Pipeline News April 2015

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PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

April 2015

Canada Post Publication No. 40069240

FREE

Volume 7 Issue 11

NOW WHAT?

9 Resumé 9 Job Search 9 EI Application

A3 Accounting for lost oil revenue A4 Fracking resistance strategic meeting B1 Lloyd Heavy Crude Bonspiel DŽƌĞ ĂŶĚ ŵŽƌĞ ŽŝůƉĂƚĐŚ ǁŽƌŬĞƌƐ ĂƌĞ ďĞŝŶŐ ůĂŝĚ Žī͕ ƚĞƌŵŝŶĂƚĞĚ͕ ƐŬŝĚĚĞĚ Žƌ ŬŝĐŬŝŶŐ ƚŚĞŝƌ ůƵŶĐŚƉĂŝů ĚŽǁŶ ƚŚĞ ƌŽĂĚ͘ /Ŷ ƚŚŝƐ ĞĚŝƟŽŶ ǁĞ ůŽŽŬ Ăƚ ŚŽǁ ĚŝĸĐƵůƚ ŝƚ ĐĂŶ ďĞ ƚŽ ůŽŽŬ ĨŽƌ ǁŽƌŬ ŝŶ ŽƵƌ ŝŶĚƵƐƚƌLJ͘ Photo by Michelle Zinchuk

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

INSIDE SECTION A

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12 Searching for work via online job boards 15 Business consultant analyzes resumĂŠ

5

Low oil price smudges budget

6

Editorial

18 A year ago, perhaps a job, but not today

7

Opinion

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Kick your lunch pail down the road

25 Weyburn OTS donates $25,000 to youth

10 Time to polish up the resumĂŠ

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11 Training at one third the cost

SECTION B 1

11 Bad habits took eyesight of speaker

Lloydminster Heavy Crude Open Bonspiel

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3

Alberta may shed 31,000 jobs in oil drop

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

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TOP NEWS Accounting for $661 million in lost oil revenue

Economy Minister Bill Boyd. File photo

By Geoff Lee Pipeline News Regina - Saskatchewan delivered its 2015-16 fiscal year budget on March 18 based on a decline of $661 million in oil revenue from last year’s budget that ended March 31. Economy Minister Bill Boyd spoke to Pipeline News about the impact of declining oil revenue on the budget exercise, the industry and the overall economy. With oil forecast to average just $53 a barrel WTI this year and slowly rising to $88 by 2019, we also wanted to know if the days of $100 a barrel are long gone. Pipeline News: Last year’s budget set oil revenues at $1.5 billion, but the new 2015-16 budget pegs oil revenues at $903 million. How significant is a decline of $661 million in oil revenue in one line item to the budget? Boyd: It is significant. Anytime we see a reduction of that amount in any area of the budget, of course, I see it as significant. I would say though that we’ve been able to (balance the budget) because of a diversified economy here – Saskatchewan’s been able to weather it and still at the end of the day present a balanced budget which is very important I think. But any revenue drop of that amount is certainly significant. P.N.: What is the impact of the budget exercise based on the loss of $661 million in oil revenue? Boyd: Well, we had to make a lot of adjustments of course. Internally, we started looking at every ministry in reductions in expenditures or holding the line on expenditures to address it. We were looking for every kind of efficiency we possibly could. In addition to that, we wanted to ensure we weren’t raising taxes. But at the end of the day, even though there is that kind of reduction, it also shows the strength of Saskatchewan’s economy in other areas that we were able to still come forward with a balanced budget. P.N.: Natural gas revenue is expected to decline from $16.5 million in the last fiscal year to $11.3 million in 2015-16, but prices have been slowly rising from lows a few years ago. Do you attribute the fall in revenue to natural declines in production or to something else? Boyd: I think natural declines in production. When we see prices at pretty low levels like this, it has a tendency obviously to restrict any kind of drilling activity for natural gas. We’ve seen that over the last number of years. If gas prices increase in the future, we might see that revenue number change, but that’s the number we expect from 2015-16. While that number is significant, it’s not real large in the overall scheme of things, when it comes to the budget. P.N.: With recent venting and flaring regs coming into effect in July and new gas plants in the southeast coming on stream, wouldn’t you expect to see an increase in gas revenues? Boyd: That would be the case, if it was happening immediately. Of course, it takes some time to put those initiatives in place. While we are optimistic, those measures will make a difference, it’s going

to take some time to be implemented. P.N.: Last year’s budget forecast for WTI oil was $92.85 a barrel. The new budget forecast is $53, then rising annually to $67, $77, $85 and $88 by 2019. Are you being cautious or too pessimistic with these forecasts for the next few years? Boyd: Well, we are being cautious because it warrants caution I think. We simply take a number of forecasters and then average the number to come up with our view on it. That’s the industry view on it right now. That could change and it could change almost overnight. As we all know in the commodity world, things can change pretty quickly. We still have to present a budget and we have to present the “out years” as to what we expect. Those are the numbers that the forecasting agencies that we use are basing their expectations on for the future. P.N.: I guess you have to base oil price forecasts on what is happening today rather than crystal balling events? Boyd: Any kind of geo-political change can really change the whole view in a very short period of time and that’s difficult to foresee. No one really has that ability out there. We simply use forecasters, then base our numbers on those forecasts going out to those years. The further you go out, the less accuracy, anyone expects that to be the case. P.N.: Does this mean you don’t see a return to $100 per barrel oil for at least five years? Boyd: I would say the probability of $100 a barrel is pretty low right now. However, some kind of geo-political change could change that almost overnight. We have to be realistic when we are looking at the budget, and be very cautious going forward as to what we expect to happen. P.N.: If these price forecasts play out in the long term, what impact will this have on industry and the province? Boyd: If those numbers are accurate going forward like that, it’s going to have an impact. We’ll probably see less drilling happening here in Saskatchewan. We’d likely see some pullback in terms of the investment from the industry in Saskatchewan as well going forward. However it’s very important to note that even though we’ve seen a very significant impact of lower oil revenues, our economy is very diversified now and that has certainly helped to address the situation. Other employment opportunities are out there if people are not employed by the oil and gas sector. We’ve seen investment flowing in other areas. For example, a $1.7 billion expansion investment by Mosaic (K3 potash mine in Esterhazy) in recent days. We expect there are other announcements coming forward that will illustrate once again the diversified nature of Saskatchewan’s economy.

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PIPELINE NEWS APRIL 2015

BRIEFS Fracking resistance strategic Toro expands

Calgary – Toro Oil & Gas Ltd. is putting off its drilling program until the second half of the year due to low commodity prices, but is moving ahead to acquire new light oil assets in the Alberta Viking play. The company announced on March 18 that is has purchased 29 sections of land with 50 barrels of oil equivalent per day adjacent to its existing Alberta Viking land base. The deal involved a series of unrelated arm’s length transactions. The combined purchase price was $2.4 million of which $200,000 was satisfied by the issuing of 305,670 common shares of Toro. The acquired assets increase Toro’s total land positon in the Alberta Viking fairway by 31 per cent to 122 net sections. In addition, the Viking assets increase their extensive Viking light oil drilling inventory. In addition, the acquired assets include facilities and infrastructure to enable Toro to process and transport current and future production. While Toro has delayed drilling program, it continues to identify and prepare drillsite locations across its entire Viking land position in order to react quickly to improvements in commodity prices. In the meantime, Toro intends to be active in further consolidating Viking prone acreage as well as assessing other strategic light oil acquisition opportunities.

Briefs courtesy Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin

meeting held in Saskatoon By Brian Zinchuk Pipeline News

wick, and the potential for litigation to achieve a moratorium on fracking in Saskatchewan.” Several farmers also spoke about surface rights issues, acRegina, Saskatoon – On Feb. 28 approximately 35 people cording to Morrell. Some farmers don’t want fracking to occur gathered in Saskatoon for a “fracking resistance strategic meet- on their land. There were also concerns raised by landowners about their ing.” The event was organized by the Saskatchewan Eco Network inability to stop oil and gas activity on their land if they do not (SEN), an umbrella group for several non-profit environmental own the mineral rights on it. “There are farmers that feel organizations within the provlike they don’t want this stuff ince. Later that day SEN held on their land, and they don’t its annual general meeting. have a choice. They either sign Rick Morrell, executive dithe contract or they get exprorector of SEN, spoke to Pipepriated. They feel that if it’s line News by phone on March your land, it’s your land. You 19 from his organic food groshould have the right to say ‘yes’ cery store in Regina called Eat or ‘no.’” Healthy Foods. Morrell also Morrell added those farmhas an organic mixed farm near Image courtesy Facebook/Saskatchewan Eco Network ers felt bullied as a result. Regina. “The meeting went on for Pipeline News had asked to some hours, and quite a bit was attend the meeting in Saskatoon, but was informed the media would be excluded by a deci- discussed. I think where we ended up was talking about fracking and oil in general.” sion of the board from this organizational meeting. “We need to leave 80 per cent of the oil in the ground if we’re The meeting was called for by two of SEN’s member organizations, but Morrell would not say which ones. When an issue not going to see the temperature increases that creates severe comes to the fore, SEN will form a working group among its danger for our future,” Morrell said, noting there is “consensus out there,” about the need to leave 80 per cent of known reserves membership to address it. “There was an assumption, going into the meeting, we were in the ground, as well as any additional reserves. Potentially contaminating water for a resource “that needs to talking about fracking for gas. The nature of the meeting changed and goals of the meeting changed immediately that we saw the stay in the ground is problematic for us,” he said. “Even if you only take the oil that’s easy to get at, we still issues were different,” Morrell said. “I think the other biggest thing is there’s a lot of research to do. Clearly, the legislation need to leave a bunch of that in the ground. Tar sands makes no that’s in place we don’t feel is adequate to ensure things are done sense to us at all, and luckily right now it doesn’t make financial properly, but we don’t have enough data, yet, to state policy posi- sense either. Anything that’s a more difficult-to-get-at source of tions or a strategy we can explain. We need to keep on collecting oil, there’s really no point, if we want to be responsible to the future.” data to see where we need more research to make decisions.” Morrell added, “There needs to be a whole bunch more re“In Saskatchewan it’s a little different. In most jurisdictions they’re fracking for natural gas, which there’s some fairly spec- search done on where the fluids are going and what’s happening tacular side effects to that in terms of water quality and health. In to soil around wells that are fracked.” He spoke of farmers who had damage from “salt seepage.” Saskathchewan it’s fracking for oil, so it’s a little bit different. The “Any kind of extractive industry, whether it’s oil or anything effects aren’t so spectacular, but there’s still impacts on the soil around certain wells,” he said. “There’s still the potential for fairly else, if you can’t do it without messing up the ecosystem, and serious contamination of water if fracking fluids aren’t disposed messing up people’s health, you shouldn’t be doing it, period. This isn’t the Eco Network, this is my own perspective.” of properly.” Of the approximately 35 people in attendance throughout Morrell brought up the issue of salinity from salt water spills. The agenda of the meeting included two speakers. One was the day, about two-thirds were from urban centres – Regina and Dr. Emily Eaton, an associate professor of geography at the Uni- Saskatoon, and one third from rural. About six to eight people versity of Saskatchewan. Pipeline News featured her in a story in came from oil-producing areas, he said. “One thing we didn’t have was First Nations representation. our August 2014 edition, detailing her research into the impact of oil in Saskatchewan. Eaton spoke on “Fracking for oil in Sas- There was one person, but we expected a lot more,” he said, noting that providing a travel allowance would have helped. That katchewan: risks, impacts and the potential for resistance.” The other speaker was Regina lawyer Larry Kowalchuk. He would be resolved in a follow-up meetings on March 20-22 represented New Brunswick Anti-Shale Gas Alliance in opposi- called “Land and Community: Responses to Resource Extraction to proposed fracking in that province. New Brunswick has tion in Saskatchewan.” That weekend would be a much broader-based discussion. since enacted a moratorium on shale gas development. Kowalɸ Page A8 chuk’s presentation was on “Fracking resistance in New Bruns-

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

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BRIEFS Husky awash in oil and gas reserves

Finance Minister Ken Krawetz. File photo from last year budget talks.

Low oil price smudges budget „ By Geoff Lee Regina – Low oil prices and revenue projections have smeared the ink on Saskatchewan’s new fiscal budget for 201516. With revenue for oil expected to total $903 million, down $661 million from last year’s budget, the province will borrow about $700 million to pay for capital investments. The borrowing will offset $1.3 billion in spending on build schools, hospital and highways in addition to $2 billion in Crown sector capital. Some lost oil revenue will be made up with a $150 million revenue take from changes to tax deductions to the potash industry. The government is also planning to review the potash royalty structure. “Oil prices have impacted government revenues,� said Economy Minister Bill Boyd in a news release. Natural gas revenue is also expected to drop to $11.3 million from $16.5 million in the last budget. “Increased revenues from potash expansions, as well as our government’s solid track record of fiscal management and ability to manage spending will help us face these challenges,� added Boyd. The budget projects $14.3 billion in revenues and spending of $14.2 billion, both up by 1.2 per cent for a surplus of $107 – based on oil averaging $53 a barrel.

When Finance Minister Ken Krawetz delivered the budget on March 18, oil was under $45 a barrel compared to over $100 a barrel a year ago. “Obviously, this number presents some pretty significant challenges when building a budget,� he said in the legislature. This lower price is anticipated to reduce oil production this year by four per cent to 180.6 million barrels, as drilling activity declines. “Despite the falling oil price, Saskatchewan’s economy is more diversified than ever and well-positioned to meet this challenge,� said Krawetz. The budget includes two new tax incentives for job creation and capital investment and increased seats for apprenticeships, medical training and adult basic education. The province is also increasing its oil and gas well levy this year to collect $20 million from industry up from $16.7 million in the last budget. The Ministry of Economy will spend $2.2 million to expand regulatory oversight and enforcement and $3.4 million to upgrade the provincial oil and gas information systems. Another $150,000 will be spent to address public safety issues posed by underground coal workings in southern Saskatchewan. The new budget realizes $8 million in savings with end of the ethanol fuel tax rebate on March 31, 2015. The new budget reduces the renewable diesel program by $500,000 due to underutilization.

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Calgary – Husky Energy`s reserves growth continued to outpace production in 2014. Updated volumes of oil and gas reserves reflect the additional booking of reserves at the Liwan gas project, the Sunrise energy project and heavy oil thermal projects. Proved reserves in Western Canada, including heavy oil and excluding oilsands, were 848 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) as of Dec. 31, 2014. The average proved reserves replacement ratio in 2014 was 115 per cent or 111 per cent including economic factors such as declining oil and gas prices during the year. The proved reserves replacement ratio over the past four years is 157 per cent or 143 per cent including economic factors. At the end of 2014, Husky had total proved reserves before royalties of 1.3 billion boe, probable reserves of 1.9 billion boe and best estimate contingent resources of 14.8 billion boe. The company’s oilsands portfolio is responsible for 10.3 billion boe of the best estimate contingent resources total. Extensions, improved recovery and strong performance from Husky`s heavy oil thermal developments resulted in the booking of an additional 36 million barrels of bitumen in proved reserves.

Briefs courtesy Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

PIPELINE NEWS

EDITORIAL

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. Publisher: Brant Kersey - Estevan Ph: 1.306.634.2654 Editorial Contributions: SOUTHEAST Brian Zinchuk - Estevan 1.306.461.5599 SOUTHWEST Swift Current 1.306.461.5599 NORTHWEST Geoff Lee - Lloydminster 1.780.875.5865 Associate Advertising Consultants: SASKATCHEWAN & MANITOBA R5 -. 0 (5g8ifl8lij8hlkj Cindy Beaulieu Candace Wheeler Kristen O’Handley Deanna Tarnes Teresa Hrywkiw R5 ,&3& 5g8ifl8jki8hkhk Alison Dunning NORTHWEST SASK. & ALBERTA R5 &)3 '#(-. ,5g8mnf8nfn8imfl Krista Thiessen R5 #( ,-& 35g8ifl8jlf8mjgl Harland Lesyk CENTRAL Al Guthro 1.306.715.5078 To submit a stories or ideas: Pipelines News is always looking for stories or ideas from our readers. To contribute please contact your local contributing reporter. Subscribing to Pipeline News: Pipeline News is a free distribution newspaper, and 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.

Film versus oil – which would pay the bills? There was an interesting exchange between Premier Brad Wall and Leader of the Opposition Cam Broten during Question Period on March 16, two days before the tabling of the provincial budget. Broten had been hammering the government on its spending on “Lean� training in the medicare system. Wall deflected a follow up question and took an entirely different tack with his response. According to Hansard Wall said, “Mr. Speaker, you know, we’re discussing where there might be opportunities for savings in the upcoming budget, and the Leader of the Opposition just referenced it in his question, Mr. Speaker. He was asked actually at his scrum about that question. The question was, what’s waste? There aren’t going to be a lot of increases anywhere in this budget, so what are you cutting? “Here was his answer, and this is a quote: ‘Well it was this government that eliminated the film employment tax credit. It would be great to have the industry here to make up for any temporary dip that might be there with oil.’ He said, any dip that might be there with oil — $700 million short in terms of revenue shortfall because of the oil price. Mr. Speaker, families in this province now out of a job because of the layoffs in this sector. “Mr. Speaker, his answer to the question today, well how would you make up that shortfall? He’d reinstate the film employment tax credit which, by the way, it’s a grant. We have a grant today. It’s not at the level it was, but we still have a grant. Mr. Speaker, no wonder the NDP don’t want their Leader of the Opposition talking about his alternatives or, worse, talking about the economy or his plan for the budget because what we get then, when he does, is nonsense.� Now, politicking aside, there is a point here. How much film activity would we need in Saskatchewan to compensate for a loss in oil revenues?

