, and a lot of pipeline applications. “We expect development to continue in Waskada, Pierson, and Sinclair/Daly. Combine that with Manson/Birdtail, and it should be a good year,” Lowdon forecast.

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(Daily Oil Bulletin) – Crescent Point Energy Corp. has a $1.1 billion capital development budget for 2012, which is expected to increase average daily production by approximately 10 per cent to 80,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. Next year’s exit rate is expected to come in at over 85,000 boepd. “We are excited about our 2012 capital budget, which is balanced between the Bakken and Shaunavon resource plays,” Scott Saxberg, president and chief executive officer, said in a prepared statement. “The budget is designed to provide for another low-risk year of organic growth through the drill bit on our major oil resource plays in Saskatchewan while expanding our new emerging resource plays in Alberta and North Dakota.” Crescent Point is upwardly revising its 2011 exit rate to more than 80,000 boepd from 77,500 and is increasing its capital expenditures budget by $150 million to $1.2 billion. Approximately $118 million of

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the increase is expected to be spent on drilling and completions with the remainder allocated to infrastructure investments, undeveloped land acquisitions and seismic. The majority of the increased drilling is planned for the Viewfield Bakken play and the Shaunavon area and is expected to position the company well for a strong start to 2012. Crescent Point now plans to drill 161 net wells in the Viewfield Bakken play and 103 net wells in the Shaunavon area in 2011, an increase of approximately 39 net wells and 17 net wells, respectively, from previous plans. “We’ve had a strong year in 2011,” Saxberg added. “We exceeded our production guidance, despite record flooding in southeast Saskatchewan that caused a rapid shift in capital spending from the Viewfield Bakken area to the Shaunavon area. We generated organic growth in our key resource plays while acquiring land in and developing our emerging plays in Alberta and in North Dakota. “In 2012, we will build on the momentum generated in 2011,” he said. “The 2012 capital program focuses on several long-term organic growth projects and advances our emerging resource plays. We are also applying new techniques and concepts across several of our resource plays, which will provide us with a competitive advantage

in developing new prospects.” Crescent Point expects to spend approximately $385 million of its 2012 budget in the Viewfield Bakken and Flat Lake areas of southeast Saskatchewan, including drilling approximately 120 net wells in the Viewfield area and 12 net wells at Flat Lake. To accommodate continued growth of the company’s Bakken production, Crescent Point expects to invest up to $55 million on infrastructure projects, land and seismic in these two areas. As part of its ongoing waterflood implementation project at Viewfield, the company expects to convert up to 30 net horizontal wells into water injection wells, increasing the total number of Bakken water injection wells to more than 50 by yearend 2012. Waterflooding in Shaunavon In the Shaunavon area, Crescent Point plans to spend approximately $220 million of the 2012 budget, including drilling approximately 72 net wells, which will target both the Lower Shaunavon and the Upper Shaunavon. As part of its ongoing waterflood pilot in the Shaunavon area, the company plans to convert up to four horizontal Lower Shaunavon wells into water injection wells for a total of 10 injection wells in the Lower Shaunavon. ɸ Page B9

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Forecasting $95/ bbl: Crescent Point ɺ Page B8 Crescent Point plans to invest up to $52 million in infrastructure projects and land in the Shaunavon area to accommodate production growth in this play. Due to the company’s positive results to date in the Swan Hills Beaverhill Lake light oil resource play in Alberta, Crescent Point plans to spend approximately $165 million in the area in 2012. The company expects to drill up to 26 net wells and invest up to $22 million in infrastructure projects, land and seismic in this play in 2012. The company is also increasing its capital expenditures in North Dakota where it has assembled more than 165 net sections of land. Crescent Point expects to allocate approximately $130 million of the 2012 budget in the state, including drilling up to 14 net wells. Crescent Point will continue to pursue its exploration and development projects in southern Alberta in 2012, with plans to spend approximately $50 million,

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drilling up to 19 net wells into both conventional and unconventional zones. The remaining $150 million will be allocated to the company’s other properties in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta, including conventional assets in southeast Saskatchewan, Battrum/ Cantuar and the Viking play at Dodsland. In total, approximately 85 per cent of the budget is expected to be allocated to drilling and completions with a total of 347 net wells planned. The remainder of the budget is expected to be allocated to infrastructure investments, undeveloped land acquisitions and seismic. As a result of the wet weather conditions during 2010 and 2011, the 2012 guidance assumes a long spring breakup and the shut-in of up to 10,000 boepd during second quarter. The company’s guidance has also not included any upside related to waterflood programs in the Bakken and Shaunavon plays but its 2012 exit guidance of 85,000 boepd has included the

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Long-time vac operator sets up in Arcola Arcola – Running businesses in the oilpatch runs strongly in the Carter family, with numerous businesses ending in –hawk to account for it. At first there was Winterhawk, a vac outfit from Provost, Alta., that was founded in 1979 by Brian and Anita Carter. That company was sold to Eveready six years ago, and its operations have subsequently been purchased by Clean Harbors. The company had over 200 trucks at its peak, mostly leased operators. “I’ve had this com– Graham Carter, co-owner of pany since I was 16 years Littlehawk Enterprises old,” said Graham Carter, who owns and operates Littlehawk Enerprises Ltd. with his newly-wed wife Ghislaine. She may be the dispatcher and office manager, but when Pipeline News came to visit, she was driving water truck. Graham grew up in the business. Since Winterhawk started on their family farm six miles from, Hayter Alberta, the kitchen table was the company coffee room. “Every morning we’d wake up and there were six guys at the kichen table, having coffee,” he recalled. Graham and his brother Brad started Littlehawk as a leased-on outfit for Winterhawk. They were in high school at the time. “I had a one-ton steam truck. A $50,000 steam truck. That was our college fund. We’d start up in the morning before school, and get the service rig going and then drive the truck to school and go to school.” After school, it was more of the same. They would head out to thaw batteries, pumpjacks and the like. Sometimes they would clean up a spill. His sister Tara has stayed out of the business, so far, but her fiancé runs a steam truck under Clean Harbors. Brad got a bigger steam truck when he was 18 and named his new company Blackhawk. “I took over Littlehawk,” Graham said. “Once I graduated I got into a bigger steam truck too, and got into more turnaround work, cleaning vessels and tanks. That got tiring, being covered in oil every day, so I got into hydrovacing.” He had a tandem steer, tandem drive truck. The steamer would be used for the “hydro” part, and the vac truck would take care of the sucking. Graham had a partner for several years. “We both went up to Fort Mac, then both bought our own combo hydrovac units.” Eventually the two parted ways. Graham spent five years in Fort McMurray, working for many of the major players – Suncor, Syncrude, CNRL, Nexen Long Lake. That last one turned into two-and-a-half years of work with two hydrovacs working 15-hour days. It’s not cheap in Fort Mac, he discovered like everyone else. “My house was built in 1974. It was $585,000. The small shop, 25x80 feet, cost $850,000, plus condo fees.” It was in Fort Mac that Graham met Ghislaine. She was working for Eveready as well, and used to work for the Alberta government. “She came to inspect my trucks. We went out for supper,” he said. ɸ Page B11

“

The weekend we got married, we went on our own

Graham Carter, in the cab, and Ghislaine Carter are the owners and operators of Littlehawk Enterprises Ltd. Charlie is the company dog.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

B11

Littlehawk another one in the Àock of hawks ɺ Page B10 By this point, he was already on his Fort Mac exit strategy. “I sold my house already and was sleeping in the shop.” He had been planning on setting up in Provost, but there was plenty of established competition in the area already, so he teamed up with another company to launch operations in southeast Saskatchewan. “It made more sense to relocate. We got busy enough down here,” he said. That worked for a while, but eventually fell apart, so Graham and Ghislaine decided to go out on their own. The two were married in July. They launched their Arcola presence immediately thereafter. “The weekend we got married, we went on our own,” he said. Ghislaine has a Class 3 licence and operates all the equipment. “I worked in transportation safety in Fort McMurray,” she said. Originally from Gravelbourg, southern Saskatchewan is home for her, and a bit closer to family. Ghislaine has a degree in criminal justice, and used to work for Alberta Transportation. Poor eyesight precluded her becoming a police officer. The Carters have since bought a house and a shop, then built a new

shop in Arcola. They also picked up another house for staff. Even so, one person is staying in their home due to the lack of available accommodations. The new shop is 6,500 square-feet, of steel construction, and includes an office area. It has four bays and a wash bay. “We could use 10 trucks most days,” he said. “We’ve got three hydrovacs, one steam truck, and one water truck.” Indeed, a cousin, Tyler Carter, will soon be coming on board with three trucks. As for the name of his company? “He’s Skyhawk.” Yet another cousin operates under the name “Firehawk.” Now firmly established in Arcola, he noted, “I grew up in a small town. It’s like this place. You have to be part of the community – donate to the hockey teams, do your part, build playgrounds.” Littlehawk now does hydrovac work for the town, for instance. “Everyone we work

for is awesome. They appreciate the good equipment and keeping everything clean.” With nine staff members already, the company is working towards its COR certification, foregoing SECOR, which has a 10 person limit. “We’re looking for local people,” Graham said. They do have one swamper from Lampman, two people from Meadow Lake, two from British Columbia, and one from Saskatoon. They even considered building accommodations into the shop, but that didn’t come to be. An additional unit was being completed by Tornado Technologies Inc.in early December. “My dad and I designed a lot of this stuff. For example, there’s a sloped floor inside,” he said of the new hydrovac unit. Instead of using a hydraulic lift, the load runs down the slope, and is pushed out by two hydraulic rams. The area below it is used to store the fresh water. By eliminating the hydraulic lift

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and subframe, you get a lighter unit. “Dad says he never should have quit. He should have hired a manager and taken a few days off,” Graham said. They like to sled and boat, when they have the time. But the boat has hardly seen water, and it’s a long way to the deep powder of the mountains, where it “doesn’t hurt” if you fall off.

This new shop is nearing completion. It’s wellappointed, with a wash bay, Áoor drains and inÁoor heat.

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B12

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012 Mark Paxman does some painting on the new Land Solutions ofÀce in Lampman on Dec. 8. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

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Land Solutions moves to Main Street Lampman – Land Solutions has been in Lampman for several years now, and it’s growth has meant it was time to build its own office, rather than lease. “We built it new,” said Shawn Howard, senior land manager. “We’re really proud to be part of the community. It’s a commitment we have to Lampman.” Land Solutions is an active player in the land acquisition services arena in Saskatchewan. Its Lampman office was established in 2008. At first they operated from a one-bedroom suite, then a former church. The new location puts the company on Main Street, across the street from the post office and town/RM office. There was no lease space available, so Land Solutions decided to build on land it had acquired a few years before. The company broke ground last June. With all the flooding immediately around Lampman, there were some delays. Indeed, the community still has

a lake to the north. When Pipeline News visited in early December, the finishing touches were being put on the interior, with the staff moving in later in December. It’s a 2,100 square-foot bungalow office, with a wheelchair ramp and deck on the back. The basement will be sublet to another oilfield services company, but has been designed that it could be used as accommodations if a need arose at a later date. Landscaping will be finished in the spring. The company will have four land agents and two administration people working out of the Lampman office, a number they’ve had for two years. There’s enough room to double that, if need be. The project cost approximately a half million dollars. The company sees the Williston Basin as a large play for years to come, and anticipates a lot of activity for the next five to 10 years, according to Howard.