Let’s look at the budgets for some major films recently produced, or in the works. These numbers are from Wikipedia, but they should be in the ballpark. Funds are presumably in US dollars. We have Star Wars: The Force Awakens: $200 million; Transformers: Age of Extinction: $210 million; Avatar; $237 million. Given the exchange rate differences from when these were produced at today, these three movies’ budgets come within the ballpark of C$700 to C$800 million, the shortfall Wall referenced. Now let’s be clear – that’s not revenue to the local government, i.e. province. That’s the total production budget, spread all over the planet for various shooting locations, digital post production, etc. After tax credits and what not, the local jurisdiction would receive but a small sliver of that. These productions were also done over several years. So how much movie activity would have to take place here for the province to see a boost in overall revenue to the tune of $700 million? Given that a huge attraction for movie productions are the generous tax breaks jurisdictions fall all over each other to provide, how much tax is actually made? Is it primarily on the income taxes of those working on the project? Would we need a film industry larger than British Columbia’s? Or bigger? Much bigger? The oilpatch, on the other hand, is for the most part consistent. Except for the occasional hiccup year, which this is, we can bank on about $1.5 billion, or more, a year, year over year, in provincial revenues when prices are stable. That’s about as much money as we spend on our provincial Ministry of Education for K-12 schools (not counting local municipal education taxes.) Could we ever bag even one of these massive Hollywood productions? Could we repeat it year in and year out? Doubtful. But that nodding donkey will keep pumping oil (and revenue) night and day.

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

From the Top of The Pile

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OPINION

By Brian Zinchuk The Good, the Bad and the Ugly about the end of the drilling season Having interviewed many old-timers over the years, I’ve heard many stories about the periodic slowdowns. These are the tough times when many almost lost their businesses. They were the survivors. Those who didn’t make it, I probably wouldn’t have ended up interviewing, because they would have gone onto something else. I’ve been following the daily active drilling rig count like a hawk throughout the winter drilling season, and posting the results to our Pipeline News Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/PipelineNews). I do this because the rig count, provided by our sister publication Rig Locator (www.riglocator.ca), is the most telling leading indicator of business in the patch. Here’s a post I made on Feb. 25: “Here’s something remarkable: Saskatchewan’s active drilling rig count climbed to 48 then dropped to 46 again. But while other companies have shed rigs, Crescent Point has actually increased their rig count. They are now at 26, the highest in the country, with 25 in Saskatchewan. This graphic, courtesy our sister publication Rig Locator, shows all their active rigs in the southeast as of Feb. 25. What you can’t see is that there is actually a cluster of 3 rigs working side-by-side right on the U.S. border. The drillers working for CPEC include (number of rigs) Alliance (3), CanElson (6), Crusader (1) Ensign (1) Horizon (2), Precision (7), Red Dog (1) Savanna (3), Stampede (1) Vortex (1). Five rigs are working in the Shaunavon area, one near Kindersley, and on in Manitoba near Elkhorn. That leaves 18 rigs in the southeast. There are 27 rigs working in the southeast, but two are potash rigs, so Crescent Point now accounts for 18/25 oil rigs, or 72 per cent of drilling activity in the region. This week is typically also the peak of the drilling

season for the year. Your thoughts? I added, “Put another way, if Crescent Point WASN’T drilling, there would be only seven rigs drilling for oil in southeast Saskatchewan. There would be tumbleweeds blowing through the streets.” Fittingly, I added a link to the theme song for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, because that’s what this is. It’s good Crescent Point has kept working, it’s bad they’ve demanded price cuts, and it’s ugly that almost no one else was offering any work. A few minutes later a realization hit me. Some of those old-timers talked about days when the local drilling rig count was in the single digits. Those were not good days. One guy who was roughnecking at the time on one of the very few rigs working said people would try to get him drunk at the bar so that he wouldn’t show up for work the next day and they could take his place. There’s a lot of resentment out there from the demands Crescent Point made with regards to cutting rates, demands other companies soon followed. Some of that resentment I am sure is well justified. But consider this: almost everything Crescent Point CEO Scott Saxberg said in his letter to vendors on Dec. 16, 2014 has proved true. He stated, “Our objective is to maintain a certain activity level keeping crews busy and supplies moving and effectively doing more with lower costs. We can only do that with our vendors cutting their cost structure dramatically at this stage in the price cycle. The alternative is no activity and idle crews. When commodity prices recover we will continue to work with those suppliers that valued our relationship during the low cycle and we will work with them to adjust cost structure upwards when appropriate. We look forward to working with in for the long term.”

Let me repeat one line here: “The alternative is no activity and idle crews.” This is certainly what has happened. Of all the 384 licenced producers that the Ministry of the Economy has on record in this province, here is the list of other companies drilling in the southeast on Feb. 25: Spartan Energy Corp. (2 rigs), Midale Petroleums, Wyatt Oil+Gas,Federated Co-op (2 rigs), and Canada Golden Fortune Potash Corp. (drilling for potash, I’ve since found out) That’s it. All the rest have shut down, retreating at the height of the drilling season. One comment on the Facebook post noted, “Maybe it’s because they (Crescent Point) asked the companies who service the rigs to drop their prices to below profit margins...” Have they? Maybe. I don’t know one way or the other. But what have the other companies done? In the vast majority of cases, they are offering nothing. So instead of offering a bailing bucket to someone in a leaking boat, they’ve offered nothing. One company – Crescent Point, accounted for 54 per cent of all drilling in Saskatchewan that day, and that includes potash rigs. Southeast Saskatchewan may have become something of a company town, but at least that company kept working throughout the winter drilling season. If they hadn’t, things would be much, much worse than they already are. I would have a whole new crop of stories talking about when the number of rigs working was down to single digits. Tumbleweeds would be blowing down the streets of Estevan.

Lee Side of Lloyd By Geoff Lee

Shouldn’t the market dictate rates?

Should publicly traded oil and gas producers be telling suppliers and contractors to cut rates during this current low oil and gas price environment? The fact that some major producers have issued such notifications indicates they believe it is good business practice, but it’s not good public relations. It has certainly generated some bad publicity in southeastern Saskatchewan where some upset suppliers have complained in the media. In a free competitive economy, the company with the best price or service value will get the job without having to be told by another business what to charge for their products and services. Competition is the basis of a free market economy. Producers could simply rely on a competitive bidding process instead of sending notifications to cut rates reportedly by up to a certain percentage. Contractors and suppliers aren’t cartels that have secretly conspired to keep rates and services at artificially high prices to make more profits in a downturn or a boom. Producers need to shop for services the same way consumers do online for hotel rooms, for example, comparing all of the rates and services from available providers.

There is no harm in asking preferred suppliers or contractors if they can cut costs or provide more value. It’s what consumers do on a daily basis. All small companies have their own expenses to contend with and budget accordingly. Those that can afford to make cuts to be more competitive during the downturn will do so without having to be advised in a blanket notification. In good times, producers don’t tell suppliers when to expand or increase rates so why should they tell them how to price their goods and services today? It just seems out of whack with running your own business in a competitive market. Competition will weed out the greedy from the thrifty. Telling a business to cut rates by 10 or 20 per cent or risk not getting any work could put that business out of business. Clearly that’s not the role of any business. The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers reported in January that capital spending was being slashed by $23 billion in Western Canada by the big players. When it comes to how some major producers cut their own operating costs it seems to mean not having to cut dividend payouts to shareholders. Playing the devil’s advocate, why do suppliers and contractors who don’t have shareholders have to pay for another company’s payouts to investors?

Share prices go down during a commodity downturn anyway so reducing dividends might improve the bottom line while still keeping shareholders who buy low. It is easy to ask, if a producer can afford to produce oil and still pay full dividends, then why are they asking others to take a financial hit on their behalf ? It doesn’t seem right knowing that small businesses are the ones who employ the most people and pay the most taxes collectively. Large companies simply have to go shopping for bargains instead of imposing them. On the other hand playing the devil’s advocate for large producers, it is natural for small business to assume the big players are raking in the dough throughout the year because they are big and powerful. However, that’s clearly not the case, as quarterly results rarely reflect major profit gains even in boom times due to increased investment in future production. Nobody begrudges big producers making profits and selling shares; it’s what makes the corporate world go around. Finding and producing oil is incredibly costly in the best of times. The point here is, for producers and suppliers to let the market take care of rates and prices just as it is with oil and gas prices.

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 April 2015

Environmental group needs more information Éş Page A4 Its March 20 agenda noted, “An evening panel open to the public featuring Candyce Paul from the Committee for Future Generations, Myranda Lemaigre from the Northern Trappers Alliance, and other guests TBA.â€? The following day would feature “A workshop designed to bring together a diverse group of people including Indigenous land defenders, environmental activists, and landowners affected by resource extraction (oil, uranium, potash, etc.) in Saskatchewan. This workshop aims to develop strategic responses to the growing social and environmental impacts of extraction and increase our capacity for collective action.â€? Finally, March 21 would have “An Indigenousled workshop addressing the unique challenges that face Indigenous communities affected by resource extraction. The goal of this workshop is to provide a space for those impacted by resource extraction to

share experiences and develop a network of solidarity. Participants will also receive training in non-violent direct action and in communicating with the media and allies.� Dr. Eaton was listed as one of the contacts for the event. As for the Feb. 28 meeting, when asked why the fracking resistance strategic meeting was held roughly a four-hour drive from the nearest fracked well, and not someplace like Carlyle where people are directly affected, Morrell responded, “That’s a really good question. It was also our AGM (annual general meeting.) Most of our member groups are around Saskatoon. Some are around Prince Albert, some are in Meadow Lake. But Saskatoon is pretty central to our member groups.� “I would say a next step would make sense to start having meetings in those areas. This was to see if our member groups wanted to prioritize this and

whether they wanted to put staff time into it and go with it.� They “got to a certain place� with the initial meeting, and he expected more to occur during the March 20-22 meetings. Asked what the consensus was at the end of the first meeting, Morrell said it was more about stopping climate change. “I think there needs to be more analysis about how much land is being affected and how much land is being salinized by fracking, how much water is being affected by either improper disposal or the fracking itself.� There wasn’t a decision to focus on coming against deep-well oil fracking. “There wasn’t a decision to have a bunch of meetings to organize to mobilize to go to Carlyle to ban fracking. That decision wasn’t made.� “The discussion isn’t concluded.�

Climate change is the issue, says environmental activist Rick Morrell, organic farmer, grocery store owner and executive director of the Saskatchewan Eco Network wants

to see less reliance on oil due to climate change impacts. He’s concerned about potential “worldwide famine and wars

about food. It’s not an acceptable scenario. Canada and pretty much every country in the world has agreed we need to stop

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the temperature from going up. The scientific community is very clear the amount of carbon in the air already is at a dangerous level, and if we keep on adding more carbon to the air, it’s going to get even more dangerous. “We need to make a transition to an economy that isn’t run on fossil fuels fairly quickly, and fracking isn’t part of that picture. Whether it’s a fracked well or not a fracked well, most of it has to stay in the ground. What I would encourage your readership to do is start investing in other industries that are going to be part of the future. I think that’s the biggest consensus message that came out of the meeting. If you’re going to pump oil, pump the easy stuff. If you’ve got to try any harder, or spend more money to get at it, it makes no sense in terms of the future.� When asked if the

farmers present planned on parking their dieselburning tractors in favour of oxen, he replied, “We’re not actually advocating 100 per cent loss of fossil fuels. Eventually we can get there. The tractor can be run on biodiesel if it’s done with the right feedstock, if you’re not using a bunch of fossil fuels to create it. Most of the cars and stuff are going to have to run on electricity generated by renewables. I’m sure there’s ways we can run tractors without fossil fuels, but in the meantime, tractors would damned near be the last things run on fossil fuels. “There may be certain other uses, industrial applications where it’s not efficient to use electricity, even from a renewable source. You may need a number of BTUs where you still need to use natural gas for that function. “It’s not a religious thing. It’s just we need to get down to the place

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where we’re not adding carbon.� To mitigate impacts like rising ocean levels, he said, “We need to change to other sources of energy. “The oilpatch made some good money, and they should invest it in things that are useful.� We noted how people in the oilpatch find it galling when those protesting fossil fuels may have gotten to the protest in their SUV, and they didn’t walk there. Morrell responded, “Some of them (didn’t walk). Lots road their bikes. But I know what you’re saying. Hypocrisy is something that upsets people. But it also doesn’t make it not true. Once we have the infrastructure for electric cars, that’s what they’re going to drive. “Something else we realized a while ago is that people are not going to give up their cars. That’s just how it is. It’s not the existence of cars, or even SUVs. That’s not the issue. The issue is what’s happening to the atmosphere and what’s going to happen to the food supply. It’s not a religious thing about ‘fossil fuels are the devil.’ That’s not the case at all. It’s quite possible there will always be a role for fossil fuels, we’ve just got to stop putting so much up there we’re going to ruin our future.�

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Kick your lunchpail down the road tŚĞŜ LJŽƾ͛ǀĞ ĹŻĹ˝Ć?Ćš LJŽƾĆŒ ĹŠĹ˝Ä?Í• Ĺ?ƚ͛Ć? Ć&#x;žĞ ƚŽ ĹŹĹ?Ä?ĹŹ LJŽƾĆŒ ůƾŜÄ?Ĺš ƉĂĹ?ĹŻ ÄšĹ˝Ç Ĺś ƚŚĞ ĆŒĹ˝Ä‚ÄšÍ˜ Photo by Katrina Zinchuk

capital from Wild Rose Country to the Land of Living Skies. However, this time we have not been spared. With no end of low oil prices in sight, this Estevan – Our focus this month, employment and training was planned when oil was still around $85 a barrel. At that time, things were still looking pretty good, and people were still hiring. Since then the Saskatchewan oil boom has gone bust, and nearly every day we are getting word of another company laying off staff. As a result, we’ve switched gears somewhat. Instead of focusing on hiring, this edition tackles the highly stressful situation of being out of a job and looking for work. There’s lots of terms for it: laid off, pink slip, skidded, run off, downsized, terminated, or, as some pipeliners say, kick your lunchpail down the road. In this edition, we try to answer the questions that come after the question everyone who has been laid off asks themselves: “Now what?� Lloydminster reporter Geoff Lee’s stories focus on Employment Insurance, job sharing, job fairs and recruiting. Editor Brian

Zinchuk takes a different tack, writing from the first-person singular position as someone looking for work. As a former pipeliner and excavator operator, he’s often been offered work over the years by the companies we do stories on. Most of those offers were joking, but some were more serious. In this edition he sees if someone who used to be able to dig a good ditch 12 years ago can find work in this environment. Estevan and area, which not so long ago used to have over 1,100 jobs posted on Saskjobs. ca, had only 447 on March 10. Of those, only 23 could be directly attributed to the oilpatch. It was almost as if the oilpatch, the jobs juggernaut, had disappeared when it came to hiring. Saskatchewan was largely spared during the downturn of 20082009. This was due to two factors: the Saskatchewan Bakken was still considered a hot play, and then-Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach’s tinkering with royalties caused a flight of

could be a very long spring breakup. Most people told us they don’t expect to see anything turn around before October. Companies that usually keep their staff

during spring breakup are likely going to be laying many off, if they haven’t already. In oil country, the impacts are being felt by everyone, including families.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

Time to polish up the resumé By Brian Zinchuk Estevan – One can’t, or shouldn’t, start a job search without a resumé. A few years ago, during the big “boom,” I wrote about a small human resources company in Arcola. At that time jobs were so plentiful and qualified people were so scarce, they were happy to get something written on loose leaf in pen. Things are a little different today. I heard that one prominent businessperson in Estevan has a stack of resumés an inch thick on his desk. As a university student with one of the first inkjet printers (when dot matrix was still common), I had a side business preparing professional resumés. I charged all of $20 for a resumé – formatted, printed, delivered, back in 1994. As part of this series of stories, I needed a current resumé to go looking for work. It’s been 12 years since I last applied for work, so this may not be that easy. A search on my computer and several hard drives for resumés came up blank. I had to dig up an old hard drive, praying that it still works, to find my old resumé directory. It would be very difficult to recreate all that job and education history. It turned up on the tenth drive. Lesson learned: have multiple copies saved both digitally and in hard copy. There were several things that needed to be included, specifically my work with the Battlefords News-Optimist, Pipeline News and the Canadian Armed Forces as a reservist. This meant trimming some of the other line items, but the final result was still a very long resumé. Your resumé needs certain information: Contact information, education, work experience, and references (which some people feel are optional). Those references needed to be updated. A

common question out there is should a resumé include references? I asked this of the people I presented the resumé to. There are some people, including some employers, who feel that if you don’t include references, your resumé goes into file 13. In other words, you’re out of contention. So even if one employer in 10 is of that mindset, should you take that risk and lose a job opportunity because you did not include references? And why wouldn’t you include them in the first place? As someone in a relatively minor managerial role, my opinion is if you don’t include references, I don’t need to ask for them; I’ll just go to the next resumé. “References are available on request,” in my mind, and several employers, is the kiss of death for a resumé, and your job prospects with them. There are other perceptions out there as well – such as length. One person who has done a lot of hiring over the years asked how long my resumé was, and I responded, “Five pages, including a page of references.” His immediate response, before even looking at it, was, “Too long. No one is going to read something that long.” The reason my resumé is so long is I have had a varied career, with two separate career paths – pipelining and journalism, plus two businesses of my own and time in the reserves as an air cadet instructor. How someone can cram all that into two pages, I have yet to find out, but part of this exercise is to make mistakes. Apparently a lengthy, wordy resumé is one. So are typos, which one

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person picked up. If you are applying for oilfield work and don’t have safety tickets listed, that’s another reason a resumé lands in file 13, one employer told me. There are plenty of online resources for creating a resumé, including www.jobbank.gc.ca. If you use Microsoft Word, you can find dozens of resumé templates just by searching for “resumé” when opening a new template. Whatever path you take, conducting a job search without a resumé is not an option.