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B14

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Building trades seeking youth Estevan – The building trades in Saskatchewan are looking for young people to take up a hammer, screwdriver, wrench, welder, or any number of tools and seek out a career in Saskatchewan. Doug Folk, human resources co-ordinator with the Saskatchewan Building Trades Association, is doing the career fair circuit. Pipeline News caught up with him at the Estevan Comprehensive School career fair on Nov. 9. “We really want to give youth information about construction trades so they can make a good decision about a career choice,” Folk said. “There’s lots of interested, but lots of youth don’t have knowledge about the variety of opportunities in the construction industry.” There are 36 trades linked to the construction industry, but many of the youths he meets couldn’t name five. “We try to explain the number of opportunities within construction,” Folk said. Those include homebuilding, commercial and industrial construction. The construction industry and oilpatch need to work together, he said. The oilpatch needs support

infrastructure such as homes and hotels. “In a way, we’re complementary and need each other to grow, but in a way, we’re competitive. We need the same type of people.” Folk said those people are passionate and dedicated, who like working with their hands as opposed to in an office. The career opportunities are endless. Because of Saskatchewan’s growing economy, there has been a fundamental shift as well. “Our work isn’t seasonal anymore. It’s yearround. Layoffs are unheard of,” Folk said. “It’s an issue of how much overtime you want to put in.” In looking for workers, he said the lots of people are going elsewhere – out of the province and even out of the country. But he noted a lot of members like to “grow your own.” “The salaries are very good right now. Most of our youth start at $15 an hour.” A journeyman carpenter may make around $35 an hour, while a journeyman plumber can earn around $36 to $38 an hour. At the ECS career fair, he said they received a

lot of interest. Folk was in Yorkton the day before, doing a similar career fair. “There are tremendous opportunities for employers to hire people who want to stay in Saskatchewan. SaskJobs.ca has over 10,000 jobs posted, 3,200 in trades and transportation.”

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Kramer technician Jared Puryk, back row left, and second year apprentice B.J. Bolen, centre, assist Vera Youck, human relations manager, seated, and Estevan operations supervisor Merv Puryk in running the company’s recruiting booth at the Estevan Comprehensive School’s career fair on Nov. 9.

24/7 operation needs constant recruiting: Kramer Estevan – When you’re a big operation whose products and services are in high demand, recruitment is an ongoing concern. That’s why Kramer Ltd., Saskatchewan’s Caterpillar dealer, could be found at the Estevan Comprehensive School’s career fair on November 9. During the event, Kramer hosted an information session for students interested in the trades. Topics covered included how to enter the heavy duty technician trade and an overall snapshot of the family- owned and -operated company. “Our goal at this type of career fair is to encourage young people

to consider a career in the trades,” says Kramer Human Resources Manager Vera Youck. Facility expansion in several of Kramer’s branch locations throughout the province is the result of increased customer demand for Caterpillar products and services. “We’ve ramped up our recruitment efforts for heavy duty service technicians,” says Youck. “It’s crucial for us to get this message out there. That’s why it’s important for us to attend student career fairs like the one in Estevan.” Regarding the career fair, Youck goes on to say that, “We were very well received. And

we’re encouraged by the number of students who attended Kramer’s information session and expressed interest in becoming a heavy duty service technician.”

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

2011 In Retrospective Southeast Saskatchewan’s oilpatch had one of the longest spring breakups in memory, waiting for Áooding to subside.

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Saskatchewans largest independant oilÀeld services company, Carson Energy Services, owned and operated by Ron Carson, was purchased by Flint Energy Services, last fall. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Who can forget this photo taken in Lloydminster shortly after a semi carrying an overheight backhoe struck the CP rail overpass on Highway 16 on Oct. 11 collapsing it onto the highway? Myshak Crane and Rigging (MCR) and Mammoet worked together to lift and remove the girder within 24 hours with the highway re-opening shortly thereafter. MCR deployed two cranes to reinstall the repaired girder a couple of weeks after the accident. Photo by Geoff Lee

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2011 was a news making year for Grit Industries Inc. that announced on Oct. 18 they were moving their manufacturing operations from Lloydminster to North Battleford in the coming months. Grit sold their properties in Lloydminster to consolidate manufacturing in a 91,000 sq. ft. building in North Battleford with about 70 employees needed at startup. Photo by Geoff Lee

Water was par for the course at the 33rd annual Lloydminster Oilmen’s Golf Tournament in June. This photo of Nevin Anderson from Source Environmental Corrosion in Lloydminster who went on to hit his ball back into the 18th hole water hazard was a sign of wetter things to come. Buckets of rain washed out the Ànal day of play for the Àrst time in the history of event. Photo by Geoff Lee

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Construction underway at STARS Regina base Regina – Saskatchewan Health Minister Don McMorris, STARS representatives and local media received a Phase 1

project brieďŹ ng Dec. 13 at the site of the future STARS helicopter base at the Regina International Airport. Con-

struction is progressing on schedule in advance of the anticipated April 2012 launch of operations.

Serving the Southeast Saskatchewan oilďŹ eld industry since 1994. Newalta has provided waste management services for the Southeast Saskatchewan oilďŹ eld industry for more than 17 years. We’re proud of our strong local presence, our exemplary safety record, solid environmental performance and our long track record of excellent service.

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Rod Gantefoer, left, executive vice-president for the STARS Foundation, with Don McMorris, Saskatchewan Health minister, reviewing construction blueprints for the new STARS facility in Regina. Photo submitted

“We’re very excited to move a step closer to introducing helicopter air medical service in our province,� McMorris said. “STARS will give us another option to get critically ill patients quickly to hospital, and we’re thankful for all the partners and donors who have stepped forward to make this program a reality in Saskatchewan.� An existing hangar, purchased by STARS from Redhead Equipment Ltd. in October 2011, will undergo redevelopment to include space for the helicopter, aircraft engineering equipment and maintenance activity, and medical and aviation crew training and staging areas. A new adjacent building is also being constructed to include crew quarters,

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clinical education and training areas, and oďŹƒce space for support sta and volunteers. Graham Construction is the company contracted for this project. “This helicopter air ambulance base is possible thanks to the partnership and support of government, emergency services and health care providers, and the signiďŹ cant funding received from our corporate donors,â€? said STARS Foundation vice-president Rod Gantefoer. Until his retirement from politics in October 2011, Gantefoer was the point man for the provincial government’s efforts to implement a helicopter air ambulance. Several major donors have provided generous contributions to the STARS Saskatchewan program including Crescent Point Energy, Mosaic, Potash Corporation, Enbridge, Ener-

plus, Husky Energy, and Rawlco Radio. STARS signed a service agreement with the government of Saskatchewan in the spring of 2011 to provide helicopter air ambulance services from bases in Regina and Saskatoon. STARS is a charitable non-proďŹ t organization that provides a safe, rapid, highly specialized emergency medical air transport system for critically ill and injured patients. The Regina base, to be located at the Regina International Airport, is scheduled to open in the spring of 2012. A base in Saskatoon is anticipated to open in late 2012. There will be approximately 100 employees (including full-time and part-time positions) for the two Saskatchewan bases. This includes air medical and aviation crews, as well as aircraft engineers, fundraising sta and support sta.

Donations to STARS The Government of Saskatchewan is investing $10 million per year beginning in 2012-2013. The remaining funds will be raised through STARS fundraising initiatives including corporate partnerships. To date, several major donors have stepped forward with generous contributions including: Crescent Point Energy as lead donor ($5 million), Mosaic ($5.5 million towards a helicopter and hangar in Regina), Potash Corporation (funding for a hangar and an AW139 helicopter in Saskatoon; the estimated value of these assets is $27 million), Enbridge ($500,000), Enerplus ($300,000), Husky Energy ($250,000) and Rawlco Radio ($100,000).

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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Oil and water to mix in Regina Regina – The 2012 EnerCanWest conference to be held in Regina Feb. 13-14 could attract more media coverage than expected with its focus on the connection between energy and the environment. The event follows on the heels of Canada’s formal withdrawal in December from the Kyoto accord on climate change. The objective of the accord would have seen Canada reduce greenhouse gas emissions to below 1990 levels by 2012. The timely conference will feature presentations and exhibits on cutting edge innova-

tion, best practices, and approaches to problems faced by environmental and energy industries in a carbon-challenged world. Current research and examples of technology will be featured in two conference subject areas – Oil and Gas and Energy – and Other Energies and Fuels. EnerCanWest 2012 will consider the pivotal role of oil and gas as a source of energy and area of economic strength in Western Canada. Other energies and fuels will be discussed as a source of future innovation and sustainable growth. The conference

is hosted every other year in Saskatchewan under the auspices of the Saskatchewan Environmental Industry Managers Association (SEIMA). SEIMA alternates with the Manitoba Environmental Industries Associations (MEIA) who host the Manitoba conference in alternate years. The 2012 conference will include concurrent presentations on both subject themes and a trade show with equipment and displays at the Delta Regina hotel. The keynote speaker will be Scott Vaughan, the commissioner of the Environment and

New homeowners can cash in Jan.1

Regina – New and expanded tax credits for first-time homeowners and families worth up to $11.6 million go into effect in Saskatchewan Jan. 1, 2012. A new first-time home buyers’ tax credit will provide a provincial non-refundable income tax credit of up to $1,100 to eligible taxpayers, determined by applying a provincial tax credit rate of 11 per cent to the first $10,000 of an eligible home purchase. There will also be provisions to allow persons with a disability to qualify for the purchase of more accessible homes. The details of the program are still being developed and will be formally introduced as part of the 2012-13 provincial budget. The new non-refundable income tax credit for eligible home buyers is expected to save new them an estimated $6.6 million annually. Eligibility rules are expected to be similar to those for the existing federal incentive for firstEligible Àrst-time homebuyers in Saskatchewan can claim a new tax credit that takes effect Jan. 1.

time home buyers which provides a $750 federal income tax credit. Under those rules, the person applying for the credit must not have owned a house during the current year or within the past four years. The government is also expanding its active families benefit introduced in 2009 to all children under 18, effective Jan. 1. The benefit was originally intended to provide an annual income tax benefit of up to $150 per child for children ages six to 14 years, in order to help families with the cost of their children’s participation in cultural, recreational and sports activities. “We’re following through on our commitment to expand this income tax benefit to include all children under 18,” said Bill Hutchinson, minister of Tourism, Parks, Culture and Sport. “This will save families an estimated $5 million annually.” Both of these incen-

tives can be claimed on a personal 2012 Saskatchewan income tax return, to be filed in the spring of 2013.