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Training at one third the cost Estevan – What if you could have your employees take training that would increase their skills and have the government pay for two-thirds of the cost, up to $10,000? Sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? Except that it is true. Larry Wells, regional director for labour market services for the Minister of the Economy, spoke at a breakfast meeting on Feb. 25 at the Saskatchewan Energy Training Institute in Estevan. The focus of his presentation was the relatively new CanadaSaskatchewan Job Grant Program. Instead of paying employees to do make-work projects during slow times, this program provides funding for training to improve individual employees, and through them, the strength of companies. The program is a collaboration between the federal and provincial governments, based on a concept the federal government came up with a few years ago. Each province has tailored the program to its own needs. Having started April 2014, the program is intended to last four years. There are some mandated elements to the program, according to Wells. It’s employer driven. “You (the employer) decide what training is required,� he said. The employer selects the candidate and who will offer the training. The program supports new investment in training and employer access to skilled workers. Wells told the crowd of primarily businesspeople that it is designed to meet their specific needs. That that’s the catch – this isn’t just a pie-inthe-sky training program, taking training for the sake of training. “The employer must have a job available at the end,� Wells said. This can be either for existing staff, or new

Larry Wells spoke to a group of businesspeople at SETI on Feb. 25 about the Canada-Saskatchewan Job Grant Program. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

hires. It is a new investment in training, not replacing ongoing training. The program is flexible in how qualified training is delivered. It can be at a college, online or onsite. But it can’t be offered by in-house staff to the company whose workers are undergoing training. The trainers/instructors must be a third party. “We will do whatever we can to assist you to make this happen,� Wells said, but added sometimes they will have to say “No.� For those accepted under the program, the employer must pay out the full cost, first, and then two-thirds of the cost will be reimbursed. The

total cost of the training cannot exceed $15,000 per employee per intervention, meaning the reimbursement can be as much as $10,000. Wages to the employees can count towards the company’s contribution. Courses should also be completed within 52 weeks. Training programs must include a minimum of 25 hours of instruction. There are no restrictions on the learning method – it can be full-time or part-time. He noted that in family-owned operations, a spouse or child involved in the business can apply for funding, but they personally cannot own 20 per cent or more of the business. Temporary foreign workers are not eligible for the Canada-Saskatchewan Job Grant. Typical apprenticeship training is not eligible, nor is training required to maintain a professional designation, like a chartered accountant. Wells noted one of the purposes of the program is to instill a new set of skills for individual workers. Costs that can be covered include tuition, books, student fees, exams fees, GST and PST. Transportation, meals and accommodations are not covered. Companies applying for this program must be registered in or be operating in Saskatchewan. Trainees do not have to be residents of Saskatchewan, but the resultant job must be in Saskatchewan. Employers in border communities like Lloydminster are eligible. The program is capped at $250,000 per year per employer. Some larger companies have used close to that full allocation in the past. The approval process runs around three weeks, but can be accomplished sooner if the groundwork is done.

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Searching for work via online job boards Thus, I would look for work along two career paths: excavator operator and, barring that, journalism. I used be a pipeliner and excavator operator, so that’s the first choice, and also the better paying one. First off: the federal job search, conducted at the Job Bank (www.jobbank. gc.ca). Searching for “excavator operator,” there were 3,878 jobs nationwide. That’s a promising start. Narrowing that to Saskatchewan, there were 199 jobs posted. One thing became clear: most job postings for excavator operators were actually for heavy equipment operators working for local rural municipalities. Clicking on “full job postings” referred you to Saskjobs.ca, which begged the question, why not go to Saskjobs.ca in the first place? The end result is there were precious few jobs posted in Saskatchewan that were explicitly for excavator operators, and the only ones posted in southeast Saskatchewan were for local rural municipalities. Nothing came up in the oilfield. Perhaps “excavator” is too specific. The next attempt was at “backhoe operator.” This also returned similar numbers, and the same jobs. So maybe another angle was needed. I eliminated “operator.” That did it. Two jobs were posted in Saskatchewan, but for labourers and truck drivers. The company name included “backhoe,” which is why it turned up. Going back to just “excavator” and “Saskatchewan,” I came up with five postings. Three were in Saskatoon, one in Lanigan and one in Rocanville. These ^ĞĂƌĐŚŝŶŐ ŽŶůŝŶĞ ũŽď ďŽĂƌĚƐ ƚƵƌŶĞĚ ƵƉ ƉƌĞĐŝŽƵƐ ůŝƩůĞ ĨŽƌ ĞŝƚŚĞƌ ĞdžĐĂǀĂƚŽƌ ŽƉĞƌĂƚŽƌ Žƌ were both “slurry trench extended stick excavator specialist.” Nothing was posted in southeast Saskatchewan. ũŽƵƌŶĂůŝƐƚ ƉŽƐŝƟŽŶƐ͘ Changing tactics, I tried searching for my other career path, journalism. Searching for “journalist in Saskatchewan” I came up blank, but there were five By Brian Zinchuk postings across Canada. The closest was in Vermillion, Alta. A search for “reEstevan – I walked into a Service Canada the other day, looking for work. porter,” came up with numerous jobs that had nothing to do with journalism. The last time I did such a thing, I believe the government department was called Human Resources Development Canada. This has since become “Service There was only one posting for “photographer” on the prairies, and it was the same job listed in Vermillion. “Editor” turned up only two jobs on the prairies, Canada.” one in Moose Jaw, another in Regina. My first question was, “Where are the job boards?” There are none. Some fields have specialized job sites. In Canadian journalism, Jeffgaulin. As a younger man, one would go to local HRDC office (or whatever it was com is one. A search for print media jobs in Saskatchewan turned up only one called before then) and look up index cards pinned to boards with local job posting, the same one listed in Moose Jaw on the Job Bank. The only other postings. It had been this way since my teenage years. Instead, there were several computer terminals. If you can do an online job search at a Service Canada print media job anywhere close was for a multimedia sports reporter in Brandon. ɸ Page A13 office, you can do it at home.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 Éş Page A12

project for many years ago. One more posting came up for a contractor with 20 heavy equipment jobs for this spring in and around Regina. However, the pay wasn’t much better that what I earned in the same position 13 years ago, and the cost of living has gone up quite a bit since then. Saskjobs.ca had zero jobs for “journalist,� “reporter,� or “photographer.� “Editor� came up with five postings, but four were not applicable, i.e. one of those was for designing tombstones. The Moose Jaw editor posting came up again. Perhaps a keyword search is the wrong tactic. Instead I looked up all the jobs posted for Estevan and area on Saskjobs.ca. Zip. Nothing came up in either of my specialties. What was also quite noticeable was the absence of almost any oilfield-related work among all the 447 jobs posted. Only 23 positions could be directly attributed to the oilfield for all of Estevan and area. Those postings included class 1A driver, experienced oilfield lease operators, third and fourth year apprentice instrument technician, warehouse supervisor, oilfield truck driver, heavy truck mechanic,

Time to go where I likely should have started in the first place: Saskjobs.ca. During the height of the recent boom in southeast Saskatchewan, Estevan would have as many as 1,100 or even 1,200 jobs posted. However, things are different now. On March 10 there were only 447. Province-wide there are 10,390. In August 2013 it was 17,097 across Saskatchewan. A search on Saskjobs.ca for “excavator� turned up 41 jobs available, with some postings having multiple slots. However, only one was in Estevan, where I live, and it wasn’t as an excavator operator, but rather as a heavy equipment mechanic to work on excavators, among other equipment. The only other job in the region was that same slurry specialist posting seen above. “Backhoe� didn’t fare much better. One posting, which I saw on the job bank, was for a powerline contractor based in White City. Another was for a company in Meota I had actually done a short-term

Clean Air Leadership Awards Weyburn – The Southeast Saskatchewan Airshed Association (SESAA) announced on March 4 the launch of its Clean Air Leadership Awards program. “Improving air quality and keeping clean air clean is fundamental to the quality of life in our communities� said SESAA Executive Director Terry Gibson. “The Clean Air Leadership Awards will provide recognition for initiatives undertaken in the region that are doing just that.� The Southeast Saskatchewan Airshed Association (SESAA) was established in 2005 to identify local air quality issues and to develop innovative solutions for managing these issues. Gibson indicated, “The Association is now well established in the region and includes representation from industry, government, local governments and other stakeholders. We believe it is important to recognize individuals, organizations and companies who are demonstrating leadership by their actions, in ensuring good air quality. By highlighting these initiatives, we hope we can encourage even more initiatives to be undertaken.� The Awards will be presented at a breakfast on June 3, 2015, Clean Air Day, in Weyburn. Tickets to the event are $15 per individual or $100 per table of 8. “The Saskatchewan Oil and Gas Show is happening at the same time so we hope to have great attendance. Oil and gas companies form a large proportion of members in the SESAA so it makes sense to have our first ever event at this time and in this location,� said Gibson. Nominations are now being accepted for the awards. Initiatives in the region that advance the understanding and/or awareness of air quality, pro-

mote improvements in air quality through policy, regulation or practice, or improve air quality monitoring in the region are all eligible to be nominated. Nomination forms and event ticket information can be found on the SESAA website at: www.sesaa.ca. Nominations close April 15, 2015.

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heavy duty mechanic, tank truck driver, journeyman instrumentation technician, field instrument technologist, pressure welder, journeyman electrician, measurement technician, land services assistant, administrative assistant, picker operator, boiler truck operator and integrity engineer. It was time to go further afield. Monster.ca turned up nothing for “excavator� and one Fort McMurray posting for a mine heavy equipment operator for “backhoe.� Workopolis.com showed similar results for both career paths. The radio is inundated with advertisements for “Estevanjobshop.ca� and “Reginajobshop. ca.� Searching Estevanjobshop.ca for “excavator� brought up two mechanic jobs in Estevan, and zero for “backhoe.� What became clear through my online job search is that yes, there are jobs out there, but not for either the excavator operator or journalist career paths I was looking for. Either there are not jobs in either of these fields available locally, regionally, or even provincially, or I am not searching for them in the right manner. If a person were to end their job search at that, one might conclude there were no jobs to be had in my two chosen fields of which I have extensive experience – excavator operator or journalist. That’s quite different from the line I heard on John Gormley Live this morning, talking about the lowest unemployment rate in the country. There may be jobs available, but not in my fields. It’s time to hit the road and knock on doors.

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Business consultant analyzes resumé By Brian Zinchuk Estevan – The first stop hitting the pavement on this job hunt was to see someone who specializes in human resources, a firm that can sometimes be colloquially referred to as a headhunter. That firm was Estevan-based Tracey Fieber Business Solutions. Among their services (see relates story Page A16) the company will screen resumés for their clients. “We’ve gotten 120 resumés for one job. That’s a big change from two years ago, or one year ago,” Tracey Fieber said. The difference between being flooded with resumés or getting none is all in the wording of the advertisement, she noted. Too broad an ad can lead to the flood, but too restrictive of an ad can result in a field of prospective workers that is too constrained. In her time both in her previous career and as a business consultant, Fieber’s seen a lot of resumés. My goal here was to see if my resumé was up to snuff, and if it would be appropriate today given that it’s been 12 years since I had last handed out a resumé. “You’re well connected,” was her first comment, scanning the resumé. “Some are hiring right now. This is a great time to find people we couldn’t get before,” Fieber said, referencing the long-standing labour shortage that had been prevalent in the region. In this case, I was looking for excavator operator work primarily, or other oilfield work. However

it’s been 12 years since I’ve run an excavator. Would she consider that stale-dated? Perhaps in my own mind, but not in the mind of people hiring, she replied. “You could still jump on,” she said. “Don’t sell yourself short. Previous experience still applies.” However, she also noted it’s important not to brag, either. “It’s the stories you tell that will tell people your expertise. Talk in a lingo that describes it.” She suggested checking in with Sask Apprenticeship to see if it is still possible to complete my pipeline equipment operator (excavator) journeyman ticket. That would involve acquiring another 1,000 hours on excavators and taking the exam. When it comes to resumés, she noted it’s important to make the email address easily seen. Social media line items would not be necessary, nor had they been included. “What is it my industry uses?” Fieber questioned. “Cellphone? You could use home phone, email. You don’t need street address, although 'Estevan' shows you’re local or if you will need to move elsewhere. “Remember you’re applying for a trade.” As for the layout, she said someone may not believe I had done it myself, but rather someone might have done it for me. This was because I actually did prepare resumés for other people as a sideline in university. She picked up on a few typos that had been missed. While people hiring excavator operators may not be as picky about typos and formatting,

Tracey Fieber has authored a new book called Mentoring ʹ WƵƐŚ /Ŷ dŚĞ ZŝŐŚƚ ŝƌĞĐƟŽŶ. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

other employers might be. But while I thought it was somewhat fancy, Fieber said “I would call yours plain by today's standards. But back then (15-20 years ago), it was higher quality.” She liked the presentation of education and training, as well as skills and certificates, but suggested some format changes and the inclusion of ticket expiry dates. This is important to potential employers, since a ticket that’s still good for another two years means they won’t be expected to pay for your recertification right away. “Some people like to see a combination of union/non-union experience,” she said, pointing to my work record. If a person’s experience is totally union, “it changes the dynamic.” ɸ Page A16

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This resumĂŠ is too long and wordy Éş Page A15 Fieber also suggested replacing my “skills and attributesâ€? section with a listing of three to five “competencies,â€? providing examples such as leadership or independent. This is where we got into the tricky thing – this resumĂŠ is long – five pages including a page of references. It’s wordy, she noted. “They want quick facts.â€? Two pages are ideal, three if needed. My resumĂŠ, in other words, is way too long in her eyes. A resumĂŠ should include contact information, skills, work experience, education, hobbies/interests and references (as an option). You have seven seconds to catch someone’s attention, according to Fieber. “You don’t have to include everything,â€? she said. In the job experience, dates are important, because they show things like longevity or job hopping. For a period where I had a lot of short-term projects, she suggested explaining just that – “completed three week project;â€? “layoff due to weather,â€? etc. “Many times it’s not just what’s in the resumĂŠ, but what’s not,â€? she noted. When reviewing resumĂŠs for clients, she said, “We’re trying to verify the assumptions people would make.â€? For instance, employers may ask about gaps in employment. She noted an example of someone who may have lost their drivers licence. Some employers may want to see a year of being clean after a DUI incident. “They want to see they can stay clean,â€? Fieber said. “People believe we can improve, but to employ them, they need to see a track record (of improvement). One of the more curious things about the resumĂŠ I presented her with was the mix of news reporting, photography and excavator experience. While photography and newspaper work are a natural link, “Dirt work and newspapers are more of a stretch.â€? However, plenty of people change careers, she noted, and it’s not uncommon for people hitting 40 or 50 to make a big change. This resumĂŠ had a number of references from different areas. Asked about the theory that some people won’t look at a resumĂŠ without references, Fieber responded that one third to one quarter of employers will expect references on the resumĂŠ. “You want at least three,â€? she said. If you don’t include them on the resumĂŠ, you should take them on a page with you into a job interview so you can provide them immediately. There’s also a question of how much weight references can be given, since these days negative references are rarely given for fear of legal issues. “You have to be honest, but you can’t negatively affect them,â€? Fieber explained. For instance, a person called for a reference might only provide basic facts, like the position held, and dates of employment. They may choose not to say

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much more than that. If a reference is asked if the person is re-hireable, they are allowed to say “yesâ€? or “no,â€? but may say “I can’t comment on that.â€? Many companies today require pre-job drug screening. While you may have passed a drug test in the past, don’t include it on the resumĂŠ, Fieber noted. “Just because you passed a month ago, it doesn’t mean you will today.â€? Summing up, she asked, “Are you sure you want to do excavation?â€? Fieber suggested an alternate career in sales. “You have the relationship skills and can talk to people – a natural connector.â€? There are not a lot of jobs out there for excavator operators right now, she noted. For municipalities, perhaps, but oilfield-related, no. “No one is hiring, and they’re having a tough time keeping staff,â€? Fieber said. For workers in general, she said, “No matter what is happening, you need to think about your options. You can be laid off. It can be a shock. “It’s never easy to lay someone off, yet those business decisions need to be made. A lot of people should be doing assessments if they have to change careers.â€?

Finding quality candidates Estevan – Tracey Fieber Business Solutions of Estevan has grown from a one-person home-based business to a staff of nine and a global clientele from England to New Zealand. About 40 per cent of their business is in the oilpatch. But just what solutions do they offer? “We help companies with growth, whether you have it

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or need to grow,� said Tracey Fieber. They have three areas of specialty – marketing and sales, operations and human resources. “When we help with growth, it’s in one of those three areas,� she said. “One area puts pressure on the others.� When things slow down, she noted training and marketing are often cut, yet these things often need to be done as an investment in sales and growth. “When you stop your marketing, you stop your pipeline of people coming in,� she said. Marketing supports sales, she noted. “You have to keep marketing, but streamline. Know what works. If they knew what was working, they wouldn’t cut it. When we’re helping with marketing, we see what works.�

When things have slowed down in your company’s area and field of expertise, one solution is to diversify. That doesn’t mean that a service rig company should start digging ditches. Rather, it may want to diversify by working in new areas, such as going up north. “There’s still oilfield work happening,â€? she said. Tracey Fieber Business Solutions can create customize training packages for companies. Fieber is particularly enthused by the Canada-Saskatchewan Job Grant program which will pay two-thirds of training costs, up to $10,000, for qualified training that will increase skills and result in a job at the end of it. The training must be offered by a third party, and that’s exactly what Tracey Fieber Business Solutions can offer. ɸ Page A17

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Helping with growth, whether you have it or need it When it comes to marketing assistance, some companies need regular assistance as part of a marketing development program. This dŚĞ ƚĞĂž Ä‚Ćš dĆŒÄ‚Ä?ĞLJ &Ĺ?ÄžÄ?ÄžĆŒ ĆľĆ?Ĺ?ŜĞĆ?Ć? ^ŽůƾĆ&#x;ŽŜĆ? Ä‚ĆŒÄžÍ• Ć?ƚĂŜĚĹ?ĹśĹ?Í• ĨĆŒŽž ĹŻÄžĹŒÍ— <ĂƚĞ :ŽŚŜĆ?ĆšŽŜÍ• ůžĂ >Ĺ˝Ç€ÄžĆŒĹ?Ä‚Í• dĆŒÄ‚Ä?LJ >ÄžÇ Ĺ?Ć?ͲDĹ?ĹŻĹŻÄžĆŒÍ• can include working on Ä‚ĹśĹ?ĞůůĞ ǀĞŜĆ?ŽŜ ĂŜĚ dĆŒÄ‚Ä?ĞLJ &Ĺ?ÄžÄ?ÄžĆŒÍ˜ ^ĞĂƚĞĚ Ä‚ĆŒÄž ůĞŏĆ?Ä‚ĹśÄšĆŒÄ‚ ^ÇŒĹŻÄ‚Ć‰Ä‚Ä?ĹŹÄ‚ ĂŜĚ <ÄžĆŒĆŒĹ? ,ĂLJĞĆ?͘ DĹ?Ć?Ć?Ĺ?ĹśĹ? Ä‚ĆŒÄž :Ĺ˝ĆŒÄšÄ‚Ĺś &Ĺ?ÄžÄ?ÄžĆŒÍ• Internet search engine DĞůĂŜĹ?Äž 'ĹŻÄ‚Ć?Ć?ÄžĆŒ Íž Ä‚ĹŻĹ?Ä‚ĆŒÇ‡ ŽĸÄ?ÄžÍżÍ˜ Photo by Brian Zinchuk optimization, social media strategies, web page Éş Page A16 companies looking for preach when it comes to design and other areas. sessment reviews, an workers, which includes orientation call with being diversified. That’s Process automation An example might creating the job descrip- new hires, ongoing especially important covering items like inbe a six-month sales tion and posting. They’ll training and a check-in since Fieber said, “Defi- voicing is another field training program with screen resumĂŠs, shortlist one month later with nitely hiring contracts of expertise. Sometimes sessions three to four potential candidates are on hold.â€? both the manager and an objective viewpoint times a month. Manand assist with interthe employee to ensure Beyond the oilis needed, she noted. agement training is views. By working with patch, they work with things are working out. Maybe a tablet-based another possibility. the company through This might involve some manufacturers, home system is a better soluWhen it comes the interview process, “corrective coachingâ€? improvement, business tion than a paper chase. to hiring, they work Tracey Fieber Business coaching and training. for the employee and Prior to starting with companies, not Solutions will “teach manager. individuals per se. them how to hire,â€? she While human reTracey Fieber Busisaid. sources is an important ness Solutions will find This will include part of their business, quality candidates for they practice what they reference checks, as-

Tracey Fieber Business Solutions, Fieber herself worked in the financial industry for 15 years, including eight years as a manager of marketing, operations and human resources with a credit union. Fieber’s in the process of launching a new book she has authored called Mentoring – A Push In The Right Direction, which will be offered as an ebook as well as in printed form. The book will be for sale, but also used with existing and potential clients as a giveaway.

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A year ago, perhaps a job but not today By Brian Zinchuk Weyburn – Companies that tend to avoid a spring layoff and have a long track record of stability are a prize to be sought when looking for a job. That’s one of the reasons why the first place I took my job search, resumé in hand, was to Weyburn-based Jerry Mainil Limited. The company has been in business for 54 years now. They’ve been through tough times before. While they have someone who usually handles the human resources area, Dennis Mainil, president, has done his share of hiring over the years. He was kind enough to look over my resumé to see if I would be a suitable fit. As an oilpatch earthmoving company, my pipeline and excavator experience would hopefully be a good fit. In this case I was looking for excavator operator work. Scanning the resumé and looking over the tickets I have, Mainil noted the absence of a no current ground disturbance ticket. “That’s something you have to have,” Mainil said. It’s good that I have my other oilfield safety tickets like H2S Alive, WHMIS and first aid. Resumés with-

out tickets get filed in “file 13.” He asked if most of my excavator experience is with pipelines. It is, and primarily big-inch. He also asked about my unsuccessful project in the late 1990s to create a virtual reality training simulator for excavators. “What type of controls do you run?” Mainil asked. “Cat,” I responded. Excavators and backhoes have two standard control patterns, and operators familiar with one can have difficulties with the second. “You’re fortunate. Here, we have pattern changers,” he said. That’s a switch-type device that allows the machine’s controls to be changed with ease. “So you know how to run a wheel ditcher?” “No, I greased one,” I said. Wheel ditchers aren’t as useful anymore because of their inability to easily create properly sloped ditches. Jerry Mainil now has V-buckets for their excavators to do that sort of work. I explained how I was trained to slope a ditch by digging a certain pattern and then swiping in the sides. ɸ Page A19

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 Éş Page A18 Excavators are often used for shading the pipe (sprinkling dirt on it while backfilling in a manner to avoid dropping rocks) and to cradle in the pipe when lowering it in, he said. On one of the later pages he noticed my farm equipment operator experience. “You grew up on a farm? That’s a big bonus, with a strong agricultural background,â€? he said. In comparison to the union work I had done as an oiler (an operator apprentice/swamper), he noted “We don’t have oilers.â€? “We expect our men to show up 10 to 15 minutes early. We start at 7 a.m. Some start sooner. We do use excavators a lot on cleanup. You have to be comfortable working on piles (of dirt),â€? Mainil said. I explained I spend a year working in a pit, climbing up and down piles all day. They often use excavators to pull in dirt from the edge of a lease or right-of-way so as to speed up the dozer with its work, allowing them to get behind it. If I were to start work with them, first I would be sent out with senior people. I would have to complete their power mobile equipment training, a formalized course to ensure each operator is competent to run their piece of equipment. That type of training is becoming more commonplace now, as I first heard of it a few years ago with Carson Energy Services. Jerry Mainil Limited has had the program in place for three or four years now on a formal basis, but they’ve been doing similar orientation for years before. “I’m the evaluator, trained to do the evaluation,â€? Mainil said. There’s a theory portion, then the new employee is taken out with a supervisor to ensure they are familiar with the machine. This includes doing proper fluid checks, climbing on and off properly, etc.

“We’d start on a lower risk task, i.e. moving topsoil,� Mainil said. “I’d come out and do a final evaluation, which is documented.� All told, a new employee will spend a minimum of two-and-a-half days in orientation before being sent into the field. That’s a far cry from my first pipeline job in 1995, which had a half day orientation session in the yard and a drive out to the job site by early afternoon. Some oil companies have up to two weeks of orientation before work commences, he noted. “We’d get you on a seat, might not be the first,� he said, adding a person willing to work weekends and has experience is an asset. “We have a green hard hat policy,� Mainil said, and that includes even experienced workers. This indicates new workers to those around. The minimum a person wears a green hard hat is two weeks, but the standard is 90 days. It takes a while for a new hire to know theirs, and their clients’ systems. One of the key distinctions with Jerry Mainil Limited is that, unlike the union work I had done, which had very, very strict rules on who performed what jobs, they expect workers to do a variety of things. On a union pipeline job, a member of Operating Engineers could pick up a narrow track shovel (a.k.a. sharpshooter), but not a spade. That’s a labourer’s tool. Similarly, driving a semi is a teamster’s job, and never the two shall mix. With Jerry Mainil Limited, the more you can do, the better. It’s a lot harder to keep you employed and working if you only run an excavator, according to Mainil. Some of their excavator operators also run loader backhoes, dozers and steamers (all of which require their own power mobile equipment evaluations). It also helps to have a 1A drivers licence. “No one just runs excavator,� Mainil said. “Jerry Mainil is a very diverse company, and it’s what kept us alive.� Thus, that person who runs an excavator in the

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Welder Evan Reddick works on hard surfacing ripper shanks in the Jerry Mainil Ltd. welding shop.

summer might run a steamer in the winter, keeping him employed and Jerry Mainil Limited. working. “Becoming an employee, you’re not and excavator operator. You could be on a shovel or squeegee. We’re trying to create employment,â€? he said. I’m upfront with my heath issues, including a heart attack two years ago that precludes heavy physical exertion. He replied that some staff members choose not to do shop work, but when they do, there’s no work to be had at times. “Each has his own abilities, strengths and weaknesses,â€? Mainil said. They like when workers are willing to help put the pipe together. He takes his father, Jerry’s example on that front. “My father started this company. There’s no job he wouldn’t take on,â€? Mainil said. ɸ Page A20

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

You’re not just an excavator operator Pierre Paris is shop foreman at Jerry Mainil Ltd. When ƚŚĹ?ĹśĹ?Ć? Ä‚ĆŒÄž Ć?ĹŻĹ˝Ç Ĺ?Ĺś ƚŚĞ ĎĞůĚ͕ Ç Ĺ˝ĆŒĹŹÄžĆŒĆ? Ä‚ĆŒÄž ĞdžƉĞÄ?ƚĞĚ ƚŽ Ɖƾƚ ƚŚĞĹ?ĆŒ Ć&#x;žĞ Ĺ?Ĺś ŚĞůƉĹ?ĹśĹ? Ä‚ĆŒŽƾŜÄš ƚŚĞ Ć?ĹšĹ˝Ć‰Í˜

ɺ Page A19 Unfortunately with the slowdown in the oilpatch, there aren’t as many working as there

was not too long ago. “We peaked at 120. We’re around 95 right now,� Mainil said. They had also has some recent

layoffs. It’s a frustrating experience, because he noted, “Traditionally we keep people.â€? My training and background, with outside experience, are strengths, he noted. A willingness wo work weekends and long hours as projects require are also benefits, for the times they are not working their usual eight-hour days. Being able to drive a stick shift is also good. I also have a “good resumĂŠ.â€? “I usually phone where they worked in the past, not just references,â€? he said. As for weaknesses, my health is a concern, but he appreciated the honesty. My resumĂŠ is also too long. Is there a job to be had? So, in the end, would there be work

for someone with my qualifications? Right now Jerry Mainil Limited has its eye out for certain people with high-end, technical experience and for certain high-level jobs. “As for operators, labourers and drivers, unfortunately we’re not hiring at this point,� Mainil said. “In today’s world, it’s unlikely you’ll find anyone hiring.� “A year ago, we probably would have taken you on, but not at this point,� he said. “We’ve unfortunately had a wage rollback. They (the staff ) all agreed,� Mainil said. The company was under pressure from the clients. The net result is they have kept working while others are on the bench. “We had a choice

of no work or a reduced rate,� he said. There’s a limit to how far a company can cut its rates, however. Overall costs for many items have not gone down. Mainil said, “Sometimes the right decision is to step back and let nature take its

course.� From 1987 to 1988 the company resorted to job sharing for its employees. They’re looking at it again. In 2009 they rescinded a rate increase that was put in place a year before.

One pair at a time

ZĹ?Ä?ĹŹ dŽƾĆŒÄ‚ĹśÄš ŜŽĆ&#x;Ä?ĞĚ Ć?ŽžÄž Ä?ĆľĆ?ĆšŽžÄžĆŒĆ? Ä‚ĆŒÄž Ä?ƾLJĹ?ĹśĹ? ƚŚĞĹ?ĆŒ Ĺ?ůŽǀĞĆ? ÄšĹ?ÄŤÄžĆŒÄžĹśĆšĹŻÇ‡ ƚŚĞĆ?Äž ĚĂLJĆ?͘ Photo by Brian Zinchuk

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RM of Browning (7 parcels of land) $1,645,000 MLSÂŽ#524262

Weyburn – One of the ways Rick Tourand can tell things are slowing down in his store, Ron’s Workwear Store, is the way some people are buying gloves. Instead of buying a pack of six, some workers are buying individual pairs. “It’s certainly dropped off from six months ago,� he said at their Weyburn location on March 6. Numbers are down and he said the upcoming year is looking “bleak.� However, he said, “We maintain a positive attitude. “We’ve been through about six of these booms and busts in 32 years. 2009 wasn’t as pronounced, but this is dropped off the table.� The company reduced staff and hours in its Estevan location. They also operate in Carlyle. “It’s really hit in Estevan,� he said, noting there has been a convergence of the completion of the Boundary Dam Carbon Capture Project and a slowdown in the oilpatch. “It hit a perfect storm.� They own their own buildings, and are cutting expenditures. The inventory purchase for this summer is a lot less than usual. Some workers think it will pick up, he said, but noted there will be guys working below their pay grade in order to be working. “You don’t want to sound pessimistic, but you have to be realistic,� Tourand said.

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A21

$ WKLFN ÀOH RI UHVXPpV ary, but this year instead of seeing 100 to 110 rigs drilling, there were around 45. “We’ve got too many people,” Frehlick said. They’ve laid of a few people in Alberta. “We’ve got some close to retirement that plan on retiring earlier than anticipated.” The may come back on a day-rate basis as needed, he explained. Holding onto staff is important to Frehlick, who has seen this many times before. “In these downturns, we never laid young people off, because that’s the future of companies.” This downturn might be a little longer than ZĂLJ &ƌĞŚůŝĐŬ ŚĂƐ Ă ƚŚŝĐŬ ĮůĞ ŽĨ ƌĞƐƵŵĞƐ ĨƌŽŵ ƉƌŽƐƉĞĐƟǀĞ ũŽď ĂƉƉůŝĐĂŶƚƐ͘ dŚĂƚ͛Ɛ Ă ďŝŐ ĐŚĂŶŐĞ ĨƌŽŵ ƌĞĐĞŶƚ LJĞĂƌƐ͘ usual, he noted, since “it’s not brought on by a recession, but surplus barrels of oil.” Photo by Brian Zinchuk

The period from in 1983 to 1988 was probably worse, he noted, as bank interest rates were running in the 22 to 23 per cent range then. “Anybody carrying debt, it was tough on them,” he said. One of the practices that changed things was the adoption of horizontal drilling, according to Frehlick. He pointed to a picture on the wall of Spartan Drilling working on a horizontal well near Midale, one of the first in the province. When presented with a resumé with excavator operator qualifications, Frehlick suggested the recently announced highway bypass projects near Regina. “There’s going to be a lot of infrastructure work this year, a massive amount of infrastructure.” ɸ Page A23

By Brian Zinchuk Estevan – The file he pulls out of the filing cabinet is thick- probably an inch or so, and full of hopes - hopes of full-time work, hopes of a steady paycheck. The file, you see, is full of resumés, and it’s been quite a while since Ray Frehlick has had a file this thick. In our series of stories on doing a job search, this turns out to be one more stop where there are no jobs up for grabs. Frehlick, 79, is the owner of Prairie Mud Service. He once had interests in numerous other enterprises, including Prairie Petro-Chem and Plains Environmental, but in recent years he’s been slowing down, if you can call it that, and selling some of them off. His hat still says “Frehlick Farms,” which has 14,000 acres. There’s probably 20 resumés, maybe more, in that stack. But it’s not likely many will be hired any time soon. The companies impacted the most by the current slowdown in the oil industry are those closest to the drill bit. Since Prairie Mud Service produces the drilling fluids that literally touch the drill bit, that’s about as close as you can get. Since the beginning of the year, drilling activity in Saskatchewan has dropped to less than half the pace it has been during the same time over the last several years. The busiest week of drilling of the whole year is usually the last week in Febru-

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You walk then you run feelings about it. We’re selling a commodity. We have to buy it, service it and supervise it. It certainly hurts your bottom line. It’s not like having a truck with a set of tongs.� A lot of their product is made in the United States, and with the decline of the Canadian dollar compared to the American dollar, it’s made bringing that

product in more expensive. Prairie Mud has 65 people on staff. They’re not hiring right now. Asked if he had any opportunities for someone with my qualifications, the answer was “No.� Anyone who is hiring can be more selective, he added. “When is it going to turn around? There’s a lot of experts, and

no one’s got answers,� Frehlick said. In 2009, oil dropped to the $38 range, but he noted it wasn’t long before it came back to $75-$80. “We didn’t have the number of Bakken wells drilled we have today,� he pointed out. Bakken wells are known to have steep decline rates, and thus companies with high Bakken concen-

trations need to keep drilling to maintain production. Speaking more broadly, he noted companies that are undercapitalized are going to have a tough go of it. “Being in business is like being born. You learn to crawl. You learn to walk, and then you run. Don’t miss any steps in between,� Frehlick concluded.