Sustainable Development for the Office of the Auditor General of Canada. His topic is Water Quality and Quality Relative to Resource Extraction in the Prairie Provinces. One of the first day speakers on the oil and gas theme will be Nathan Lemphers from the Pembina Institute. Lemphers’ topic is Transporting Oil: Rail Versus Pipe. Greg Wortham from Texas Wind Energy Clearinghouse will speak on a topic titled, Texas Wind Project

3D

Development and the Opportunities for Canadian Companies. Doug Soveran from the Saskatchewan Research Council will deliver a talk titled Developments in Upgrading Heavy Oil. On the other energies and fuels side of the ledger, Kim Sigurdson from the Aboriginal Ankur Corporation will make a presentation on A Model for Aboriginal Business Development and Biomass Renewable Energy Production. The second day of presentations on the oil and gas theme will

include a talk by Brian Kristoff from the Saskatchewan Research Council titled New Technologies in Oil and Gas Extraction. Todd Han from Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources will speak concurrently to an audience on the other energies and fuels side of the conference. Han’s topic is an Update on Upstream Oil and Gas Development Standards and Regulations. The complete agenda in posted on the 2012 EnerCanWest web site.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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Focus on current customers before planned camp Saskatoon – With orders coming in for mining camps, 3twenty Solutions is focusing on those first before its planned camp for Estevan “We’re so busy, we’re slower to the punch on that one,” 3twenty president Bryan McCrea told Pipeline News on Dec. 9. Part of the push is to facilitate the narrow delivery window for projects that require ice road delivery. The current project is a 30-bed gold mining camp for Manitoba. McCrea said they will refocus in February. “It’s going to be pushed back,” he said of a possible Estevan camp, noting they were still in ne-

gotiations with clients. They want a different model than an open camp, he said, adding there was not as much pickup to the idea of another camp as they had expected. ATCO currently operates an open camp just east of Estevan. Recruiting success For a company that has only been around for a year, and has been on the cover of several business publications since its initial exposure on CBC’s Dragon’s Den, finding a workforce might seem to be a challenge. So far, they’ve been doing well. “We’re building a culture and organization that’s fun to be at

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– bottom line,” McCrea said. “We’re a fun place to work. We have zero turnover, other than guys we’ve fired. “For a small company, we’re putting our employees high up on priorities,” he said, noting that they are launching an employee benefits program in early 2012, and are going to look at initiating a pension program. McCrea notes some pride in hearing some workers say it’s the best job they’ve had. The company’s workforce is roughly 50 per cent Aboriginal, a level far higher than most Saskatchewan businesses. “We made it a priority, but it was a success almost by accident,” he said. “We found a couple of really strong role models. “I think we’re open and patient and believe in people. “I’m just blown away by the quality of people in the Aboriginal workforce,” McCrea said. He noted there is a need to be sensitive to Aboriginal culture in ensuring success. “The people we hire feel dedicated, working tons of overtime to get this camp out the door. They kind of feel bad if they can’t work on the current project.” With 13 staff members in total, McCrea said, “I don’t see any stop to the growth. One of the smartest ways you can grow is by adding good people.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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Resolutions for the New Year Shifting Gears

One Woman’s Perspective on Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Land Locations By Nadine Elson “New Year’s Day: Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual.” - Mark Twain Are you one of the 40-45 per cent of North Americans who made at least one New Year’s resolution this year? Despite the fact, that New Year’s resolutions do not have a high success rate, many people set at least one resolution during the annual goal setting event known as New Year’s. The U.S. government website usa.gov lists some of the resolutions that people make year after year including: 1. Drink less alcohol 2. Get a better education 3. Get a better job 4. Get fit 5. Lose weight 6. Manage debt 7. Manage stress Were any of these resolutions on your list? Unfortunately for a lot of us, the whole exercise turns into a pattern. Sincere about our desires, at least for the moment when we are drunk, fat or broke, we think that this year will be different

from the last, when our resolutions failed. Why do we even bother? There is definitely something attractive about starting from scratch. The beginning of a new year offers a clean slate and a fresh start. People also seem naturally bent on self improvement, judging by the huge self-help area at my favourite bookstore. It may also be a deeply ingrained tradition. The setting of New Year’s resolution is believed to go back to Babylonian times. “It’s said that Julius Caesar

started the tradition of making resolutions on January 1 to honor the Roman mythical god Janus, whose two faces allowed him to look back into the past year and forward to the new year,” wrote Margarita Tartakovsky, associate editor of PsychCentral.com As I drove to Cromer, Man. to deliver drums of chemical in mid December, I had lots of time to listen to a new CD series by Brian Tracy that I had borrowed from the library entitled No Excuses! The Power of Self Discipline. I knew the author from reading his books and listening to his audio books on tape. In the recording, he said that only 3 per cent of adults have clear, written, specific, measurable, time-bounded goals, and that by every statistic, they accomplish ten times as much as people with no goals at all. Read that sentence again. So then a resolution is merely a wish. A wish has no power. It becomes

a goal when you write it down in clear and specific language, making it measurable within a certain time frame. You know when you have achieved it or not. In his book, Goals!, Tracy teaches a powerful and effective system on how to set and achieve goals. He says in the book that it is possible to achieve an advanced degree at any leading uni-

versity without receiving one hour of instruction on goal setting. Yet it is a vitally important skill to learn in order to achieve success in life. That’s why I gave each of my teenage children a copy of Goals! a few years ago. So what was your New Year’s resolution? Was it a wish or a goal? It doesn’t matter how big or how small your desire is. Write it down and

make it happen. Nadine lives in Estevan, with her husband and family, and works as a hot shot driver in the oil patch regularly delivering goods in and around Estevan and Shaunavon, and Sinclair and Waskada, Man. Her mission, beyond delivering the goods quickly, is to have every interaction be a positive one. She can be reached at missiondriver@hotmail.ca

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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CCS awareness and acceptance higher in Sask. than Europe Regina- Public awareness and acceptance of carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a tool to combat climate change is higher in Saskatchewan than Europe, was the conclusion expressed in a survey released Nov. 28 by IPAC-CO2 Research Inc. Formed in 2009, IPAC-CO2 works to gain public and regulator confidence in the geological storage of carbon dioxide as a sustainable energy and environmental option by providing independent performance assessments of carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects. “Four in 10 (40 per cent) Saskatchewan people surveyed have heard of CO2 capture and storage and know what it is, and an additional one-third (36 per cent) have heard of it but don’t really know what it is while one-quarter (23 per cent) have not heard of it at all,” said Carmen Dybwad, CEO of the environmental non-government organization (ENGO). The survey of 1,104 Saskatchewan individuals commissioned by IPAC-CO2 was conducted by Insightrix Research, Inc. between Sept. 27 and Oct. 11. The online Saskatchewan poll parallels a Eurobarometer survey of 13,000 individuals in 12 European countries. Results of a Canadian poll commissioned by IPAC-CO2 are being tabulated. CCS, a key tool in combating climate change, involves extracting carbon dioxide during the process of power generation or from heavy industrial operations such as steel mills or cement plants, compressing it and storing the CO2 permanently in depleted oil or gas fields or saline aquifers. “Comparing the awareness levels to the Eurobarometer study shows a much higher level of awareness in Saskatchewan compared to Europe, where two-thirds (67 per cent) have not heard of the technology and just one in ten (10 per cent) have heard of it and know what it is,” Dybwad said. Overall, respondents are divided on how effective they believe that CCS would be in combating climate change. Few (6 per cent) respondents believe that CCS technology will be very effective in fighting climate change, while an additional 31 per cent believe that it would be fairly effective. “About the same proportion of respondents in Saskatchewan believe that CCS would be very (six per cent in both cases) or fairly (31 per cent in Saskatchewan; 33 per cent in Europe) effective in fighting climate change,” Dybwad said. ɸ Page B23

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ɺ Page B22 “However, the proportion who are unsure of its effectiveness is much higher in Europe (36 per cent) compared to Saskatchewan (20 per cent) is likely related to the very different knowledge levels in the two areas.” Comparing the priorities of Saskatchewan residents to the European results showed several differences. Respondents were asked to choose up to two priorities from a list of eight. While about the same proportion chose stimulating the development of industries that supply environmentallyfriendly technologies and services (30 per cent in Saskatchewan and 29 per cent in Europe) or promoting cleaner cars running on electricity or low-carbon fuels (both 29 per cent) as a priority, Saskatchewan residents tend to be more supportive of raising the energy efficiency of industrial processes (36 per cent versus. 18 per cent), encouraging the building of energy efficient homes and the insulation of existing homes (30 per cent versus 22 per cent), and securing a reliable energy supply for Canada (21 per cent versus 10 per cent).

“Our survey identified the most trusted source of information about CCS is scientists and researchers (77 per cent),” she said. Like the Eurobarometer results, television is the most cited source of information on climate change in Saskatchewan (80 per cent in Saskatchewan, 81 per cent in Europe). “Generally, Saskatchewan residents cited more information sources than did respondents in Europe; two thirds mention the Internet (67 per cent versus 44 per cent in Europe), six in 10 newspapers (59 per cent vs. 44 per cent) and four in ten radio (42 per cent versus 26 per cent) or magazines (41 per cent versus 23 per cent),” Dybwad said. One in six people in Saskatchewan believe that they are very well informed about the causes (13 per cent), consequences (13 per cent) and ways in which we can fight climate change (12 per cent). However, a majority of respondents in each of these categories believe that they are fairly aware of these issues (60 per cent, 61 per cent, and 59 per cent, respectively). The margin of error within the online popu-

lation is plus or minus 3.4 percentage points at 95 per cent confidence. A summary of the Saskatchewan survey is available online (www. ipac-co2.com).

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

This Flint Energy Services crew could be found working west of Lampman on Dec. 8, installing a secondary containment structure. Flint is looking for thousands more workers, just like these.

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Calgary– Think you have challenges filling a few empty positions? Try being one of the largest oil and gas service companies in North America with over 82 locations. Flint Energy Services has a strong workforce of 10,000 employees and is looking for thousands of people in the coming years. Brent Fraser works as a strategic workforce planning adviser for Flint’s human resources department. He’s got a big job ahead of him. “My role is to look at where we’re going to be getting our workforce for the next three to five years,” he said. There’s a tall order to fill. “Between three and five years from now, we are looking at hiring between 10,000 to 14,000 valued employees, so where are we going to get them?” Fraser queried. That number of people is required to fill positions formed by growth and vacated by turnover. The growth side is a huge factor, with an intention of doubling the company’s workforce in five years, a task he acknowledges will be difficult. ɸ Page B25

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Exploring options to ¿ll a burgeoning workforce ɺ Page B24

ing in colleges and tech schools, redeploying ex“There are some isting workers, looking at markets we have to tap under-represented work into that we haven’t yet,” groups such as women he said. “I think every and Aboriginal peoples company will deal with and hiring from other the same thing. I think industries. Fraser noted it’s going to be very com- there is a preference to petitive out there.” hire people who live near Flint has operations operations; however, to in 82 locations through- meet the shortage of out North America, in- skilled labour, the comcluding the recent acqui- pany recruits nationally sition of Carson Energy and internationally when Services, which has over needed. 14 locations in SaskatchCreating partnerewan and Manitoba and ships with post-secondis now a part of Flint. ary institutions is a focus The pool of available of the company. Working people is getting smaller with schools like Lakeas baby boomers retire. land College in LloydYet there is a strong de- minster and Red Deer mand for skilled trades College to name two, – pipefitters, electricians, creates opportunities for welders and truck driv- graduates to gain valuers, just to name a few. able work experience. “We have 148 differ- The idea is to encourage ent job types within the a career with Flint down company,” he pointed the road while providing out. “Our goal is to find skilled workers to all inworkers whose values are dustry. aligned with our compaIn places where emny’s values, and for us to ployees are being let go commit to them for the from other companies, long term.” Flint is looking to re“We’re trying to ex- cruit. “We’re trying to haust everything,” Fraser partner with out-placesaid. ment agencies, looking This includes recruit- for people recently laid

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off,” he said. For example, they are piloting a program with a Calgarybased agency in the new year. Asked about turnover, Fraser noted, “It’s a competitive market out there. The market’s picking up.” He pointed out that a person can quit a job and have another one readily available. Flint offers a pension plan, and as Fraser put it, “very good benefits.” Flint also offers ongoing training, with Fraser saying, “We’ve got great internal training programs.” If an employee is interested in a post-secondary program that is applicable to their work, the company will look at ways to support our employee's personal or job growth plan.