Ray Frehlick holds a stack of resumĂŠs. Éş Page A21 He noted there’s also an expected rail line for the K+S Potash mine near Moose Jaw. But what about work around Estevan? “No, I don’t think we’ll see a lot of work in this region,â€? he said. As for that stack of resumĂŠs, he said, “There’s electricians, service rig operators, truck drivers‌â€? “There’ not going to stay here if the price of oil goes back up. You can make $32 an hour on a service rig, plus overtime. We pay above the industry average, but not service rig and drilling rig rates.â€? He noted in those industries while the pay is high, you are only paid when you work, and drilling activity is down 50 to 60 per cent. “It impacts our sales if there’s no drilling.â€? He pulled out a binder with their daily reports. On Feb. 13 there were 19 rigs listed. Usually around that time of year it might be 25 to 30.

“There are areas where breakup will last longer due to the economy, not runoff,� he said. Some companies are talking about work resuming in June, hopeful for a price recovery, according to Frehlick. “I have difficulty believing in a price recovery in the next two to three months due to the glut of oil. We are an exporter. We don’t have the refining capacity to use what we produce.� When spring seeding kicks in across the continent, that will increase the demand equation, as will wells shut in for road bans and economics. Frehlick noted that Crescent Point can drill cheaper now because of vendors cutting prices, and they are taking advantage of those lower prices. But he wonders what will happen when the road bans come off. So did Prairie Mud cut prices? “Oh sure, everybody did,� Frehlick replied. “I have mixed

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A25

ZÄžĆ‰ĆŒÄžĆ?ĞŜƚĂĆ&#x;ǀĞĆ? ŽĨ Ć?ÄžÇ€ÄžĆŒÄ‚ĹŻ tĞLJÄ?ĆľĆŒĹś LJŽƾƚŚ Ć?Ć‰Ĺ˝ĆŒĆšĆ? Ĺ?ĆŒŽƾƉĆ? Ç ÄžĆŒÄž ŽŜ ŚĂŜĚ ŽŜ &ÄžÄ?͘ ĎŽĎŻ ƚŽ Ä‚Ä?Ä?ĞƉƚ ΨώϹÍ•ĎŹĎŹĎŹ ĨĆŒŽž ƚŚĞ tĞLJÄ?ĆľĆŒĹś KĹ?ůĎĞůĚ dÄžÄ?ŚŜĹ?Ä?Ä‚ĹŻ ^Ĺ˝Ä?Ĺ?ÄžĆšÇ‡Í˜ dŚĞ Ä‚ÄšƾůĆšĆ? Ĺ?Ĺś ƚŚĞ Ä?Ä‚Ä?ĹŹ ĆŒĹ˝Ç Ä‚ĆŒÄžÍ• ĨĆŒŽž ĹŻÄžĹŒÍ• Ä‚ĆŒĆŒÄžĹś Ä?Ğů͕ tĞLJÄ?ĆľĆŒĹś ,Ĺ?Ĺ?Ĺš ^Ä?ĹšŽŽů &ŽŽĆšÄ?Ä‚ĹŻĹŻ ÍždŚĞ Ä‚Ĺ?ĹŻÄžĆ?Í–Í&#x; :Ĺ?Ĺľ zĞžĂŜ͕ tĞLJÄ?ĆľĆŒĹś Kd^Í• >Ä‚Ç ĆŒÄžĹśÄ?Äž Ä‚ĆŒÄ?ÄžĆŒÍ• tĞLJÄ?ĆľĆŒĹś ĂĚžĹ?ŜƚŽŜ ĹŻĆľÄ?Í– ĂǀĞ ^ƚĂĚĞů͕ tĞLJÄ?ĆľĆŒĹś ĂĚžĹ?ŜƚŽŜ ĹŻĆľÄ?Í– ZĹ˝Ä? ^ŽžÄžĆŒÇ€Ĺ?ůůĞ͕ Ä‚ĹŹÄžĆŒ ,ĆľĹ?ŚĞĆ?Í– ^ĹšÄ‚ĆŒĹŻÄ‚ ^ĞƉƚ͕ Ĺ?Ĺ? ĆŒĹ˝ĆšĹšÄžĆŒĆ? ĂŜĚ Ĺ?Ĺ? ^Ĺ?Ć?ĆšÄžĆŒĆ?͘ ,ŽůÄšĹ?ĹśĹ? ƚŚĞ Ä?ŚĞƋƾĞĆ? Ĺ?Ć? DĹ?Ä?ŚĂĞů DÄ‚Ĺ?ĹśĹ?ĹŻÍ• ĂŜĚ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ĆŒĹ?Ĺ?Śƚ ŽĨ ĹšĹ?Ĺľ Ä‚ĆŒÄž :Ä‚Ä?Ć‹ĆľĹ?Äž tĹ?ĹŻĹŻĹ?Ä‚ĹľĆ?Í• >ĞŜ tĹ?ĹŻĹŻĹ?Ä‚ĹľĆ? >ÄžĹ?Ä‚Ä?LJ &ƾŜÄš ĂŜĚ ĂŜĞƊĞ dĆŒÄ‚Ä?ĞLJ͖ :ƾŜĹ?Ĺ˝ĆŒ ĆľĆŒĹŻĹ?ĹśĹ? ĂŜĚ Kd^ Ä?Ĺ˝Ä‚ĆŒÄš žĞžÄ?ÄžĆŒÍ˜ Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Weyburn OTS donates $25,000 to youth organizations Weyburn – Over many years, putting a little bit away accumulated for the Weyburn Oilfield Technical Society bonspiel. On Feb. 23, the OTS donated $25,000 to a number of local Weyburn youth sports organizations. “Over the year we’ve made a commitment to support junior curling,� said Michael Mainil of the Weyburn OTS. They would pay one third of the junior curlers’ dues. The rest “kind of accumulated.� The “keeping enough for next year� grew and grew. Some curlers would donate their winnings back to the fund as well. After 10 years, it was time to disperse the surplus. “Our main theme is minor

2015 Southeast

JOB FAIR

Bring a resume

sports,� he said, noting that one of the beneficiaries, the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Weyburn curls as a fundraiser. In addition to the Big Brothers and Big Sisters, the other beneficiaries were Weyburn Minor Football, Weyburn Badminton Club, Weyburn Junior Curling, Weyburn High School Football, and the Len Williams Coaching Legacy. Individual members of the OTS board of directors were involved with each of these organizations. Twenty-four rinks took part in the January OTS bonspiel. That included some high school junior players who ended up winning the B-event.

Are re you looking for a new job or career? Attend the Job Fair, meet employers, try a trade, or ďŹ nd your passion.

SEESS 2015

Estevan, SK

The 19th Annual Southeast Environmental and Safety took place at the Saskatchewan Energy Training Institute in Estevan on March 18. Photos by Brian Zinchuk

April 22, 2015

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11 a.m. – 7 p.m. /SoutheastRegionalCollege @SRCconnection #southeastjobfair For more info, visit southeastcollege.org

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A26

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

There are positives, you just have to look for them Estevan – Greg Cousins is a hard guy to get down. It might be his usual, slightly crooked, ear-to-ear grin, or his sunny disposition, but he’s probably one of the most positive people you will run into. Thus it’s not surprising when he strongly emphasized how important it is to be positive about the current downturn in the oilpatch. Cousins is Site Energy’s vice president for their southern region. Before merging his company with Site almost five years ago, he and his wife Paulette ^ŝƚĞ ŶĞƌŐLJ ƚƌĂĚŝƟŽŶĂůůLJ ŚĂƐ Ă ƐƉƌŝŶŐ ůĂLJŽī͕ ůŝŬĞ ŵĂŶLJ Ěŝƌƚ ŵŽǀŝŶŐ ĐŽŵƉĂŶŝĞƐ͘ dŚĞ ƋƵĞƐƟŽŶ ŝƐ ǁŚĞŶ ǁŝůů ƚŚŝŶŐƐ ƉŝĐŬ ran Greg Cousins Construction Limited of CarnƵƉ ĂŐĂŝŶ͍ File photo duff for 33 years. That’s where he’s still based. He started his business nearly 40 years ago, when things were very slow in the oilpatch. Sometimes there was only one day of work a week, and their one backhoe dugs its share of graves. With his first dumptruck, hauling asphalt, he was billing $18 per hour for the truck, fuel and driver. He’s endured the ups and downs, and that gives him a sunnier perspective on this downturn than you hear from most people. Along the way, for instance, he dug the rig trenches for a drilling rig near Gainsborough when it was drilling one of the first horizontal wells in this province. Horizontal drilling has since changed the industry, and indeed the world. “There’s opportunity here,” Cousins said over lunch in Estevan on March 21. “It’s going to come back. Use this as a way to revisit what you want to D E I T F do.” TIE PLAN T He noted how when things have been really E CENR CR CO busy over the past several years, there’s been so much work that workers’ time spent with family was often in short supply. “It’s time to reflect and spend time with family,” he said. “Volunteer, coach your kids’ team, volunteer with air cadets. Get to know your neighbours. That’s what falls off when things are busy. It’s not all bad.” As for Site, he said, “We had a good winter. The future will bring what it will bring.” “I’m a glass-is-half-full kind of guy. You’ve got to be an optimist in the oilpatch,” he said. Since Site has operations throughout Western Canada, it has meant some of their workers have been able to go up north to pick up additional work.

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By Brian Zinchuk Greg Cousins of Site Energy looked over my resumé as part of our series of stories on looking for work in the oilpatch right now. Among its many capabilities, pipeline construction is one of Site’s core competencies, and that falls right within the type of work this job search is focusing on. Since Site has an operations based just outside of Estevan at Macoun, it would be an obvious company to apply for work. But would someone with my skills as a former excavator operator be someone they need? Site Energy, like many dirt moving companies, typically has a spring layoff to coincide with spring breakup. ɸ Page A27

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

A27

A good time to upgrade are subscribing to.â€? In this case, the lengthy five page resumĂŠ “answered a lot of questions in an interview.â€? What about the fact it’s been 12 years since I’ve been on an excavator? Cousins wasn’t concerned, saying, “It’s been 12 years since I’ve been on an excavator too, but I can do it tomorrow. I wouldn’t worry about it.â€? He added, “I’m a fan of mature workers and their life skills. You realize the importance of showing up to work

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'ĆŒÄžĹ? ŽƾĆ?Ĺ?ĹśĆ? ŚĂĆ? ĆľĆ?ƾĂůůLJ Ĺ?Žƚ Ä‚ Ć?ĹľĹ?ĹŻÄž ŽŜ ĹšĹ?Ć? ĨÄ‚Ä?Ğ͕ Ĺ˝ĹŒÄžĹś ĨĆŒŽž ÄžÄ‚ĆŒͲĆšŽͲÄžÄ‚ĆŒÍ˜ dĹšÄžĆŒÄž Ä‚ĆŒÄž Ä‚ ůŽƚ ŽĨ ƉŽĆ?Ĺ?Ć&#x;ǀĞĆ? ĨĆŒŽž Ä‚ Ć?ĹŻĹ˝Ç ÄšĹ˝Ç Ĺś Ĺ?Ĺś Ä‚Ä?Ć&#x;Ç€Ĺ?ƚLJ͕ ŚĞ ŜŽĆšÄžÄšÍ• Ĺ?ĹśÄ?ůƾĚĹ?ĹśĹ? Ć&#x;žĞ ƚŽ Ć?ƉĞŜĚ Ç Ĺ?ƚŚ ĨÄ‚ĹľĹ?ůLJ ĂŜĚ ƾƉĹ?ĆŒÄ‚ÄšÄž LJŽƾĆŒ ĞĚƾÄ?Ä‚Ć&#x;ŽŜ ĂŜĚ Ć?ĹŹĹ?ĹŻĹŻĆ?͘ Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Éş Page A26 “The third week in March is always a slowdown,â€? Cousins said. How much of an impact spring breakup has on their business varies year-to-year. During spring breakup, hiring new staff usually isn’t on the agenda. “We’ve had virtually no roadban to (as long as) a couple months,â€? he said. There have been continual challenges with wet conditions since the major flood year of 2011. Last year was also a flood year for the extreme eastern edge of the province as well as southwest Manitoba. When it comes to wet weather, he noted there is always an element of optimism, saying, “It’s gonna quit raining tomorrow.â€? “This is different,â€? he said, noting “I’ve been around long enough to see a few of these. I try to forget them. “When it slows down on a correction, it does so in a hurry. That’s where we are right now.â€? Thus the length of the roadban shutdown may coincide more with global economic factors than how soft the grid roads are. As for when things will turn around, he said, “How do you know?â€? With regards to my

resumĂŠ, he said, “As far as handing out resumĂŠs, I wouldn’t be holding my breath.â€? “A lot of people under 30 have never seen a crash, seen how life really is. It’s a time to look at if this is what you want to do. This is a time everyone should consider education and upgrading themselves.â€? “Someone whose only worked in the oilfield, with limited education, if they have a job opportunity, they better take it. If it’s in an unrelated field, you might want to consider it,â€? Cousins said. That may include taking a job that pays less. He stated diplomatically, “If you’re not in a resource-based job, your pay scale will be different, and with limited or no overtime.â€? While Ray Frehlick of Prairie Mud suggested looking for work on the extensive Highway infrastructure projects planned for the Regina bypass, Cousins noted that there aren’t any similar projects expected in this region with respect to the oilpatch. The Regina bypass was also decades in the planning. Oilpatch projects, on the other hand, come and go quite quickly in comparison. The 2008-2009 slowdown didn’t hit this area as much as it did other places, with the Bakken being the

hot play in the country at the time. With the upswing seen in southeast Saskatchewan, there’s been a shift in the workforce, Cousins noted. “For years and years, guys on rigs had other jobs and supplemented them with drilling. Recently it was a career. It might not be next year. “It’s not a negative thing. It’s a reality. When you have a career in this business, it just happens. We’re pretty fortunate when you look at the careers we had in southeast Saskatchewan.â€? With respect to this resumĂŠ, in particular, Cousins called it, “One out of 100.â€? Why? “It’s got more than one page,â€? he said. Some people feel resumĂŠs should be very short – no more than one page. Cousins said, “It depends on your audience and what you s TON PICKERS s (OUR (OT 3HOT 3ERVICES s 3HORT ,ONG (AULS s -ATTING 2ENTAL s #ATWALK 2ENTAL s 'ENERAL $ELIVERY s KW KW ,IGHT 0LANT 2ENTALS

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and giving it all you’ve got.� Cousins said he’s not dismissive of younger workers, and believes in giving them a chance. The days of an “Estevan job interview� where, for many companies, a pulse was about as much as a manager could ask for, are over. “Now there might be a real interview,� Cousins said, as employers will have more choices when hiring. He noted, “Good

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

SETI student housing still in the works An oil rebound will mean housing shortages in the future, CEO predicts „ By Brian Zinchuk Estevan, Weyburn – With Estevan experiencing a sudden rise in residential vacancies for rental accommodations, does it still make sense for Southeast College, and its subsidiary, the Saskatchewan Energy Training Institute (SETI) to continue to pursue its plans for building student housing? Yes, according to Dion McGrath, president and CEO of Southeast College. He spoke to Pipeline News in his Weyburn office on Feb. 23. “Yes, vacancy rates have softened,� he noted, but added affordability has jumped. “Rent has gone up. The higher the affordability, the higher the

rent. Estevan still leads the province,� he said. “I expect this spring vacancy will soften more. The market will respond, eventually.� “In terms of affordable housing, student’s still can’t afford them.� McGrath said they are keeping their eye on the horizon. “If oil prices tick up, what will it do to the housing market? Assuming oil will rebound, we’ll be at the same spot we were before.� Therefore, the college will continue to pursue its affordable housing initiative, which was announced in January 2014. One of the partners on the project is the city of Estevan, which has set aside up to four acres of land a short distance

away from SETI for the housing project. In January, Estevan Mayor Roy Ludwig noted that with the slowdown in demand, now may be a good time to build housing, as the costs will be lower than they were during the height of the local boom over the past several years. McGrath agrees. “It may be an opportune time. Costs hopefully have softened. Until a request for proposals (is put out), I think it’s a valid assumption that developers and contractors would sharpen their pencils.� How much, he doesn’t know yet. Some factors are whether the project would be modular-built or “stickbuilt.� The Ministry of Ad-

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^ŽƾƚŚĞĂĆ?Ćš ŽůůÄžĹ?Äž Ć‰ĆŒÄžĆ?Ĺ?ĚĞŜƚ ĂŜĚ K Ĺ?ŽŜ DÄ?'ĆŒÄ‚ĆšĹš ƚŚĹ?ŜŏĆ? Ĺ?Ćš ĹľĹ?Ĺ?Śƚ Ä?Äž Ä‚ Ĺ?ŽŽÄš Ć&#x;žĞ ƚŽ build its planned student housing project in Estevan while things have slowed down, since that could result in lower costs. File photo

vanced Education has asked for more information to be gathered for the project, so the college is seeking to answer all their questions. After that, he said, “The next step is to go to the market with the project.� The land the city has set aside is just one lot over from SETI, which means students would have just a short walk to the campus. They would also be within walking distance of shopping and several dining establishments. The lack of available and affordable housing is attributed as a cause for the decline in full-time students taking courses at Southeast College in Estevan. At one point, they had 150 to 175 students enrolled in full-time programs,

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now that number is down to 75. McGrath explained that students couldn’t afford to go to school in Estevan due to the housing issue. By providing student housing, as many as 84 beds, the intention is to increase those numbers taking full-time course work. While the project focuses on student housing, that is not its only goal. It’s also meant to provide additional affordable housing within the community. McGrath said it is needed for future growth of the city. “Housing is a basic building block of economic growth,� he said. “We would hold up Estevan as a prime example of needing infrastructure that needs more growth. Estevan is a prime example of very little – almost nil – affordable housing.� He pointed to a report the college commissioned regarding the impact of the Bakken play has on the region. That report was presented at the same time

the college launched this housing project. It showed the underlying economic need for additional housing due to expected continued economic activity in the region. The housing project, if fully realized at 80-90 units and 160 beds, would be worth approximately $20 million. As of late February, he doubted provincial money would be allocated in the March 18 provincial budget. McGrath has talked to a number of developers who are interested in the project. Some have questioned if government money is even needed to do it? (The city’s contribution of land is a big plus). He noted the province has spent money on student housing in recent years at the University of Saskatchewan, the University of Regina, Saskatchewan Polytechnic’s Prince Albert campus as well as Northwest Regional College in Meadow Lake. “It’s been done,� McGrath said.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

A29

When things slow down, many go to school Ĺ?ŽŽÄš ƉůĂÄ?Äž ƚŽ Ç ÄžÄ‚ĆšĹšÄžĆŒ Ä‚ Ć?ĹŻĹ˝Ç ÄšĹ˝Ç Ĺś Ĺ?Ĺś ƚŚĞ Ĺ?ŜĚƾĆ?ĆšĆŒÇ‡ Ĺ?Ć? Ä‚Ćš Ć?Ä?ĹšŽŽů͘ dŚĞ ^Ä‚Ć?ĹŹÄ‚ĆšÄ?ĹšÄžÇ Ä‚Ĺś ĹśÄžĆŒĹ?LJ dĆŒÄ‚Ĺ?ĹśĹ?ĹśĹ? /ĹśĆ?Ć&#x;ƚƾƚĞ Ĺ?Ĺś Ć?ƚĞvan is one such place to do that. File photo

Weyburn – When things slow down in the economy, there is often a push for more education. That’s exactly what Dion McGrath, president and CEO of Southeast College and its Estevan campus, the Saskatchewan Energy Training Institute, expects to see. “Traditionally, when there’s a softening in the energy sector, there’s a strengthening of the enrollment,� he said on Feb. 23. People will prepare for different skill sets. Just what skills should be offered are part of the college’s ongoing programming planning. McGrath said, “We look at labour market data and needs.� For instance, the college is planning a fourth class power engineering course in Estevan. SaskPower’s need

for people with such qualifications appears to be “insatiable.� These qualifications are also used in the oilfield. Other construction trades include electrical, welding and industrial mechanic (millwright). The college is in the final stages of putting together its rig worker program, geared at entry-level jobs in the field. McGrath noted there may not be a labour market need at this time, given low oil prices, but they are looking at a pilot intake for the program. In preparing the rig

work program he said their feedback called for instruction on some of the “softer skills,� like financial management and communication. Planning for this new course started when demand for rig workers was at its peak. “It’ll be ready for when things turn around,� McGrath said. The school still offers its regular core safety programs. Southeast College is talking with industry representatives about the use of simulator technology where possible, including possibly in the rig worker pro-

gram. They are trying to find ways to reduce the need to send workers to Nisku, Alta., for training. This had been one of the driving concepts behind the establishment of an “energy training institute� in the first place. However, he noted, “We’re not going to pursue a technology that won’t meet the industry’s needs.� Regional colleges have long been places where students can take some of their first year university classes before following up at the big city campuses to complete their degrees. That used to be common

with Southeast College, but it has dropped off substantially in recent years. The college is again pursing first year university class offerings, focussing on a core set of courses such as arts and sciences. Nursing and education are also being considered. “It’s so darn expensive to send your kids off (to school),�

McGrath noted. By being able to stay home another year and take classes locally, there can be a substantial savings for a family. To that end there is a plan to have broadcast site within the college so that, for instance, an instructor in Estevan can teach classes to students in Weyburn, Moosomin and Assiniboia.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

Your employer borrows you from your family eral years’ experience building grain bins, he was severely injured and nearly killed just a few days into the job. The crew was in a rush to get the job done before the upcoming long weekend. They were working on a site near Blaine Lake, Sask. which had a low-hanging power line. Instead of skidding the hopper bottom over, a picker was used. It made contact with the power line while Weber and several others were steadying the load. While two others were injured, he was, by far, the worst victim. The result was the loss of part of his right arm and left leg, major facial trauma, and nearly the loss of his kidneys. His parents were initially told he wasn’t expected to survive, with third and fourth degree burns to 60 per cent of his body and lesser burns to much of the rest. Weber spent six weeks in an induced coma. His memories of the event are reconstructed from the accounts of others, since he has pronounced amnesia or the time. Recovery took years. There were 30 surgeries in Saskatoon, another 14 reconstructive and plastic surgeries in Toronto, and five-and-a-half years of physical therapy. The total recovery time was six ĆľĆŒĆ&#x;Ć? tÄžÄ?ÄžĆŒ ĹśÄžÄ‚ĆŒĹŻÇ‡ ÄšĹ?ĞĚ ĚƾĞ ƚŽ Ä‚ Ć‰Ĺ˝Ç ÄžĆŒĹŻĹ?ŜĞ Ć?ĆšĆŒĹ?ĹŹÄž Ä?ĆľĹ?ĹŻÄšĹ?ĹśĹ? Ĺ?ĆŒÄ‚Ĺ?Ĺś Ä?Ĺ?ĹśĆ?͘ ,Äž ĹśĹ˝Ç ÄšĹ˝ÄžĆ? Ć?Ä‚ĨĞƚLJ Ć‰ĆŒÄžĆ?ĞŜƚĂĆ&#x;ŽŜĆ? ĹŻĹ?ĹŹÄž ƚŚĹ?Ć? ŽŜÄž and-a-half years. “The incident changed my life obviously in Ä‚Ćš ƚŚĞ ^ ^^͘ Photo by Brian Zinchuk huge ways,â€? he said, the result of a “crappy decisionâ€? both individually and as a group. “The tragedy for me was this was preventable who was about to go off to his first billet away Estevan – Curtis Weber of the Battlefords on so many levels,â€? he said, adding he had to be returned to the South East Enviro & Safety Semi- from his Battlefords home. He had worked for nar on March 18, having spoken at the event a few several years as a teenager building grain bins with accountable to himself. Things that would have made a difference inhis family’s business, but that summer he would go years ago. Weber’s presentation was called “Danger High on to work with another company building bins as cluded a strong orientation with the new company, hazard identification, risk assessment, root cause his dad’s business was winding down. Voltage.â€? analysis and corrective action. Communication is He recounted how, as a 17-year-old new Weber was a promising junior hockey player also key. employee with a new company, but one with sev“While the goal is to prevent injuries, we need to be prepared to deal with emergencies,â€? he said. Weber has not felt angry, depressed or sorry Ĺ— Single Room Ĺ— Single Kitchenette for himself. That’s a result of the strong support Ĺ— Double Room he’s had from friends and family. Ĺ— Double Kitchenette He’s now married to a nurse, and they have a young son and daughter. He’s still the active, enert XFFLMZ BOE NPOUIMZ SBUF t TNPLJOH OPO TNPLJOH SPPN getic and loving person he was before. He hunts, t HVFTU MBVOESZ t XJSFMFTT JOUFSOFU golfs, boats and coaches hockey. Weber noted. t 45$ CVT BDDFTT “There’s nothing that I want to do I can’t do.â€? 306-634-2624 “Your employer is borrowing you from your OE 4U &TUFWBO kids, your wife, parents and grandparents. Make 306-634-2624 s 1401 2nd St., Estevan sure you come back,â€? he concluded.

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SECTION B April 2015

Meet the A-Event champs from Tiger Machining: (l-r) Ken Smart, Gerren Findlay, Reid Findlay and Brynn Findlay.

Tigers prey on county curlers „ By Geoff Lee Lloydminster – This year’s lords of the rings at the 48th annual Lloydminster Heavy Crude Open Bonspiel are four curlers from Tiger Machining. Team Tiger preyed on a County of Vermilion River rink in the A-Event thriller at the Lloydminster Golf and Curling Centre on March 22. “It was too close. I had to throw my last rock and make a double,� explained jubilant Tiger skip Ken Smart in just his third appearance at the bonspiel. The shot rock launched Smart and his crew of Gerren Findlay, Reid Findlay and Brynn Findlay into high five mode. “I’m going to have a drink right now and celebrate,� said Smart who works for Klohn Crippen Berger an environmental company in Lloydminster. Tiger was one of 56 teams to take part in the event, 16 fewer than last year due to the downturn that was part of the curling conversation. “I’m a little disappointed in the entries, but that being said, 56 is pretty good,� said event chairman John Stanyer at the opening ceremonies on March 19. “Sometimes when times are tough, you kick back and relax a little bit and kick up your heels and

have a good time.� Despite the industry pullback, all of the events such as the banquet, breakfasts and draws were well sponsored with plenty of prize donations to boot. “The biggest thing is we’ve kept our eight events and all our sponsors stepped up and did that so we are happy for that,� added Dusty Makichuk who heads the entertainment committee. Makichuk curls with BPC Services Group skipped by perennial hopeful Monte Armstrong who last won the A-Event in 2010. “If we can kept curling by Sunday we’ll probably be good,� he said fresh off his opening game win on March 19. Come Sunday, BPC lost in the E-final to Trican after being bumped in the quarter finals by County of Vermilion River. “I missed a draw on the last end and gave them the win,� confessed Armstrong about the let down in the quarters. It was a different story for Vertex who won the B-Event in a game against Asset Performance Group after losing their opener. “The first game we had some mistakes, and then we kind of picked it up through the rest of the tournament and everything was clicking,� said skip

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Derren Weimer. “It was a good tournament.â€? Last year’s champs from Baker Hughes still had a shot at the C-event on Saturday morning until Pyramid 2 handed them a killer second loss. Lead Brian Robison may have foreseen his team’s fate when he told Pipeline News, “We have a ways to go to see how things go. There’s a lot of good teams out there.â€? Tom Fisher from Hurricane Industries came into event with an unbeatable record of 48 consecutive years of curling in the oilmen’s bonspiel. His team was also 2-0 by the Friday night banquet before falling out of contention, but not before being asked about his chances of playing in the 50th anniversary spiel. “At the moment I will. My knees are good,â€? he confirmed. As for the lower team turnout this year Fisher said, “You could see it coming with the downturn in oil. “There’s not as many curlers as they’re used to be either.â€? Like many others in attendance Fisher said the bonspiel and banquet are an opportunity to escape the current downturn. ɸ Page B2

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B2

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

It's been a hell of a ride

Oil man of the year, Don Bertrand delivered some jokes along with his thank you speech at the bonspiel banquet on March 20.

Oil man of the year, Don Bertrand gets a round of applause for his speech from family members led by his Ç Ĺ?ĨÄž :ŽĚLJ͕ ĹŻÄžĹŒÍ• Ä‚Ćš ƚŚĞ >ůŽLJĚžĹ?ĹśĆ?ĆšÄžĆŒ Ä?ŽŜĆ?ƉĹ?Ğů Ä?ĂŜƋƾĞƚ ŽŜ March 20.

Éş Page B1 “You gotta go out and enjoy life a little bit too. You can’t just worry about it. I’ve been through them all since ’63,â€? he said. There were plenty of laughs generated by head table guest at the banquet quarterbacked by funny man Kurt Price from Lloyd 95.9 FM. The star celebrity though was bonspiel oil man of the year Don Bertrand who spoke about his career and told the crowd, “It’s been a hell of a ride I tell you. “I’d like to thank you all for coming tonight. It’s been a real honor,â€? he said while thanking the committee for giving him the opportunity.â€? Leading the applause was his wife Jody and family members in attendance. Bertrand also threw the first stone to kick off the bonspiel and then sat back to watch the action. That was also the tactic of Al Greenwood who offered an almost believable excuse for not playing

this year. “Ah, a tragic knee injury has kept me out of the running this year so I get to spectate/coach,� he said with a laugh. When pressured to explain why he was coaching from a seat outside the rink, he said, “I’m a little smarter than them. It’s a little warmer in here.� Greenwood also offered his take on the impact of the downturn on the lower turnout. “Spending is at a low and people are watching their pennies and events like this end up feeling the impact,� he said. Tervita was the main sponsor of the 2015 Unity bonspiel through a previous arrangement before oil prices began to tank “Obviously, had we known the downturn was coming, we probably would have pulled out as well,� said Greenwood. “We have some door prizes on hand for this one.� The spoils of victory were shared by the list of event winners with Tiger Machining at the top of the heap as the A-Event champs followed by Vertex, the B-Event winners. The C-Event went to Land Solutions, the DEvent to Mike’s Oilfield and the E-Event to Trican. KDA Oilfield claimed the F-Event title with Foremost Hammers winning the G-Event and Integra 1 the H-Event crown.

ZLJĂŜ ZĹ?ǀĞƊ͕ ĹŻÄžĹŒ ĂŜĚ DĹ?Ä?ŚĂĞů tĞLJĹ?Ä‚Ĺś Ć?Ç ÄžÄžĆ‰ Ä‚ ĆŒĹ˝Ä?ĹŹ ƚŽward the house for Bandit Pipeline in a Saturday March 21 contest.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

B3

Alberta may shed 31,800 jobs in oil drop Edmonton –Alberta expects to lose 31,800 jobs this year as plunging oil prices force companies to cut spending. The province is also bracing for a $7 million gap in revenue from oil and gas royalties for the next fiscal year budget on April 1. “We are facing these challenges head on and laying the groundwork to provide long-term fiscal sustainability,” said Finance Minister Robin Campbell in a third quarter forecast update on Feb. 24. “Budget 2015 will include a 10-year plan that will help us minimize the effect of volatile energy prices and provide predictable and sustainable funding for programs and services. “Albertans are increasingly engaged in the process and I want to thank everyone who shared their input over the past several weeks.” Despite declining oil prices Alberta

expects a budget surplus of $465 million for the current fiscal year ending March 31. The expected 201415 surplus is less than the $1.1 billion esti-

attributed the change to higher investment income from the Heritage Savings Trust Fund and from federal funding for flood relief. Total revenue for

“We are facing these challenges head on and laying the groundwork to provide long-term ÀVFDO VXVWDLQDELOLW\µ

Energy revenue forecast is down $503 million from budget, mainly due to plummeting oil prices. Bitumen royalties have taken the biggest hit over the past year, and are expected to drop $644 million from budget to year end, with other revenue streams showing slight increases. “We have taken steps to protect our financial position that

will help keep us in the black this year,” said Prentice in a statement on Feb. 24. “Contract settlements made by previous administrations and significantly lower resource revenues have created a very challenging fiscal outlook for Alberta. “This requires a reset of our fiscal foundation to address a $7 billion revenue gap.” Prentice added that

oil prices have fallen more than 50 per cent since June 2014 which has impacted government revenue and dampened the pace of Alberta’s economic growth. The fall of the Canadian dollar at 88 US¢ on Feb. 24 compared to 91¢ at budget, helps cushion the impact on revenue due to the drop in oil prices and bolsters exports.