B25

This Carson Energy Services truck could be seen going to work east of Lampman. Carson’s parent company, Flint Energy Services Ltd., is seeking thousands of new employees in the coming years.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Buddy referrals for 'toughnecks' Precision Drilling has big plans, with many new rigs on the drawing board. But finding people to operate them is a challenge. Even now, the number of experienced hands is a limiting factor. “So far, we would have more rigs working if we had more people,” said Precision recruitment manager Aron Ferchuk in an interview with Pipeline News. The company already runs a wide-spread advertising campaign, from newpapers to billboards and radios, looking for “toughnecks.” One innovative program the company has pursued is personal referrals. “It’s been successful in Canada,” said Ferchuk, who noted there have been over 200 referrals on the drilling and well servicing sides. The program works like this: a Precision employee fills out a referral form detailing themselves and the person they are referring. There are two bonuses attached. The first is a $500 cash bonus to the referring employee upon hire. “Referred employees must work their first day and satisfy applicable pre-employment test-

ing and background checks. In addition, field employees must successfully complete rig-based and classroom employee orientations.” The second bonus of $500 cash comes to the referring employee if the new hire lasts eight months. Asked if some people took advantage of the bonus and then quit, Ferchuk said there were a few, and that was a risk that they took. But the program has been a success. And having the immediate gratification for the referring employee is important. “Word of mouth is always No. 1,” he said, noting the old phrase of “birds of a feather, flock together.” ɸ Page B27

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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49 new rigs on the way ɺ Page B26 While there are a lot of green hands out there, the company is particularly interested in experienced hands. Many of them left the drilling industry after the recession of 2009 and found other work, according to Ferchuk. The company plans on building 49 drilling rigs in Canada and the United States, according to a Dec. 6 press release. The company also announced Dec. 6 the decommissioning of 36 Tier 3 drilling rigs and 13 service rigs from its fleet. Following the decommissioning and planned new build deliveries as of Dec. 31, 2011, Precision expects its rig fleet will stand at 338 rigs, consisting of 188 rigs in Canada, 144 rigs in the United States and six rigs internationally.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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Palliser doubles output, posts net loss in third quarter Palliser Oil & Gas Corporation has more than doubled its heavy oil acreage this year and amassed numerous prospects for growth. The company’s SWD facilities at Lloydminster and Manitou have allowed it to restart shut-in wells and continue to expand production in both of these projects. At Manitou, additional pipeline and pump installations were completed in October, which significantly increased total disposal capacity, allowing further optimization of production and restarting shut-in wells. Increased disposal capacity plus the drilling of one new well saw production at Manitou increase 77 per cent from 231 bpd in the second quarter to 410 bbls a day in the third quarter. Similarly at Lloydminster, completion of the SWD facilities plus drilling of one well enabled the company to ramp up production by 301 per cent from 74 bbls a day in the second quarter to 297 bbls a day in the third quarter. Starting in the fourth quarter, the company expects to realize similar gains at Edam, where new SWD facilities are currently in the final construction stages. Production at Edam has been reduced from 798 bbls a day in the second quarter to 560 bbls a day in the third quarter, primarily as a result of struggling to keep highwater-cut wells optimized and shut-

ting in three wells in anticipation of the startup of the SWD facilities. However, Palliser expects to see significant production gains with implementation of the SWD facilities, which will enable it to ramp up production by optimizing existing wells, reactivating eight shut in wells, and bringing onstream its six new fourthquarter wells. In the third quarter the company experienced further delays to the SWD projects at Edam due to unexpected operational issues with two of the SWD re-entry wellbores. The continued delay of the Edam SWD projects further reduced production in the third quarter and into the fourth quarter, as it generally takes a full quarter to fully realize production gains on new drills and new reactivations. Palliser doesn’t expect the full impact of these added production volumes will be realized until the first quarter of 2012. As the timing of the SWD, drilling and re-activation projects was further delayed, Palliser decided to change the scope of the new salt water disposal facilities at Edam, Manitou and Lloydminster. All of the SWD facilities have been expanded to take trucked volumes and inject at higher pressures, which will enable the company to maximize capacity at each facility.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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Wet weather impacts Saskatchewan oil revenue Saskatchewan expects lower-than-budgeted oil revenue mainly as a result of wet spring and summer conditions reducing production. Saskatchewan released their second fiscal quarter reports at the end of November on the heels of Alberta’s release the previous week, which expects higher-than-forecast non-renewable resource revenue thanks to a surge in land sales. Saskatchewan said it remains on track to balance the provincial budget, despite increased flooding expenses and an uncertain global economy. Its mid-year report anticipates a pre-transfer surplus of $25 million and a balance in the Growth and Financial Security Fund of $694 million at yearend. “We are extremely fortunate that we have the resources to respond to a second consecutive year of extensive flooding,” Finance Minister Ken Krawetz said in a prepared statement. “Our government has ensured we have an appropriate reserve in the Growth and Financial Security Fund and it remains in place to respond to such challenges.” Flooding costs are offset by the current strength in the potash sector. Royalties are expected to exceed earlier estimates by $207 million as a result of higher prices and volumes. Saskatchewan real GDP growth is now expected to be 3.1 per cent in 2011 and 2.7 per cent in 2012. Nominal GDP growth is now forecast to be 11.2 per cent in 2011 and 7.6 per cent in 2012. Non-renewable resource revenue is projected to be up $46.6 million from budget to $2.88 billion. A $151.4 million decrease in Crown land sales revenue is more than offset by an increase in potash revenue. Oil revenue is projected to be down $26.5 million from budget and now is projected at $1.38 billion for the fiscal year - down $5.3 million from first quarter - primarily as a result of wet spring and sum-

mer conditions reducing production. Higher average oil prices since the budget release have largely been offset by a higher exchange rate. The mid-year oil projection incorporates a 201112 average West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil price of US$95.28 and an average value of the Canadian

dollar of 100.36 US cents. For comparison, WTI oil prices averaged $94.77 through the end of October. During budget deliberations, WTI was projected to average $93.75 for the fiscal year. Lower natural gas prices have resulted in a $2.8 million decrease in revenue to $19.7 million.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Safety Àrst Enbridge presented of $7,500.00 to the Macoun Fire Dept on Dec. 12. Arnie Feser, left, is the Macoun Fire Chief and the person on the right making the presentation on behalf of Enbridge is Nick Benoit who is an Enbridge Employee and Macoun volunteer ÀreÀghter.

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Gibson completes acquisition Gibson Energy Inc. has completed its acquisition of Palko Environmental Ltd. in mid-December, pursuant to a plan of arrangement under the Business Corporations Act (Alberta). The plan of arrangement was approved by approximately 99.99 per cent of the votes cast by Palko securityholders at the special meeting of securityholders held on Dec. 7. Gibson issued a total of 2.38 million common shares and paid approximately $5.8 million in cash to acquire the Palko shares it did not already own (being approximately 61 per cent of

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

C-Section

January 2011

Betts Drilling Rig 1 began operations Nov. 28.

Betts Drilling sends ¿rst rig out, building second Story and photos by Brian Zinchuk Carnduff – It didn’t take long for Bob Betts and his crew to get back into the drilling business. On November 28, Betts Drilling Rig 1 went to work in southeast Saskatchewan. The company has an ongoing contract for Elkhorn Resources, and will be working relatively close to their Carnduff home base, where a shop is planned for construction in the spring. Starting a new company from scratch, one might think it would be hard to find employees. That wasn’t the case. “We basically had all our crews for the whole build of the rig,” Betts said. “Most of our guys were with us from start to finish.” The project began May 15, 2011. The first month was sorting out the paperwork and parts. Construction began in mid-June. Do-All Metal Fabricating was the contractor. They built the derrick and sub-structure at their Nisku, Alta., shop. Both are API rated to 4,000 metres. The rest of the buildings were built at the Estevan location, while the centre section, which includes the drawworks, came together at the Glenburn, North

Dakota location. The derrick and substructure ended up there too, where they were completed. Painting and testing took place in Estevan. Betts is no stranger to building rigs. Prior to the launch of Betts Drilling, he was the operations manager with Totem Drilling, which was also based in Carnduff before being purchased by CanElson drilling a year-and-a-half ago. He’s general manager of the company that bears his name. “There are lots of new innovations on the rig,” Betts said. “There was lots of R&D on the project. The Generation II Rig Control Module is wireless. It eliminates air lines and air controls. It’s all electronic. We designed it along with Mustang Controls. “It’s something I always wanted to do.” (See related story, page C3-C4) Indeed, he’s already got lots of plans for the next generation after that, noting that there are “unlimited options.” Generation I, he noted, was electric over hydraulic. Generation II is completely wireless. For Generation III, he talks of remote control systems. One would incorporate a beltpack to raise and lower the derrick, for instance, allowing workers to be away from the equipment when that takes place. ɸ Page C2

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

When the work is close to home, it’s easier to ¿nd hands ɺ Page C1 Another consideration is running the basic features of the catwalk, but he added there are some safety issues they need to consider, such as ensuring it would not be activated while a person is on the catwalk. Betts Rig 1 is a telescopic double drilling rig, API rated to a ver-

tical depth of 4,000 metres. It can handle 6,000 metres horizontally. “It’s designed for the deeper Bakken wells and longer legs,” Betts said. He explained that horizontal reach is limited by vertical depth, as you can only push so much. “We’re capable of doing whatever a company wants. We could

easily do 5,050 metre measured depth. It’s capable of drilling the deepest horizontal well that has been drilled in Saskatchewan so far.” The company is coming out of the gate with not one, but two rigs right off the bat. “We’re about 80 per cent complete on Rig 2,” he said. Construction start-

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ed in mid-July, a month after Rig 1. “We’re hoping to have it out for later-January,” he said. Both are expected to work in their backyard, so to speak, which makes it easier for recruiting. “The guys are all going to be close to home, within an hour drive,” Betts said, adding that makes it easy to find hands. “If a rig is closer to a guy’s home, it makes it easier to recruit.” As of mid-December, they didn’t have everyone in place for Rig 2 yet. To keep the budget under control, the company is building the second rig with fewer people. Betts is also thinking about Rig 3, which could be started in 2012. However, he found from previous experience that once you get beyond a certain size, the company is less manageable. He noted it was tougher once Totem added Rigs 5 and 6. The current plan is to eventually have four

rigs. Brent Ruthven is the field supervisor for the company, and also rig manager for Rig 1. Rig

2 will be managed by Mike Picard. They, along with mechanic Trent Heiser, all have ownership stakes, Betts said.

The new rig is capable of 4,000 metres vertical depth.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

C3

“I should have

Bruce McKenzie looks up momentarily from the wiring box he was busy sorting out.

said ‘maybe,’ but I said ‘yes’ and away we went.

”

– Bruce McKenzie

New control system forgoes air lines Estevan – In the last few days before Betts Drilling Rig 1 went out on its first hole on Nov. 28, the final stages of its assembly in Estevan were a flury of activity. In the middle of all that you could find Bruce McKenzie of Mustang Controls, face in an electrical box, doing the final installation work on a new and innovative control system for the rig. Instead of conventional air lines, the system uses wireless controls, eliminating the plumbing of numerous air lines found on your typical rig. A few days after Betts Rig 1 went out, McKenzie told the tale of how it came into being: “We started working with Bob (Betts) in the late ’90s when he was a field superintendent for Big Sky Drilling. Bob is always looking at ways to do things safer. He really thinks about his boys all the time. He was our first big order for our new Crown Alert system. He did the whole rig fleet. He also did his whole Totem fleet.

“It’s interesting to note: Bob was the first to do this. The Crown Alert system is now on over 750 rigs worldwide. “In July, Bob called me up and said he was going to build again. He asked what I would think of designing a total PLC control module for his new fleet. I have to admit, I had my reservations, as no one has ever gone this way for with a conventional rig before. He also said could we supply him with an API BOP system as well? “I should have said ‘maybe,’ but I said ‘yes’ and

away we went. “I met with Bob’s crew and the drawworks builder. It all made perfect sense to have a central processing control system and, as all the requests for various options poured in from all directions, we started building. “Some of the features we came came up with were as follows: We can control all normal rig functions wirelessly. Of course the system is faster and safer than conventional air controls. ɸ Page C4

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Mustang Controls designs new system ɺ Page C3 “There are three ESD buttons located on the rig. The driller has one, the doghouse has one, and the accumulator has one. The emergency shutdown buttons kill the pump motor, the drawworks motor and

apply the crown saver. “All hydraulics are electric-over, so there are no dangerous valves in the driller’s face. With the drawworks and pump being electricover controls, there was a noteworthy reduction in building costs and, of

course, increased reliability with no air controls to fail or freeze up. “Some examples of things we can monitor and control with the system are: transmission shifting; temperature of the mud pump, gear box and power end; oil pres-

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sure of the chain lube and gear box lube on the drawworks. “Due to the computer-based control system, the possibilities are endless. The possibility of having rig parameters displayed on the Internet is a no-brainer. Logging mud pump lubrication pressure and temperature, as well as the torque applied the drill string is in the software design stage. “We supplied the accumulator system and blowout preventors. Both are API-rated. Many oil companies and government agencies are looking closer at the equipment we use on rigs. Using API-rated and certified equipment ensures you have the best available. Bob’s standards are the highest I have seen – API-certified mast, sub, accumulator and BOPS. I have seen a lot of contractors cutting

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corners on this stuff. It really does not pay in the long run as the lowest price leads to the highest maintenance, downtime and equipment failure, which can lead to accidents. “As you walk up to Betts Rig 1, you at first just see another conventional teledouble. But on closer inspection, you realize you are in the presence of the most tech-

nologically advanced conventional rig in Canada, a true landmark rig. I’d like to thank our automation crew, led by Cory Grajkowski for another job well done, and of course, Bob Betts for giving us the opportunity to design and build the system, as well as Bob’s crews for their input and help with the Generation II Rig Control Module.”

The driller’s control station is wireless on the new Betts Drilling Rig 1. The system was built by Mustang Controls Ltd.

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C5

Journeyman training opens up future options “We had 19 kids come to our session in a classroom,” he said. Several of those expressed an interest in the field, Lozinski said. At the booth, they had several props to show what Tarpon staff work with. “Everyone’s interested in electricity. Try to live a day without electricity,” Dutka said. “Our wages are based on a percentage of what

Trevor Dutka, left, and David Lozinsky of Tarpon Energy Services were seeking out young people interested in the electrical and instrumentation Àelds at the Estevan Comprehensive School career fair on Nov. 9.

Estevan – Tarpon Energy Services is looking to recruit people right after high school, with the intention of training them to become journeypersons in short order. That’s according to the two Estevan Tarpon managers who attended the Estevan Comprehensive School career fair on Nov. 9. “We’re electrical instrumentation contractors in the oilfield,” said David Lozinsky. He’s the branch manager with Tarpon’s Estevan branch and looks after instrumentation. He

noted Tarpon staff wire and maintain wells and batteries. “We’re here to recruit good young people,” Lozinsky said. Trevor Dutka, who is responsible for the electrical side of the business in the Estevan location, said new hires basically have to have an interest in the job. They work with a journeyman at all times. Every year apprentices go to SIAST until they receive their journeyperson certification. That will allow them to get their provincial and interprovincial tickets.

ESTEVAN

Dutka personally is a journeyman electrician, while Lozinsky is a journeyman instrumentation technician. “We were here two years ago,” Dutka said. It paid off. “We have a couple of young guys that are now third year apprentices.

a journeyman makes,” he said. Those wages start at $18 an hour, and have progressive increases of about $4 an hour after each session at SIAST. Asked about why a young person would choose to go to work as an electrical apprentice as opposed to on a service rig, where they could make more money initially, Dutka said, “In four years, you’ll have the

same thing in your back pocket, but after those four years, you can work pretty much anywhere in the world. “Quick money isn’t always the answer. You need an education.” Regarding the impending “grey out” of retiring baby boomers, Dutka said, “Within the next 10 years, there will be a shortage of electricians.”

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Successful staf¿ng in a tight market Saskatoon – David Dzeryk said it all when he stood up before the end of the Successful Staffing seminar in Estevan on Dec. 7. Expressing his regrets, he said, “I have to leave early. I’m short staffed.” The operator of Estevan’s Great Canadian Oil Change wasn’t the only one short on people, and his comment

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more. Now she’s happy to see something handwritten on a piece of paper torn out of a coilbound book, or cut and pasted into an e-mail. “This whole area of the province is Fort Mac,” she said, noting there are not enough people. The same jobs are in high demand, such as picker operators. While there is little control you can have over the demand side, she noted, “We have control over what type of company we are, and what type of company we are to work for. A lot of things are out of our control.” Flexibility, for instance, is important. Black and white policies can be stifling. One of the key things in developing staff is ensuring they know their jobs. That begins right from the get-go, with a written job offer defining what they are expected to do, and can expect in return. “Look at who has been successful in the past,” she said, noting it is indicative of the future. One manager told Brownridge it takes three years to get productivity out of someone. The first year you make your mistakes, the second year you correct them, and the third year you actually make money.

Social media is a productivity killer, she warned. Housing, or lack thereof, is a significant barrier to recruiting. Brownridge offered four avenues to deal with the issue. The first is to leave the new employee to find their own. The second is to offer them a place to land, such as staff housing for a set amount of time until they can find their own place. The third if to offer living away allowance. Finally, the company can buy staff housing and provide housing themselves. “It’s a side business you have to get into,” she said, but added since you are paying the person, you can expect to get your rent cheques. Asked if that is something of a “company store” concept, she said, “It is.” Employees will typically look at just the bottom line when comparing benefits – how much do they get paid. Brownridge suggested costing out all benefits, such as fuel provided, rent, health, pension and the like, to show the true amount the employee is getting. Suddenly a $40,000 job is revealed to be a $56,000 job. “They realize their bottom value is higher,” she said. ɸ Page C7

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

C7

Housing, lack of female participation in workforce are common challenges ɺ Page C6 In 2008 when the rest of the country was in recession, it was somewhat easier to poach people in other parts of Canada. “I was in Ontario like a dirty shirt,” she said. That’s not so easy now, and a lot of companies are looking to foreign workers. Doing so requires a labour market opinion which essentially says that you’ve widely advertised to Canadians, and were still unable to find the people required. There’s a key demographic that’s missing from the equation, and it’s a large one. “I’m missing wives,” she said, pointing out that in many cases, when the husband is making good money, many wives are not in the workforce. That’s also reflected in a “substantial baby boom,” she said. Two generations – those in their 20s and 30s, are having babies at the same time, resulting in long wait lists for daycare. That further reduces the number of women in the workforce. “The high cost of daycare is keeping people at home,” she said. In seeking employees, Brownridge listed a wide variety of methods, from newspapers to job websites like Monster.ca and SaskJobs.ca. One targeted Facebook ad landed an engineer, she noted. A company website with a careers section is important as well. “You want to make it as easy as possible to apply,” she said. Many resumes are submitted by e-mail, and at night. She doesn’t wait until closing days to call people, but will often try to line up the interview within minutes of receiving an e-mailed resume. Up to 75 per cent of resumes she gets from SaskJobs.ca postings are from foreign workers, she noted. Yet she sees few Americans applying. North Dakota and Montana are exactly like us, she said. “You don’t have many Americans apply because I think there are so many stereotypes that ‘It’s all igloos and so cold.’” There is a visa process under NAFTA, she said, which simplifies things if you have a degree in a listed application. Once you have an applicant, it’s important to conduct good interviews, not just seeing if they can fog a mirror, according to Brownridge. Employees often fear interviews, she noted. Take notes. Don’t ask hypothetical questions, but rather ask about past experiences, such as “give me an example of when you’ve done...” “If I can’t answer it myself, it’s not a good question.” Compensation is very important, so be sure to cover it. She will sometimes use that as a screening tool before the interview. Ask what they are look-

Level Best Technologies Ltd. • Fluid Levels • Dynamometers • Build-Ups • Fall-Offs • Foam Depressions • Casing Compressors

Several interested parties, from an oil change outÀt to truckers took part in a stafÀng seminar in Estevan on Dec. 7.

ing for regarding compensation, not what they make now. Also take time to put people at ease, Brownridge said. Focus on learning about the person’s ability. But don’t make decisions too early.

Gibson Welding Ltd. Oilfield Trucking & Rentals

861-1280 861-1280 Jason 861-2567 John

John

Fax 842-1707 gibsonwelding10@hotmail.com P.O. BOX 926, WEYBURN, SK S4H 2L2

780 barrel tank pressures from 4 oz. PSI

Reference checks are important, she offered, but added when giving them, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” Once a person is hired, it’s important to provide regular evaluations, not just once a year.

35, 28 30 & 23 • 45,•35, 23 Ton TonPickers Pickers • Bed Truck • Bed Truck • Pipe Custodian • Pipe Custodians • Pipe Racks • Pipe Racks • Rig Matts • Rig Matts • Flarestack Sales & Rentals • Flarestack Sales & Rentals • Tubing Trailers • 400• 400 BBLBBL Test Tank Sales Test Tank Sales&&Rental Rental • Wellhead Sales & Installation • Wellhead Sales & Installation • Backhoe & Skid Steer • Backhoe & Skid Steer • Steamer • Steamer • Crew Truck • Test Separators • Test Separators • Work Strings • Work Strings • Light Towers • Light Towers • COR CertiÀ ed • COR Certified

D 16 to

100 Barrel FRP Poptank 10’ diameter x 7.6’ high 400 Barrel 12’ diameter x 20’ high 500 Barrel 1 piece fibreglass Tank 15’ diameter x 16’ high or 12’ diameter x x25’ high

oz. PSI.

650 Barrel 1 piece fibreglass Tank 15’ diameter x 20’ high 780 Barrel 1 piece fibreglass Tank 15’ diameter x 25’ high

Also Manufacturers of: • Fibreglass Belt Guards • Internal Fibreglass of Steel Tanks • Tank Skimmers • Insulated Wellhead Shelters

ESTEVAN PLASTIC PRODUCTS LTD. Dave: 306-461-4322 Pat: 306-861-9986 Josh: 306-461-4323

Your One Stop Shop For Fibreglass Tanks

Toll Free: 1-888-638-6433 or 1-306-634-6400 Plant: 1-306-388-2344 Fax: 1-306-634-7828 email: eppl@sasktel.net website: www.estevanplastics.ca

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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 January 2012

C9

Growth of career ads indicative of job market in certain areas Estevan, Weyburn, Swift Current, North Battleford – A clear indication of the hot labour market in Saskatchewan’s oilpatch has been the growth of the career ad sections of local newspapers and Pipeline News, Saskatchewan’s petroleum monthly newspaper. However, it depends on the region. The southeast, for instance, it hot. The southwest is not. Brant Kersey, general manager for the Estevan Mercury and publisher for Pipeline News, said, “There’s been a large inux. Our career section in the Mercury has more than doubled, from two-and-ahalf pages to ďŹ ve pages, in the past year. “In Pipeline News, it’s more than doubled, and we’ve started highlighting it. Where a company might be more likely to put in a one-o ad in a local paper for one position or on a website, the nature of the advertising indicates an ongoing need for people, according to Kersey. “With Pipeline News, as a monthly, it shows they are constantly needing people,â€? Kersey said. “These people are looking for bodies constantly.â€? Both of those papers have added dedicated career sections to their websites. Website analytics reveal that the careers section for the Estevan Mercury website is second only to the home page for page views, comprising seven per cent of page views. That equates to more than 60,000 page views from the beginning of 2011 until Dec. 12, out of a total of almost 900,000 page views. In Pipeline News, roughly 70 per cent of the career ads originate in southeast Saskatchewan. Kersey said that may be due to clients purchasing ads in

both the local paper, the Mercury, and Pipeline News, which has a wider base. (Sales for the region are handled by the same sta ). Other publications have started up their own jobs publications, and are having success, he noted.