- Finance Minister Robin Campbell mated for the current budget. The surplus represents a $1 billion budget flip from January when Premier Jim Prentice said there would be a $500 million deficit. The government

the 2014-15 fiscal year was revised to $44.8 billion, $397 million higher than the budget estimate, due primarily to better results in the first nine months for corporate income tax and investment income.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

Get that EI application in right away Canada is to ensure workers get access to the services they need to help them get back to work. To that end, Service Canada responded to a basic set of self-help e-mail questions posed by Pipeline News on everything from maximum benefits to how to avoid application pitfalls.  Pipeline News: Aside from providing EI benefits, how else does the Government of Canada help unemployed oilfield workers Alberta lost 14,000 jobs in February as the impact of low oil and gas prices begin to get back to work?  Service Canada: Ĺ?ÄžĹśÄžĆŒÄ‚ĆšÄž Ĺ?ŜĚƾĆ?ĆšĆŒÇ‡ ůĂLJŽčĆ?͘ ^Ä‚Ć?ĹŹÄ‚ĆšÄ?ĹšÄžÇ Ä‚ĹśÍ›Ć? ƾŜĞžƉůŽLJžĞŜƚ ĆŒĹ˝Ć?Äž ƚŽ ĎąÍ˜ĎŹ Ć‰ÄžĆŒ Ä?ĞŜƚ Ĺ?Ĺś &ÄžÄ?We also help individuĆŒĆľÄ‚ĆŒÇ‡ ĨĆŒŽž Ď°Í˜Ďľ Ć‰ÄžĆŒ Ä?ĞŜƚ Ĺ?Ĺś :Ä‚ŜƾÄ‚ĆŒÇ‡Í˜ KŜĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ÄŽĆŒĆ?Ćš Ć?ƚĞƉĆ? ĨŽĆŒ ĹŻÄ‚Ĺ?Äš Žč Ç Ĺ˝ĆŒĹŹÄžĆŒĆ? Ĺ?Ć? ƚŽ ÄŽĹŻÄž ĨŽĆŒ žƉůŽLJžĞŜƚ /ĹśĆ?ĆľĆŒÄ‚ĹśÄ?Äž Ä?ĞŜĞĎƚĆ? ŽŜůĹ?ŜĞ Ĺ˝ĆŒ Ĺ?Ĺś Ć‰ÄžĆŒĆ?ŽŜ Ä‚Ćš ĹŻĹ˝Ä?Ä‚Ć&#x;ŽŜĆ? Ć?ĆľÄ?Ĺš Ä‚Ć? ƚŚĹ?Ć? ŽŜÄž Ĺ?Ĺś als get back to work as >ůŽLJĚžĹ?ĹśĆ?ĆšÄžĆŒÍ˜ WŚŽƚŽ Ä?LJ 'ÄžŽč >ĞĞ quickly as possible by: Offering information sessions related to ment is picking up head- are explained at the ser„ By Geoff Lee EI to ensure workers ing into spring breakup. vicecanada.gc.ca website know what types of Unemployed workor office locations across The pace of layoffs in jobs are in demand and ers needing to file for Canada where they can the oil and gas industry where they can apply Employment Insurance start their application in Saskatchewan and for them; benefits can do so through process. Alberta due to the low Ensuring they The goal of Service commodity price environ- a variety of means which know what benefits and services are available, RENTALS including training; and TRUCKING ‡ %%/ 7DQNV /LQHG ‡ 3RUWDEOH )ODULQJ (TXLSPHQW ‡ 3LFNHUV Providing infor6ORSHG 6WHDP &RLOHG ‡ )ORZ %DFN 6HSDUDWRUV 6XPSHG 6RXU 6HUYLFHG ‡ 3UH 0L[ 6\VWHPV ‡ %HG 7UXFNV mation on the gov‡ (QYLUR 9DF 8QLWV ‡ 6XUIDFH 7DQNV ‡ :LQFK 7UDFWRUV ‡ 5LJ 0DWV ‡ $FLG 7DQNV ernment’s Job Bank ‡ 7H[DV %HGV ‡ ,QYHUW 6\VWHPV ‡ 0L[LQJ %LQV website including job ‡ 6XUIDFH 6XPS 7DQNV ‡ 6KDOH %LQV ‡ &DWHUSLOODU /RDGHUV ‡ )ODUH 7DQNV alerts, which help con‡ 9DSRU 7LJKW (TXLSPHQW nect workers directly with jobs. P.N.: How is the EI benefit formula 0,'$/( &$5/</( calculated and what is 3K ‡ ‡ 3K ‡ ‡ )D[ ‡ ‡ )D[ ‡ ‡ the maximum amount PLGDOH#WRWDORLOĂ€HOG FD FDUO\OH#WRWDORLOĂ€HOG FD someone can receive? $ 'LYLVLRQ RI 7RWDO (QHUJ\ 6HUYLFHV /WG

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Generally, the basic rate for calculating benefits is 55 per cent of the weekly average insurable earnings. Effective Jan. 1, 2015, the maximum yearly insurable earnings is $49,500. This means that a claimant can receive a maximum amount of $524 per week. Visit www.servicecanada.gc.ca/ eng/ei/types/regular. shtml#section3 for more information. P.N.: How long can a claimant receive EI benefits? Service Canada: The number of weeks for which an individual may receive regular benefits varies from 14 to 45 weeks depending on the regional rate of unemployment where they reside in, the week their benefit period starts, and the number of hours of insurable employment that an individual has accumulated in their qualifying period (normally the 52 weeks immediately preceding the start of their claim). Visit www. servicecanada.gc.ca/ eng/ei/types/regular. shtml#long1for more information. P.N.: What are some of the common pitfalls to avoid when applying? Service Canada: Employees should always apply for EI benefits as soon as they

stop working. They can apply for benefits even if they have not yet received their record of employment (ROE). If they delay filing their claim for benefits for more than four weeks after their last day of work, they may lose benefits to which they may have otherwise been entitled. For more information on the application process, please visit www.servicecanada. gc.ca/eng/ei/faq/faq_ online.shtml P.N.: If a previously high-wage earning oilfield worker is offered a lesser paying job, does he have to accept it or lose benefits? Service Canada: The type of work and wages an individual is expected to accept is based on the extent to which an insured person has contributed to employment insurance and the number of weeks of regular benefits received in the past. Claimants are also expected to widen their expectations regarding the type of work and acceptable wages as the number of weeks on claim increases. For more information on the type of work and wages that are considered suitable, please visit www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/sc/ ei/ccaj/claimant.shtml ɸ Page B5

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 ɺ Page B4 P.N.: What is the approximate wait time for the first EI cheque? Service Canada: If Service Canada has all the information we need and if the claimant is entitled to receive EI benefits, the first payment should be issued within 28 days of the date Service Canada receives the application for benefits. Visit www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/ei/types/regular. shtml#start for more information. P.N.: What is the additional wait period for a claimant with severance and other benefits? Service Canada: All payments received from an employer upon separation of employment such as termination, severance or vacation payments, etc. are considered as earnings arising out of employment under EI legislation. These payments are allocated starting with the week in which the layoff or separation occurs, at the rate of the claimant’s normal weekly earnings from that employment. No benefits are payable to the claimant until after the allocation period ends and a two-week waiting period has been served. Visit www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/ei/information/earnings_info. shtml for more information. P.N.: Are there a lot of EI applications submitted recently by oil workers in Alberta and Saskatchewan? The latest figures for EI applications found on Statistics Canada’s website reflect initial (new) and renewal (reactivate) EI claims received by province. EI applications by occupation and/or industry are not available. Please see Statistics Canada’s Cansim table 276 0004 at www5.statcan.gc.ca/cansim/ a26?lang=eng&id=2760004 Information on EI beneficiaries by province and major occupation is provided by Statistics Canada: Cansim table 276-0041 at www5.statcan. gc.ca/cansim/a26?lang=eng&retrLang=eng&id=27 60041&paSer=&pattern=&stByVal=1&p1=1&p2= 1&tabMode=dataTable&csid P.N.: Is the volume of EI applications in Alberta and Saskatchewan picking up month to month as the downturn in the oil and gas sector progresses? Service Canada: The latest figures for EI applications found on Statistics Canada’s website indicate that there were 17,960; 22,010 and 21,740 initial and renewal EI claims received in Alberta in October, November and December 2014, respectively.

These levels are similar on a year-over-year basis; specifically, there were 18,890; 19,930, and 20,420 initial and renewal EI claims received in October, November and December 2013. There were 5,080; 7,760, and 7,830 initial and renewal EI claims received in Saskatchewan in October, November and December 2014, respectively. These levels are also fairly consistent on a yearover-year basis; specifically, there were 5,340, 6,770, and 7,790 initial and renewal EI claims received in October, November and December 2013, respectively. P.N.: How does job sharing work for eligible EI claimants? Service Canada: Work-sharing is designed to help employers and employees avoid layoffs when there is a temporary reduction in the normal level

B5

of business activity that is beyond the control of the employer. Under work-sharing, income support is provided to employees eligible for Employment Insurance benefits who work a temporarily reduced work week while their employer recovers. For more information on the Work-Sharing program, please visit: www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/ work_sharing P.N.: Will work sharing take place in the oil and gas industry? Service Canada: Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) officials are monitoring the situation in the oil and gas sector across Canada, and in particular Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador, and are reaching out to employers to raise awareness of the worksharing program.

Whitecap to buy Viking assets Calgary – Whitecap Resources Inc. has entered into an agreement to purchase Beaumont Energy Inc. for approximately $587.5 million. The purchase announced on March 18 will include Beaumont’s net debt estimated to be $70.5 million. Beaumont shareholders will receive 0.40 of a Whitecap common share for each Beaumont share, with an option to take a portion of the consideration in cash up to a maximum of $103.4 million. The acquisition will also be partially funded with a concurrent $110 million bought deal equity financing. Beaumont is a concentrated, high netback, light oil-weighted Viking focused company with operations primarily in the Kerrobert area of west central

Saskatchewan. The acquisition offsets Whitecap’s lands and production in their Viking core area. Whitecap plans to continue the development of this resource with the conversion of further vertical wells to waterflood injectors. “The acquisition has significant upside potential with large original-oil-in-place an active waterflood and low recovery factors to date,” said Whitecap in a news release. “All of the Beaumont lands are de-risked with a large inventory of repeatable light oil development drilling opportunities and include strategic oil and gas facilities and infrastructure requiring limited capital requirements to process additional production volumes.”

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

5HFUXLWHU IHDUV VSULQJ Ă RRG RI OD\RIIV „ By Geoff Lee Lloydminster – Your Recruitment & HR Division Inc. in Lloydminster expects the impact of layoffs in the oil and gas industry due to falling commodity prices to hit home during spring break-up. “We’re seeing and hearing about numerous layoffs throughout Alberta and Saskatchewan and I think we’ve just kind of started,â€? said CEO and company owner Kathy Kennedy about the local oilfield labour market. “I think that will stay happening until – hopefully, September it will stop – but for sure from now until September it’s going to be fairly grim.â€? Hard times in oil<ĂƚŚLJ <ÄžŜŜĞĚLJ͕ K ĂŜĚ Ĺ˝Ç ĹśÄžĆŒ ŽĨ zŽƾĆŒ ZÄžÄ?ĆŒĆľĹ?ƚžĞŜƚ Θ ,Z Ĺ?Ç€Ĺ?Ć?Ĺ?ŽŜ Ĺ?Ĺś >ůŽLJĚžĹ?ĹśĆ?ĆšÄžĆŒÍ• Ä‚ĹŻĹ?Ä‚ĆŒÇ‡ ĂŜĚ Ä‚ŜžŽĆŒÄž Ĺ?Ć? Ć?ĞĞĹ?ĹśĹ? Ĺ˝Ĺ?ůĎĞůĚ ĹŠĹ˝Ä? ƉŽĆ?Ć&#x;ĹśĹ?Ć? ÄšĆŒÇ‡ ƾƉ ĂŜĚ žŽĆŒÄž ůĂLJŽčĆ? Ĺ?Ĺś ĹŻÄ?ÄžĆŒĆšÄ‚ Ä‚Ć? field employment have ÄžĹśÄžĆŒĹ?LJ Ä?ŽžĆ‰Ä‚ĹśĹ?ÄžĆ? Ä?ƾƚ Ä?Ĺ˝Ć?ĆšĆ? ĨĆŒŽž ƚŚĞ Ĺ?žƉĂÄ?Ćš ŽĨ ĹŻĹ˝Ç Ä?ŽžžŽÄšĹ?ƚLJ Ć‰ĆŒĹ?Ä?ÄžĆ?͘ also come to Calgary and Canmore where Your Recruitment has Garages, Basements, Laundry Rooms, Sun Rooms and More! branch offices. “It’s not just Lloydminster. It’s everywhere,â€? said Kennedy in late February. Alberta expects to lose about 31,800 jobs this year as plunging oil prices lead producers to

cut costs. Lloydminster escaped relatively unharmed from the global recession in 2009-10, but Kennedy fears there will be more carnage and job losses in the current downturn. “This one’s certainly going to be more significant than the 2009-2010 area. This is going to hit home a lot more,� she said. “This one is much deeper. Oil prices are way lower than they were in 2009, and we dropped so quickly. It started dropping in October, and it was down to under $50 a barrel in two months. “Nobody saw that big of an impact coming.� Last June, oil peaked at over $107 a barrel for West Texas Intermediate and companies were scrambling to find new employees. Kennedy expects it will be awhile before Lloydminster sees another unemployment rate as low as 4.1 per cent as it did in January. “The employment numbers in January didn’t have the impact of the layoffs yet. You’ll

start seeing that in February, but the real tell will be March,â€? she said. “It’s hitting every level and every kind of job title right now, so we’re seeing it from labourers to engineers to admin to accounting – everyone is being impacted.â€? “We’ll be back to the – you know – we’ll get 15 responses to an ad which we haven’t seen for eight years.â€? Kennedy said the job matching business of Your Recruitment has gone from “crazy busyâ€? in the last couple of years to being dead now. “It just came to a screeching halt and that’s okay,â€? she said. “We knew that happens during the cycle, so we’re just trying to redo all our processes and look at everything we do and make sure we are still doing the best. “It’s definitely slow and we’re looking at our costs and trying to make sure we can stay alive. Fortunately Kennedy has not had to lay off any of her four employees in Lloydminster, but job postings on the company website have dried up. ɸ Page B7

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 Éş Page B6 “Right now, everybody’s just kind of looking at their organization deciding if they can kind of re-jig everybody’s role and not recruit,â€? she said. “I have not seen a lot of ads going up.â€? Your Recruitment accepts resumes, meets with job seekers to assess their skills and connects them with potential employers. They also provide a diverse range of recruiting services like resume writing and direct hiring for employers that don’t have a human resources specialist. “I think we do add a valuable service to the area. I think we are cost effective,â€? said Kennedy. “People are going to realize that, even now, when they’ve had to let go of their HR person, they still need that resource on a ‘use as you need’ kind of basis. “That will hold us over.â€? Your Recruitment employees are fielding a lot of questions lately from employers faced with having to lay off workers to cut costs. “It’s a hard process for them to do. A lot

of them are tightly tied to their employees and rightly so,â€? said Kennedy. “They are having a tough time coming to terms to do layoffs. It’s not an easy thing for anybody.â€? She said clients have been asking about their options, how to handle downsizing and what the market is saying about severance packages. Employers also want to know what they need to be doing and make sure they are following legislation and all the workplace standards. “We are very tied to our clients, and so we’re going to help wherever we can, and they know that,â€? said Kennedy. Your Recruitment has held several free seminars to jobseekers that could generate future business for them as well as good public relations. “We did very well for a number of years, so it is our turn to give back,â€? said Kennedy. “We had a free session on how to do a good resumĂŠ. We did it at Second Cup and there were a few people that attended.

“It was maybe a little bit too soon, so maybe we’ll do another one, but we’ve certainly had people coming in and wanting us to create a resumĂŠ for them.â€? Your Recruitment also presented a seminar on how to survive the first month of unemployment. “It’s a real transition and we need to give back to the community,â€? repeated Kennedy who has plenty of free advice for those who have lost their jobs. “You need to just kind of sit down and regroup. It’s a grieving process and it’s not easy, so you look at you costs,â€? she said. “Make sure that you can handle a couple of months because it may be a couple of months before you find something. “Get into a routine. Looking for a job is a full-time job.â€? Kennedy said jobseekers need to start networking and lower their salary expectations as everyone moves to reduce their costs. “Networking is really important when you are unemployed. It’s good to get out because you may just run into

dĆŒÄ‚Ä?ĞLJ ZĹ˝Ĺ?ÄžĆŒĆ?Í• Ä‚Ĺś Ĺ˝Ć‰ÄžĆŒÄ‚Ć&#x;ŽŜÄ‚ĹŻ ĆŒÄžÄ?ĆŒĆľĹ?ĆšÄžĆŒ Ä‚Ćš zŽƾĆŒ ZÄžÄ?ĆŒĆľĹ?ƚžĞŜƚ Θ ,Z Ĺ?Ç€Ĺ?Ć?Ĺ?ŽŜ Ĺ?Ĺś >ůŽLJĚžĹ?ĹśĆ?ĆšÄžĆŒ Ä?Ä‚ĆšÄ?ŚĞĆ? ƾƉ ŽŜ Ć?ŽžÄž ŽĸÄ?Äž Ç Ĺ˝ĆŒĹŹ ÄšĆľĆŒĹ?ĹśĹ? Ä‚ ƉŚŽƚŽ Ĺ˝Ć‰Í˜

somebody that’s going to help you find a position,� she added. For those with jobs, Kennedy said they need to be working their butts off and show that they are flexible and look at things that are going to save money. “Look at processes and try to save the company money. Those are very important aspects

right now,� she said. Asked what Your Recruitment could do for an unemployed oilfield truck driver, for example, Kennedy said, “We can start networking and ask our clients if they are looking for truck drivers. “If we know we don’t have any truck drivers, we are very upfront and say ‘we are

not going to be able to help you, but here are some organizations that might be looking.’ “Even though we are not going to make any money off that, we are still in the help mode. “Certainly flexibility is going to be a big thing and lowering their salary expectations,� she advised all jobseekers.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

Energy practicums boost job odds By Geoff Lee Lloydminster – Despite layoffs in the oil and gas industry due to low commodity prices, many energy program students at Lakeland College in Lloydminster are finding full time and summer employment. Third class heavy oil power engineering or HOPE students Dylan Young and Paul Wang are among those who credit their practicum job placements in industry for punching their career tickets when

classes end in May. Young and Wang were waiting for final confirmation of job offers from Husky Energy in early March and spoke about getting their foot in the door during their six week placements. “I went through a practicum with this course, and I went through Husky which is a huge contributor to this course, and they liked me and called me back and gave me a job offer,” said Young.