Asked if newspaper career advertising is still relevant in the digital age, Kersey said, “When most people are looking for real estate and jobs, they look at the newspaper ďŹ rst. They have a reputation that ‘this is real.’ ɸ Page C10

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Innovation Assured, Value Delivered Prairie Petro-Chem, a Clariant Oil Services business, is a leader in the development and application of oil and gas treating compounds and industrial chemicals. Our expanded geographic position and talented and knowledgeable team of experts are ready to help you improve your operations. Contact us today to learn more about our chemical technologies and services. Prairie Petro-Chem, A Clariant Oil Services Business: 738-6th Street, Estevan, SK S4A 1A4. Phone Orders: 306-634-5808. Fax Orders: 306-634-6150. Email Orders: orders@petrochem.ca. General Inquiries: 306-634-7362. General Fax: 306-634-6694. Web: www.oil.clariant.com. Twitter: @ClariantOilSvcs

What do you need?

C10

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Southeast hottest area for career ads Brant Kersey, general manager for the Estevan Mercury and publisher for Pipeline News, looks over the expansive careers section for the Estevan Mercury.

Protect Your Flowlines Bedding Sand • screened over a 3/16” screen • specialized for fiberglass pipeline

ɺ Page C9 “We have a proven track record of over 100 years. Most newspapers encompass the web as well, with career ads appearing in print and online. And do print career ads work? Yes, according to Kersey. “They are being effective for people. People are saying they work. We have a good success rate.” Proof of that shows in the ongoing ads being run. Kersey noted many companies have a desire to have a large pool of resumes around. “I think locally and provincially, the Mercury and Pipeline News are viable options,” he concluded. With the Weyburn Review, they have been consistently running three pages of career ads a week, according to publisher Darryl Ward. About 60 per cent of that is from the oilpatch. Over the course of 2011, he said, “At first it was down, now it’s up. “It’s been strong for two or three years.” He noted there is a strong desire for clients to see the ad appear online as well. Such ads appear in the Weyburn Review, Weyburn & Area Booster, and online. Doug Evjen, general manager for the Swift Current Prairie Post, said they are getting very few career ads, and the ones they do get are primarily in retail and for farm equipment dealers. While the first six months of 2011 saw growth in the career ads, the last three months have been in decline. He suspects it has to do with the delay of the Keystone XL pipeline, the multi-billion dollar megaproject that would have cut right through southwest Saskatchewan, passing near Shaunavon. “It’s quiet until they decide what to do with Keystone,” he said. “Everyone’s waiting for the big boom.” The Battlefords are a community in transition job-wise, with two new power plants, Maple Leaf in the process of shutting down its bacon plant, and Grit Industries moving its manufacturing operations to the city. Rallyemont Energy is also in the process of getting approval for a new SAGD plant north of the city at Prince. Yet on the career ad side, there hasn’t been much action. Battlefords News-Optimist publisher Alana Schweitzer said they are seeing the regulars such as the banks, but few from the oilpatch. “A few truck drivers, maybe,” she said. (Editor’s Note: Pipeline News, Estevan Mercury, Weyburn Review, Battleford’s News-Optimist, and Swift Current Prairie Post are all wholly or partially owned by Glacier Media Inc.)

We’ve been told we have the best legs in town.

Swayze Concrete Ltd. Swayze Concrete Ltd. Dennis • 861-1186 1531 Railway Ave., Weyburn, SK Fax: 306-842-0414

Randy • 482-7647 Hwy 318 North, Carnduff, SK Fax: 306-482-3350

Ph: 306-842-6558

Ph: 306-482-3617

s o ’ y n b n 9th a r G

1305 - 9th Street Estevan • 634-6456

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

C11

Atikwa Brings On More Manitoba Production Atikwa Resources Inc. has brought on production its fourth and ďŹ fth horizontal wells targeting SpearďŹ sh light oil in the Pierson area of Manitoba. The recently completed 6-24 and 15-30 wells are the ďŹ rst two of a threewell program that the company drilled throughout October and early November. The third well is expected to be fractured within the next week. The 6-24 well is currently producing at over 200 bbls of uid per day with an oil cut of approximately 40 per cent. The second well at 15-30, which was put on production a few days after the 6-24 well, is also producing at over 200 bbls of uid per day with a 20 per cent oil cut. The company expects that the oil cut in both wells will continue to increase over the next week or so as the water based fracturing uid injected into the formation during the fracturing operation is replaced with oil. Atikwa said the wells are showing strong inow characteristics and man-

agement believes that these wells should equal or exceed the performance of its previous wells in the area. The ďŹ rst well drilled in the Pierson area this year was the 11-26 well, which was put on production March 11, 2011, with an initial production rate of approximately 150 bbls of oil per day. Over the ďŹ rst six months, the 11-26 well stabilized to a production rate of approximately 100 bbls per day. The company has licensed two additional wells in the area -- the drilling of the ďŹ rst of these wells is scheduled to begin on Dec. 9, with the second well anticipated to be drilled at some time before the end of the year. With the addition of these two wells the company will have drilled a total of eight (5.3 net) SpearďŹ sh wells in the area and expects to exit this round of drilling with oil production between 400 to 500 bbls per day net to the company. Assuming a drilling density of four wells per quarter section, the company has 21 (net) additional locations in the area for future inďŹ ll drilling.

Resource Guide a l t u s g e o m a t i c s . c o m

Lloyd Lavigne • Kirk Clarkson

Cordell Janssen

Owners/Managers

Specializing in well site and pipeline surveys Yorkton 306.783.4100

Swift Current 306.773.7733

Edmonton 800.465.6233

Weyburn 306.842.6060

Lloydminster 780.875.6130

Calgary 866.234.7599

Regina 800.667.3546

Medicine Hat 403.528.4215

Grande Prairie 780.532.6793

5315 - 37th Street Provost, AB T0B 3S0

6506 - 50th Avenue Lloydminster, AB

Phone: (780) 875-6880

Phone: (780) 753-6449

Fax: (780) 875-7076

24 Hour Service Specializing in Industrial & Oilfield Motors

District Manager Downhole

93 Panteluk Street, Kensington Avenue N Estevan, Saskatchewan PHONE: 306-634-8828 • FAX: 306-634-7747 cordell.janssen@nov.com • www.nov.com

RICK CORMIER Manager

Box 208

Estevan, SK

S4A 2A3

Box 609 Carlyle, SK S0C 0R0 www.truetorq.ca

461-8471 • 461-8472 • 461-8473 Call: Clinton Gibbons

BIG D’S LEASE SERVICE Backhoe Towing Mowing Fencing Snow Removal Road Grader Gravel Supplies & Hauling

P.O. Box 544 Stoughton, Sask. S0G 4T0

LECLAIR TRANSPORT General OilďŹ eld Hauling

Lyle Leclair Cell: 306-421-7060

(306) 457-7033 (306) 457-7673

Aspen Custom Trailers 6017-84th Street S.E. Calgary, AB T2C 4S1

[T] 403 236 2244 [F] 403 236 8829 [C] 403 813 6319

[Toll Free] 877 236 2244

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JUSTIN WAPPEL - Division Manager 401 Hwy. #4 S. Biggar, Saskatchewan PO Box 879 S0K 0M0 Ph (306) 948-5262 Fax (306) 948-5263 Cell (306) 441-4402 Toll Free 1-800-746-6646 Email: jwappel@envirotank.com www.envirotank.com

lancew@aspentrailer.com www.aspentrailer.com

Lance Wotherspoon Regional Sales Manager

Bus: (306) 634-8084 Cell: (306) 577-8833 Fax: (306) 453-6075 ttorq@hotmail.com

E

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Career Opportunities

C12

Hydrovac Operators and Swampers • Offering excellent wages • Excellent beneÀt package available • Willing to train if necessary • Safety tickets an asset • Operators must possess class 3A driver’s license • Living accommodation available

For more information call: Trevor at: 306-483-7777 or Kim at: 306-483-7722 Email resumes to: extremeexcavating@hotmail.com or fax to: 306-483-2082

Drivers Wanted Owner Operators DRIVER - OILFIELD Haul pipe and oilfield equipment to locations in SE Saskatchewan. Applicants must have a Class 1A driver’s licence and pass mandatory drug and alcohol testing. Safety tickets would be an asset. Duties include: load, haul pipe and supplies to destination in a safe and timely manner & unload. Maintain a clean and safe truck.

Benefits:

• Competitive wages • Flexible days off • Full time, permanent employment • Full benefits packages available • Clean, safe work environment

Interested applicants can fax to: 306-634-4258 or email: brenda.jensen@bbaxtertransport.ca

“Where your future matters”

It’s better here...

The economy in Saskatchewan is prospering and you should too! Redhead Equipment has developed a great reputation as an employer and partner in the community and we are proud to offer the following career opportunities in our six locations throughout the province. Parts Manager (Estevan) – We are seeking a passionate individual to assume responsibility for leading and developing all operations of the parts department. Parts Technician (Various) – Drawing on exceptional customer service skills and relevant experience this position supports our customers by serving all their parts related needs. Sales Personnel (Various) – This position is responsible for the sales and marketing of our diverse product lines and support. The successful candidate will be a motivated self-starter with above average inter-personal skills and a desire to grow with an aggressive company. Service Technician (Various) – Responsible for the maintenance and repair of heavy duty truck & trailer, agricultural and construction equipment. Redhead Equipment offers an industry leading compensation package, RRSP plan, advancement opportunities, on-going training and a positive work environment. If you are ready to take the next step in your career, forward your resume to careers@redheadequipment.ca

Redhead Equipment is committed to Employment Equity.

HUMAN RESOURCES 705 Henderson Drive, Regina, SK, S4N 6A8 E-mail: careers@redheadequipment.ca Fax: (306) 721.2899 www.redheadequipment.ca

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Apprentice & JourneymBn

Machinists

all levels of training considered

We are taking applications for a

FULL RIG CREW

WORK BASED OUT OF ESTEVAN - BENEFITS AVAILABLE - WAGES ABOVE INDUSTRY STANDARD

-

Career Opportunities

WE ARE EXPANDING

C13

APPLY TODAY! In person: 1009A 6th Street, Estevan Fax: 634-7754 Email: cliff@grimeswell.com www.grimeswell.com

L & C Trucking “Serving the Oil Patch for 55 Years”

Canyon is the fastest growing fracturing company in North America. We deliver quality customized pressure pumping and service solutions to the oil and gas industry, improving our industry one job at a time. If you’re looking for a career with a leading organization that promotes Integrity, Relationships, Innovation and Success, then we’re looking for you. Now hiring Canyon Champions for the following positions:

Picker Operators • Bed Truck Operators • Truck Drivers • Swampers Competitive wages, health plan, safety tickets an asset, but will train.

Supervisors: Fracturing, Nitrogen, Coil, Cement & Acid Operators: Fracturing, Nitrogen, Coil, Cement & Acid Class 1 or 3 Drivers Applicant Requirements:

f f f

Self-motivated Willing to work flexible hours Current drivers abstract

Why Canyon?

Apply in person with resume or fax or email to:

24 Hwy 39 E Estevan Attention: Norm Mack Fax: 634-8699 Email: normmack@lctrucking.ca

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Dynamic and rapidly growing company Premium compensation package New equipment 3 weeks vacation to start

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f f f f

Safety-focused Team oriented Clean Class 1 license an asset. Must have Class 3 or 5 (training provided)

Paid technical and leadership training Career advancement opportunities Paid flights for rotational program Seasonal work programs available

We thank all applicants; however only those selected for an initial interview will be contacted.

How to apply:

Resumes held in strict confidence

email: hr@canyontech.ca fax: (306) 637-3379 website: www.canyontech.ca

Permanent Full Time Positions

CREW FOREMAN/PIPELINE FOREMAN Wage negotiable depending on experience and qualifications. Safety certificates required (H2S, Confined Space, First Aid/CPR, TDG, Ground Disturbance Level 2). Minimum 5 years oilfield experience. PetroBakken Energy Ltd. is a premier, light oil exploration and production company targeting resource plays that offer growth and high netbacks.

2 SENIOR ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGIST (ESTEVAN) 2 FIELD MAINTENANCE COORDINATOR (ESTEVAN) 2 RECEPTIONIST, OPERATIONS ADMINISTRATOR (ESTEVAN) 2 FIELD SUPERINTENDENT (ESTEVAN) 2 OPERATORS - VARIOUS LEVELS (SE SASKATCHEWAN)

EQUIPMENT OPERATOR Class 1A license would be an asset. Applicants should be familiar with oilfield work/construction. Applicants must have safety tickets - H2S, Confined Space, First Aid/CPR, TDG. In this position you will operate trackhoes, backhoes, graders, cats, etc.

LABOURERS Wages negotiable. Safety tickets required (H2S, Confined Space, TDG, CPR and First Aid)

PetroBakken offers a competitive compensation and benefits package including relocation.

For more information about the above positions go to our website at www.petrobakken.com. If you or someone you know is interested in these positions, please send your resume to resumes@petrobakken.com. Please quote the name of the position in the subject line of the email. Thank you for your interest. Only those selected for interviews will be contacted.

Interested applicants can apply in person, mail or fax resumes to:

McGILLICKY OILFIELD PARTNERSHIP #6 Hwy 39 East, Box 843, Estevan, Sk. S4A 2A7 • Fax: 634-4575 No phone inquires please.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

CAREER OPPORTUNITY Business Description: Our Westlund Tren-dy Oil Lloydminster team is a customer driven group providing sales, logistics and technical support to our industrial customer base. Westlund is a leading national player in industrial PVF and this branch is a key part of our invest and grow strategy. Lloydminster is looking for an enthusiastic professional leader with high energy and a play to win attitude. Responsibilities: As Branch Manager, you are expected to act like an owner, building and managing a high performance customer service team. Duties include people development, expense control, and asset management. With an assigned sales territory, growth will result from strong techniques and established industry contacts. Branch Manager What you need to bring: • Proven leadership skills • University Degree • Strong analytical and decision making skills • Minimum 3 years experience in an industrial environment • Sales aptitude and expertise • Exceptional communication and organizational skills What we will provide: • Attractive compensation including profit sharing • Strong support on systems, products, logistics marketing, sourcing and pricing • National network committed to helping

If you are interested in exploring this challenge, please forward a copy of your current resume in confidence (to be received no later than January 16th) to:

Kevin O’Reilly V.P. & G.M. Westlund Fax: (905) 337-1471 Email: koreilly@westlundpvf.com www.westlundpvf.com

Now Hiring

Picker er Operators Operators & Swampers Swamp for Lloydminster, Provost, Drayton Valley and Kindersley

Résumés, including references, can be sent to:

Platinum Pumpjack Services Corp. PO Box 10207 Lloydminster, AB T9V 3A3 Fax: (780) 875-7149 Email: aoracheski @platinumenergy.net

PUMPING UNITS

Choose a CAREER with us in the vibrant oil industry! • Accepting applications. • Always focused on safe work. • Wages well above industry standard. • Health benefit plan (paid for by IWS). • Steady work with scheduled days off. • Room for advancement.

TO JOIN OUR TEAM Email your resume to jerry.iws@sasktel.net Fax (306) 634-2607 - Ph (306) 634-2336 Box 490 (477 Devonian St.) Estevan, SK S4A 2A5

www.independentwellservicing.com

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

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Career Opportunities Leading the Way www.CanElsonDrilling.com TSX: CDI

HSE COORDINATOR (Carlyle Office) CanElson Drilling Inc. is looking for a HSE Coordinator to support the HSE Department in areas of, but not limited to: • Rig Inspections • Incident / Accident Investigations & Report Tracking • Field Employee Orientations • Rig Specific Safety Programs • Become IN-HOUSE trainer (H2S Alive, WHMIS, TDG, Fall Arrest, Rig Rescue) Responsibilities: • Compliance with all Government “OH&S Acts & Regulations” • Become proficient with-in areas of safety leadership, safety management, audits • Control WCB reporting & tracking • Be a positive role model for all safety areas with-in CanElson • Manage PPE inventories • Maintain safety related files Pre-Requisites: • Minimum three years industry experience • Good communication skills • Proficient in EXCEL, Word and PowerPoint • Ability to work alone, self-motivator • Willingness to accept new roles • Minimum Class 5 motor vehicle license CanElson provides competitive salaries, as well as a full benefit plan. We are a leading provider of oilfield services in North America, with offices in Alberta, Saskatchewan, North Dakota, Texas and Mexico. Qualified individuals should send their resume to: Dennis.Steele@CanElsonDrilling.com Deadline for accepting resumes for this position Wednesday, January 18th. at noon. We thank all those who apply, but only those chosen for an interview will be contacted. No phone calls please.

30-5

NOW HIRING Frontier Peterbilt Sales Ltd. Lloydminster

Estevan

View All Careers at: www.frontierpeterbilt.com Frontier Peterbilt Sales Ltd. is an enterprising truck dealership with operations in Saskatoon, Regina Lloydminster and Estevan. Our ongoing development and phenomenal growth in the Truck Sales industry are evidence of the company's commitment to offering customers a comprehensive range of products which perform at optimum efficiency and provide valuable benefits. We have built a high level of customer trust and satisfaction through our new and used truck inventory and parts availability and reliability, strong geographic presence, premium service, and unparalleled value. We have a strong mandate to continue to grow in the marketplace and to provide quality service for sales, repairs, and maintenance.

Lloydminster & Estevan xHeavy Duty/Truck & Transport Technicians Now hiring 2nd, 3rd or 4th year apprentice or Journeyperson Technicians to:

x Provide quality repairs/maintenance x Advise shop foreman of additional repairs/maintenance required

Frontier Peterbilt Sales Ltd. continually offer opportunities for our employees' career development, we have created an organization and a working environment aimed to attract, empower, reward, and retain the most dedicated, talented, and passionate individuals.

x Complete repair order annotations These positions offer a competitive and comprehensive compensation package.

Apply online today at: www.frontierpeterbilt.com While Frontier Peterbilt appreciates all applications received, we advise that only candidates under consideration will be contacted. Thank you for your interest for employment with Frontier Peterbilt Sales.

Workforce Accommodations Apply online at ptigroup.com/careers.php or send your resumé to ptijobs@ptigroup.com

C16

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Employment Opportunity

Brady Oilfield Services LP. Is currently accepting applications for:

is seeking a

1A Gravel Truck Drivers

MACHINIST / CNC OPERATOR Irwin’s Machining & Welding is a progressive, growth orientated company located in Oxbow, (southeast) Saskatchewan that provides manufacturing and repair services to the oilÀeld and agricultural industries.

We offer:

* Competitive Wages & Commission * Comprehensive BeneÀts Package: Life & Disability Insurance, Medical including Prescription drugs, Dental & Eye coverage. * RRSP retirement plan * Annual Fitness allowance * Quality focused & Team environment * Performance based bonus system * New CNC machines to work with

Equipment Operators

Safety Personnel

Weyburn / Halbrite Area

to keep up with increasing customer demands.

If you are interested in becoming part of the Target Team and enjoying our growth with us, let us know!

Please forward resume with copies of tickets to: resumes@targetsafety.ca or fax to 780-870-5359

We require people who possess a positive attitude, excellent work ethic and are able to problem solve and use critical thinking skills in a team orientated environment. Interested candidates submit resumes with references by January 6, 2012 to: Human Resource Manager

Email: michelle@irwinsmachine.com

Mail or Fax Resume Attn: Jeff Perry (Construction Manager) P.O. Box 271 Midale, Sask. S0C 1S0 Fax: (306) 458-2768 Email: jperry@brady.sk.ca

OVER 50 YEARS STRONG IN OILFIELD CONSTRUCTION ARNETT & BURGESS

QualiÀcations:

* Minimum Level 2 Apprentice; Journeyman an asset. * Pipe cutting & CNC experience preferred * Valid Driver’s licence

&

is an industry leader in Safety Services and is currently seeking

NOW COME JOIN OUR TEAM!

We’re hiring for various Pipeline construction projects in the Regina area. Over 50 years strong, Arnett & Burgess Oilfield Construction Limited safely provides quality pipeline construction, facility installation, pipeline integrity, custom fabrication, maintenance and related contruction services to the energy industry.

• PIPELINE LABOURERS • PIPELINE FOREMAN • SUPERINTENDENTS • HEAVY EQUIPMENT OPERATORS • WELDERS HELPERS • WELDERS WITH B PRESSURE • PIPE FITTERS For Inquiries please call: 403.290.7800

Warehouse/Shippers Receiver Loader Operator/Yard Person Duties include: Receiving and shipping of oilfield material. Delivery of materials to company locations. A valid class 5 driver’s license with a clean drivers abstract is required. Willing to train motivated individuals. Overtime required. Candidates must have: - A proven track record of achievement. - A passion to become a partner in a growing company. - A ability to excel in a fast-paced, creative environment. - Experience an asset but willing to train.

Interested applicants please forward resumes Attention: Ken Wallewein Fax: 306-634-2797 E-mail: ken.wallewein@apexdistribution.com

Exciting Opportunity in one of Canada’s 50 Best Manages Companies. Apex Distribution Inc. is a dynamic, employee owned oilfield supply and service company nationally recognized as one of Canada’s 50 Best managed companies. We are committed to providing superior customer service to the oilfield markets of Western Canada. We are looking to fill the following positions in Estevan, SK. Apex Distribution is focus on producing dramatic results for our investors, customers and manufacturers. The organization has developed a technically diverse team recognized for high levels of customer service. We expand our business as market conditions dictate and pursue opportunities that best fit all our stakeholders.

Combo Vac/Pressure Truck Drivers Wanted

Brady Oilfield Services LP. Weyburn, Halbrite and surrounding area. Minimum Class 3 Drivers License Required. OilÀeld Safety CertiÀcates an asset but not necessary. BeneÀts package available.

Send Resume and Drivers Abstract

P.O. Box 271 Midale, Sask. S0C 1S0 Fax: (306) 458-2768 sjuravle@brady.sk.ca kbrady@brady.sk.ca

Hiring

All positions require previous experience in Pipeline Construction. Previous experience on Pipeline Integrity projects is an asset.

For more details and other career opportunities please visit: www.abpipeliners.com

Oilfield Oilf O Oi lfie lf ie ld Construction ield C on onst st ruct stru ru ctio ct ion io n Limited Limi Li mi ted mite te d

Compensation: Highly Competitive wages Overtime Daily Subsistence

Preferred Certifications H2S Alive Standard First Aid & CPR

Required Certifications Driver’s License Ground Disturbance – Heavy Equipment Operators only

Please submit your resume to : info@abpipeliners.com

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Journeymen Electricians and Apprentices PowerTech Industries Ltd. in Estevan is seeking Journeymen Electricians and Apprentices for work in the Southeast Saskatchewan Oil & Gas Industry. Experience: 1 year (preferred) Safety Certificates are needed. 1st Aid/CPR, H2S, WHMIS. Applicants must have a valid driver’s license. Oilfield background preferred. Full benefits packages and RSP plan.

C17

Looking for

$ % ! $ $ &% & ! !* $ 795 & - * $ $ % & & & & % / ! + & %&$ & %)""!$& % $* % ) $ '! $ % $* %/ + % $* / % ) / ! #) " & $ & %/ +!$ % & ! ! '! + %& + & $ &$ & &1 !$ !$ & 9 %/ $ % ! % ) %&$! $ '! % "% + & )%&! $% - ! )% ! ! & ! % -/ ! ' ! ) &1 $ % ," $ & % !$ & ! !+ "!% '! % + & !)$ $ % ! & % $* * % ! %0

! ' % ! !# # ' ! % ! ' ! % ! ( "

Duties: Day to day electrical construction and maintenance in the oilfield.

$ % ! ! $% ! " ''* % $-/ " )% ! "$ % * &% " 1 -!) $ & $ %& )$& $ !$ '! !)& $ % ! & !* !""!$&) ' % " % ! &! """& & !$ "" - - , &! 28573 6591695:

Wage/Salary Info: Depending on experience & qualifications.

0 0

Vac Truck and Steamer Operators 1A or 3A driver’s license preferred. We offer: housing, competitive wages, full benefits package, safety bonuses

Fax resume to: 483-2132 or email amanda@courageoilfield.com

To Apply: Fax: (306) 637-2181, e-mail sschoff.pti@sasktel.net or drop off resume to 62 Devonian Street, Estevan, SK.

“Pipeline on Wheels� Ž

Sub-Contractors Wanted Do you have a Class 1 license and a professional attitude? Do you own your own truck with Ă uid pump and positive air shut-off? Heavy Crude is looking for you! We offer our sub-contractors:

Journeymen Picker Operators & Swampers

• Assigned Trailers • Regularly Updated Fleet • Regular Trailer Maintenance • Spare Trailers

• Safety Courses Available In-House • Scheduled Days Off • 24/7 Field Support

For more information or to apply, please contact us.

• Willing to apprentice swampers for Journeyman Ticket • First Aid & H2S an asset Send Resume and Drivers abstract to: Email: info@dekkeroilďŹ eld.com Fax: 780-874-9970 Drop in: 4501 62nd Ave Ph: 780-874-9960

WANTED • Crew Foreman • Labourers • Pressure Truck Driver • Journeyman Mechanic Fax resume to:

306-482-5213 Email resume to:

kriscarley@candnoilfield.com

Lloydminster, AB • Tel: 780-875-5358 Fax: 780-875-5825 • Toll Free: 877-875-5358 info@heavycrudehauling.com • www.heavycrudehauling.com

Do you want to work for a progressive company that takes safety seriously and uses today’s newest technologically advanced equipment? If your answer is “yesâ€?, we are interested in talking to you! We are currently seeking to ďŹ ll the following positions in the Provost, Consort and Lloydminster areas.

Well Servicing Division

Slant Rig Crew for Contract Work Service Rig Personnel - All positions All applicants must have a valid driver’s license, as well as all of the required industry training for the position they are applying for. We offer higher than industry standard wages, an exceptional employee beneďŹ ts package, several employee incentive programs and unlimited opportunity for advancement. If you want to grow with a company where you are known by your name and not your employee number, please forward your resume to:

CWC WELL SERVICES FAX: 780-875-1930 Recruiter@cwcwellservices.com

Quality people delivering quality service.

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Career

Opportunities Journeyman/Apprentice Electricians

Currently Hiring: - Supervisor/Foreman - Hydrovac Operators - Swampers

Oilfield & Commercial

Fax: (780) 872-5239

• Oilfield experience a definite asset • Assorted powered mobile equipment experience an asset • Knowledge of Estevan & area an asset • Flexible hours, competitive wages, benefits and bonus • Overtime always available If you are reliable, take pride in your workmanship and are looking to work for a company who values its employees

For more information call or email: Is currently seeking qualiÀed individuals to Àll the following positions:

• Downhole Fishing Tool Dispatcher

send resume to Harvey/Donna:

Doug Eichelberg (306) 861-7176 deichelberg@lonestarwest.com www.lonestarwest.com

• Shop Hand Competitive wages & benefit package available pselectric@sasktel.net FAX: 306-634-3043 • PH: 306-634-9888

Apply with resume to

Career opportunity

93 Escana Street or fax to (306) 634-4294 or mail to P.O. Box 1488 Estevan, SK S4A 2L7

Pump Unit Mechanic Helpers

ISO Coordinator (North Battleford location):

The ISO Coordinator is responsible for designing, developing, implementing and testing ISO procedures as well as driving and maintaining the overall Quality Management System (QMS) for Grit Industries Inc. Grit is working toward implementing an overall QMS for the company and the ISO Coordinator will lead this process from inception to ISO certiÀcation and beyond.

Required • Experience an asset but willing to train • First Aid & H2S certiÀcations an asset but willing to train. • Permanent full time position • Competitive wages, full beneÀt package

Labourers Required •

Tubular Repair Operator

Apply in person or fax resume to 306-634-7090

Hank’s Maintenance & Service Co. Ltd. 410 Mississippian Drive Estevan, Sask. S4A 2H7 No phone calls please!

Class 5 drivers licensed and safety tickets preferred.

•

• Class 1A drivers a must Competitive wages and excellence beneÀt package available.

Interested individuals can fax resume to (306) 634-8025

PERMANENT FULL TIME POSITIONS AVAILABLE

S

1A License (Class 5 for helpers) Drivers Abstract OilÀeld Tickets an Asset Submit resume and drivers abstract to: Email: grimessales@sasktel.net Fax: 306-487-2560

For more details please visit: http://gritindustries.com/ employmentISOCoord1110.php

Sales Manager (Lloydminster location):

The Sales Manager is responsible for driving all outside sales functions and operations while developing marketing programs. This individual is responsible for establishing plans and strategies to expand the customer base in the marketing area. Requirements: • Minimum 5 years working experience in sales and/or marketing • Excellent organizational, strategic, planning and implementing skills • Ability to process vague, abstract, verbal and written instructions • Strong presentation, written and verbal skills • ProÀcient with Microsoft OfÀce (Outlook, Excel, Word) • Class 5 drivers license • Able to handle high pressure situations and demanding deadlines

• Picker Operator • Picker Helpers • Truck Driver Requirements

Requirements: • Prior involvement in implementation of a QMS and ISO system • Experience in a manufacturing environment • 5+ years in a supervisory role • Experience with an Enterprise Resource Management System

For more details please visit: http://gritindustries.com/ employmentSalesMgr1111.php Savanna Well Servicing is seeking enthusiastic individuals to join our growing company. The following opportunities are available in Alberta and Saskatchewan as well as long term local work.

FLOORHANDS DRILLERS

DERRICKHANDS RIG MANAGERS

“Come join our growing family—make the connection” Savanna offers competitive rates and a comprehensive benefits package effective on your first day of work. Ask us about our Referral Program and how you can benefit!

SUBMIT YOUR RESUME

(INCLUDE INDUSTRY CERTIFICATIONS AND DRIVERS LICENCE)

Online: http://savanna.appone.com Email: savannacareers@savannaenergy.com CALL US Carlyle and surrounding area: 306 453 2616

S Savanna Well Servicing

Compensation will be based on experience. Please send resume and salary expectations to: Janice Van Berkel, Human Resources Manager via e-mail at: jvanberkel@gritindustries.com or via fax at: (780) 808.8415 We thank all applicants for your interest. However, only those considered for an interview will be contacted.

WWW.GRITINDUSTRIES.COM

PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Carson Energy Services is a wholly owned company of Flint Energy Services and provides energy services across Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Our employees’ safety is our foremost priority and our safety management system is world-class. Carson’s benefits package and training and development programs are one of the key reasons why candidates choose Carson as their ‘employer of choice’. At Carson, we provide employees with all of the tools they need to grow and excel both personally and professionally.

Building Leaders. Driving Success.

1Ͳ866ͲGOͲFLINT www.Ňintenergy.jobs

We are currently seeking applicants to work in our East Region locations at Lloydminster, Saskatoon, Shaunavon, Swift Current, Regina, White City, Halbrite, Lampman, Estevan, Carlyle, Alida, Wainwright, and Virden.

Heavy Duty Mechanics (Journeymen and Apprentice) Electricians (Journeymen and Apprentice) Welders (Journeymen and Apprentice) Pipefitters (Journeymen and Apprentice) Safety Personnel Crew Foreman HIRING NOW Labourers Equipment Operators Picker Operators Truck Drivers (Class 1 + Class 3) Directional Drilling Operators Instrumentation Mechanics (Journeymen and Apprentice)

APPLY NOW at www.flintenergy.jobs or call our Recruitment team at 1-866-GO-FLINT (1-866-463-5468)

PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

February 2012 Focus Contact your Sales Rep to be a part of the focus edition

CHEMISTRY

(CORROSION, INHIBITION, WELL INTERVENTION)

SE Sask and SW Manitoba - for all of your advertising needs contact: Ph: 306.634.2654 Fax: 306.634.3934

Cindy Beaulieu Sales Manager

Candace Wheeler

Deanna Tarnes

Kristen O’Handley

Teresa Hrywkiw

cwheeler@estevanmercury.ca dtarnes@estevanmercury.ca kohandley@estevanmercury.ca thrywkiw@estevanmercury.ca

cbeaulieu@estevanmercury.ca

SW Sask - for all of your advertising needs contact: Ph: 306.773.8260 Fax: 306.773.0504

Randi Mast NW Sask - for all of your advertising needs contact: Ph: 780.875.6685 Fax: 780.875.6682 Email: randi@pipelinenews.ca

Doug Evjen

Stacey Powell

Sales Manager

spowell@prairiepost.com

devjen@prairiepost.com

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PIPELINE NEWS January 2012

Join Our Team Positions Available in Estevan

Wil-Tech Offers:

• Heavy Duty Mechanic Journeyman and/or Apprentice (or equivalent)

• Competitive wages • Apprenticeship Programs • Complete BeneÀt Packages - Medical - RRSP’s - Pension Plan

Positions Available in Regina • Outside & Inside Sales Representative • Order Desk Representative • Heavy Duty Mechanic Journeyman and/or Apprentice (or equivalent)

Services we provide:

Sales & Service we provide:

• Parker Store • Full Machine Shop and Fabrication • 24 Hour Mobile Repairs and Testing • Complete System Design • Hydraulic Crane Repairs • Preventative Maintenance • Power Unit Fabrication

• Industrial & Hydraulic Hose and Fittings • Pumps & Motors • Valves • Cylinders • Pneumatic Controls • Winches • Pipe Handling Equipment

o Kelly Spinner o Pipe Spinner o Rod Tongs o Tubing Tongs

Contact Information: Estevan Phone: (306)634-6743

Regina Phone: (306)721-1559

Address: 69 Escana Street, Estevan, Sask. S4A 2H7

Address: 259 McDonald St. N., Regina, Sask. S4N 5W2

Website: www.wil-tech.ca

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