If hired, he said he will be operating one of Husky’s steam-assisted gravity drainage or SAGD facility plants. “I’ll be operating making steam in any plant they choose,” he said. “I’ll be taking care of any of the water treatment, the boiler, the steam production – all that stuff. “I did my best during my practicums, and hopefully they will call me back.” Wang’s fingers are

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crossed that he will land his first job as a third class power engineer at the Lloydminster Husky Upgrader where he did his practicum. “I spent three months at the upgrader last summer. I think it’s a good place to work,” he said. “I got a Husky scholarship and they gave me a phone call, but I am still waiting for the confirmation.” If he gets the job, he says it will likely be as operator. Kara Johnston, dean of energy programming at the Lloydminster campus, is bullish on job prospects this year for energy students especially in thermal oil heavy. “For example, Husky upstream has those five plants coming online in the Edam and Vawn area and there’s lots of opportunity there,” she said. On the other hand, she said because of the downturn, practicum placements for third class HOPE grads aren’t as plentiful as they were in the past. “A lot of that is due to competition now for those students because companies are now paying practicums for the third class students, so now there is a bit more of a competition to get them,” said explained. Johnston noted the secret sauce for getting a job is a mix of initiative and leadership and the willingness to go the extra mile. “That is what is always going to get you a job,” she said. Young said his practicum was an opportunity to demonstrate his effectiveness as a potential employee that

EXPERIENCE INNOVATION

First year heavy oil power engineering student, Megan Morris has landed a summer job at Husky Energy in the >ůŽLJĚŵŝŶƐƚĞƌ ƌĞŐŝŽŶ ďĂƐĞĚ ŽŶ ŚĞƌ Ɛŝdž ǁĞĞŬ ƉƌĂĐƟĐƵŵ ĂŶĚ ƉĂƐƚ ŽŝůĮĞůĚ ĞdžƉĞƌŝĞŶĐĞ͘ ^ŚĞ ƉůĂŶƐ ƚŽ ƌĞƚƵƌŶ ƚŽ ƐĐŚŽŽů ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ĨĂůů ƚŽ ŐĞƚ ŚĞƌ ƚŚŝƌĚ ĐůĂƐƐ ƉŽǁĞƌ ĞŶŐŝŶĞĞƌŝŶŐ ƟĐŬĞƚ͘ WŚŽƚŽƐ ďLJ 'ĞŽī >ĞĞ

helped him to get the job offer. “I would say that – the hard work that I put out – the ability to communicate with co-workers is a big one out there for sure and just knowing how to run your plant – always that work ethic showing you want to go out and go and figure stuff out,” he said. Ditto for Wang who said, “I think I’m a hard workers and I learned many things from the different operators. “I try to keep communication with different operators, and I learned some stuff because we are pretty new in the field. We need to learn some stuff. “We learn stuff on the textbook, but it’s different. We need real working experience.” Wang is originally from China and has lived in Lloydminster for the past five years. Megan Morris is a first year heavy oil operations technician or

HOOT student from Lloydminster. She just got a summer job with Husky and plans to return in the fall to get her third class power engineering ticket in the HOPE program. “It’s ridiculous and I am so lucky that I could manage to get this,” she said after a lengthy job search. “I’ve been keeping my eye out for summer student jobs since October and Husky’s the right company, so I’ve always been wanting to work with them. “I am going to be getting my steam time for my second year. It’s a SAGD plant, so I will be working with a lot of steam and oil processing. “Hopefully, I can make a really good impression and hopefully they want me back after my second year.” Morris completed her practicum on a SAGD plant with another company in southern Saskatchewan. ɸ Page B9

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 Éş Page B8 She came into the HOOT program after four years of working for a pipeline inspection company. Her timing was good, as it’s getting tougher to enrol by this fall. “Our waiting list is huge,â€? said Johnston. “We are increasing our numbers again for next fall. We have two first year HOPE classes starting Aug. 10 as well as the HOOT class. “Then we have two second year HOPE classes starting after the long weekend in September.â€? Johnston added that economic downturns always lead to increased enrolment in post-secondary education. “People realize that the people that are going to be successful through this are the ones who are dedicated to their training, and are the ones that have a leg up on the job market,â€? she said. Six energy program students were awarded scholarships on March 11 at the Lloydminster campus.

“It’s those students who work hard in school and work hard on their practicum and who are willing to take a bit of a leadership role,� said Johnston. “Those students are the ones who are going to be successful in the long run.� Johnson added that the downturn is an opportunity for those employees who excel and work hard. “It’s an opportunity for them to shine. Typically, in our community the employee has had a bit of a leg up over the employer, and now it’s a case where the employers have the opportunity to retain their best employees,� she said. “I don’t think it’s a bad thing. I think it’s a wakeup call for our labour force that you have to work hard and you have to be committed when you go to work every day. “That’s the message we are sending to our students.� She said the best thing about practicums is that they`re like a job interview. “So employers have

an opportunity to meet students to see them firsthand and to take a look at their work ethic,� said Johnston. “It’s an opportunity for students to see what the real work world looks like.� First year practicums are staggered from October through January. Second year practicums take place over the summer between first and second programs or they can be taken postsecond year. Twenty-eight-yearold HOOT student Dan Boschman did his practicum and is hedging his career options during the downturn. “Last summer, I was working up north and it was very productive and profitable and now it’s taken a hike,� he said. “I did apply for another year here. I am waiting on entrance requirements and acceptance. “I’m going to be hunting for jobs, and if I can’t find any I will try to come back here and do another year,� he said. That way, he can upgrade from a fourth

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class power engineer to a third class in the HOPE program. Boschman bought a house in Sherwood Park and was primed in March to fire off resumĂŠs in that general direction where he has worked before. “I am looking heavily into the heavy oil construction plants – so Husky – but more so in Edmonton – Shell Scotford, Suncor or Esso – those kind of refineries,â€? he said. He said the key to finding a job is having a good resumĂŠ, good contacts and a good reference. Boschman had five years of industrial electrical work under his belt when he came to Lakeland with hopes of starting a steady career in power engineering. “We’re learning quite a bit of things from pumps to pressures and all the vital things to start you on your way to becoming a process power engineer,â€? he said while preparing for HOOT midterms. Young and Wang

also attribute their early success to the quality of teaching at Lakeland. “This is an awesome course – awesome teachers. They teach you very well,� said Young. “The skills I’ve got from this course coming out – I would say the ability to quick think and solve problems. “That’s a big one and using your brain in the right ways. They teach the knowledge of being a power engineer very well.� Wang added that he found out during his practicum at Husky

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that the course “is pretty connected with the field there. “In class, we learn some stuff about the Husky upgrader and our material is actually a training manual.� In other news, Lakeland is working toward a grand opening of the new $23 million Energy Centre in late August or early September when government agencies, funders and students are available. The commissioning of the new teaching boilers at the centre continued in March.

Second year heavy oil power engineering students Holly ,ÄžĆšĹšÄžĆŒĹ?ĹśĹ?ĆšŽŜÍ• ĹŻÄžĹŒÍ• ĂŜĚ WÄ‚ƾů tÄ‚ĹśĹ? Ä?ŽůůÄ‚Ä?Ĺ˝ĆŒÄ‚ĆšÄž ŽŜ Ä?ĹŻÄ‚Ć?Ć? work in the new Energy Centre at Lakeland College in >ůŽLJĚžĹ?ĹśĆ?ĆšÄžĆŒÍ˜ tÄ‚ĹśĹ? Ĺ?Ć? ĞdžƉĞÄ?Ć&#x;ĹśĹ? ƚŽ Ä?ÄžĹ?Ĺ?Ĺś ĹšĹ?Ć? Ä?Ä‚ĆŒÄžÄžĆŒ Ä‚Ć? Ä‚Ĺś operator at the Husky upgrader this summer.

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Bad safety habits took eyesight of speaker they said. It was at this risk it. went from 20/20 vision Grow said he was time he was told if he to nothing. had been wearing those glad he wore hearing A half mile walk to safety glasses he wore at protection all those the truck and two heliyears, saying, “Can you copter transfers resulted work every day for 26 years at the power plant, imagine what it would in him being treated in be like to be blind and he likely would have the same trauma ward hard of hearing?” retained his sight. John F. Kennedy was He went on, “I taken to in 1963 when “We go home and take responsibility for do things at home he was shot. everything. My son, we would never do at He woke up to the he knows he’s the one work,” Grow said. smell of perfume. that pulled the trigger. I Some lessons from “Doc? Will I see can’t take that away. Let the experience he said again?” he asked as he included the importance people know I am here knew the doctors were because I don’t want of training, both the shining lights into his anything to happen to right way and wrong eyes, lights he couldn’t you.” way of doing things. see. A few years ago Leadership was next, “No,” was the resaying that some people he lost Rudy to illness. sponse. He’s now able to cope need to count on me. “Never?” without a guide-dog. And thirdly, he asked, “Never.” Indeed, with the “Are you going to be on Grow realized he the safety team? Part of assistance of others he’s would never see his even been able to pick dŽŶLJ 'ƌŽǁ ǁŽƌĞ WW ƚŽ ǁŽƌŬ ĞǀĞƌLJ ĚĂLJ ĨŽƌ Ϯϲ LJĞĂƌƐ͘ ,ŝƐ ĨĂŝůƵƌĞ ƚŽ ĚŽ ƐŽ ǁŚŝůĞ ŚƵŶƟŶŐ wife and kids again, nor the problem or part of ĐŽƐƚ Śŝŵ ŚŝƐ ĞLJĞƐŝŐŚƚ ϭϮ LJĞĂƌƐ ĂŐŽ͘ Photo by Brian Zinchuk up his passion of huntthe solution? any future grandkids. ing once more. He’s “When it comes But the realization that gone on African safari, to safety, it’s everyone’s there were 72 people in Estevan – In the protective equipment would not have lost using a laser-guided gun job.” the waiting room, not aftermath of getting (safety glasses, ear plugs his eyesight after his and someone telling That dog, Rudy, just for him, but to supshot in the face with a and boots) were conhunting accident had he port his family, is when would be his close com- him how to adjust his 12-gauge shotgun, Tony sidered essential. That been wearing the same aim and where to shoot. panion for eight years, it hit him. “It’s not just Grow had a revelation – plant went 21 years and type of safety glasses he about me. He’s even gone quail and never allowed him It’s not just about me. millions of man-hours wore every day at work. “Those people were into harm’s way. He was hunting again with his That’s since become without a lost time acHis accident haptrained to never, ever let son, now a professional there to support my the moniker of his cident. pened on Feb. 15, 2003, family.” him take a chance, even hunting guide. motivational speaking “We will not accept but what happened the “Hunting isn’t what if it was a puddle of waHis co-workers company, INJAM (It’s second best in safety,” day before, in hindsight, kept calling, crying. took my eyesight. It was ter. That puddle could Not Just About Me). Grow said was the stood out as well. On bad safety habits,” Grow “We’re going to get you be an inch deep or a Crow was one of mantra. that day he and his son concluded. a dog, a seeing eye dog,” foot. The dog wouldn’t the speakers at the That safety record were going out quail South East Enviro came to a crashing end, hunting when they saw & Safety Seminar on literally, in 1993, when some other hunters pass March 18. The event a smokestack collapsed by in another vehicle. was held at the Sasand killed a man he had They were wearing blaze katchewan Energy been working with. “It orange, which Grow “ServingWestern CanadaWith 24 Hour Drilling Mud Service” Training Institute in missed me by 50 feet. ridiculed. Estevan. Not yards, feet,” he said. “Sure, them guys As a young man, he Such a close call must have been cityCalgary Sales Office: Head Office: Estevan, SK never heard the word made him feel like he slicker hunters, wearTel: 306-634-3411 Tel: 403-237-7323 “safety.” But when he was 10 feet tall and bul- ing orange,” he told his Fax: 306-634-7310 Fax: 403-263-7355 hired on with a local letproof, but that turned 17-year-old son. He was Chuck Haines, Technical Sales Ray Frehlick, President power plant not unlike out to not be the case. wearing khaki Cell: 403-860-4660 Cell: 306-421-1880 those near Estevan, it “Ten years later, I found That khaki blended became ingrained in out I was not bulletvery well with the Environmental Division: him, at least at work. proof,” he said. brush country they Tel: 306-634-3411 Grow had been a Grow found that were hunting in. After Fax: 306-634-1951 power plant operator for he, like many other splitting up, and failing Darwin Frehlick, Manager 26 years in west Texas. people failed to practice to communicate his inIn that capacity he was those same safety-contentions, his son ended Cell: 306-421-0491 soon exposed to a very scious practices at home up shooting him in the Mud Technicians: strong safety culture doing every-day things. face, destroying both of where there was no That would come his eyes. 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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

3XPSLQJ RLOĂ€HOG UHVXPpV IRU MREV „ By Geoff Lee Lloydminster – Oil and gas companies and employees aren’t the only ones affected by downsizing and layoffs during the commodity price downturn. Some of the 22 recruiters that took part in the 4th annual business job fair at Lakeland College in Lloydminster on March 4 told Pipeline News it’s not business as usual for them either. “We are probably receiving above average applications at the moment just because of the recession,â€? said Krista Bondy, human resources coordinator for the Rural Municipality of Wilton near Lloydminster. “A lot of equipment operators have found themselves victims to layoffs and that sort of thing. So we’re seeing a lot more applications this spring than we’re used to. “I think so far in the last four or five weeks,

we’ve probably received over 45 applications. “We do still have a few small positions left, but in terms of our seasonal work force this year, it’s probably going to look a lot different too for us trying to plan for the effects of the recession.� The RM of Wilton has hired two finishing grader operators recently, but if more wells get shut in during downturn, their oilfield road maintenance budget will be impacted by reduced taxation. RMs levy taxes to cover accumulated costs resulting from road access and maintenance, policing and fire protection, public health, planning and development, and environmental services. The RM of Wilton is home to the Lloydminster Husky Upgrader, thousands of heavy oil wells, several industrial parks and the expanding Altex Energy

crude-by-rail facility in Lashburn. “Projects are coming off. The thing with a municipality is that, unlike an oil company that is trying to survive this downturn year, we’re more impacted in year two because of the taxation base,� said Bondy. “We are trying to be a little bit proactive with what we are doing this year and keep us above that line for next year.� As for hiring students for summer jobs this year at the RM Bondy said, “We’re not 100 per cent sure at this time. “They’re still under talks in terms of projects and how many projects we’ll be undertaking. That will determine if we have a seasonal workforce at all this year,� she explained. TJ Altman, a division director for the Investors Group was asked what advice he offers to laid off oilfield workers in terms of finances.

“One of the things we do at Investors Group is we are in touch with our clients to set aside that rainy day fund� he said. On the bright side he added, “Right now as much Lloydminster and surrounding areas in the oilfield are in a little bit of turmoil, the actual financial markets are doing incredibly well. “So there’s a lot of strength in the market and in the world for that matter.� He noted calls are coming into his office every week from laid off workers or employers asking about what they should do about their benefit packages. “A lot of the big companies don’t have somebody who can actually sit down with them and explain what to do with these things,� said Altman. He invites new business grads and older workers close to retirement to apply for work

Ĺ?ƉůŽžÄ‚ ĂŜĚ Ä?ÄžĆŒĆ&#x;ÄŽÄ?ĂƚĞ Ä?ĆľĆ?Ĺ?ŜĞĆ?Ć? Ć?ƚƾĚĞŜƚĆ? ĨĆŒŽž >ĂŏĞůĂŜĚ ŽůůÄžĹ?Äž ŚĂŜĚĞĚ ĆŒÄžĆ?ĆľĹľÄ Ć? ƚŽ ĎŽĎŽ ĆŒÄžÄ?ĆŒĆľĹ?Ć&#x;ĹśĹ? Ä?ŽžĆ‰Ä‚ĹśĹ?ÄžĆ? Ä‚Ćš ƚŚĞ ϰƚŚ Ä‚ŜŜƾÄ‚ĹŻ Ä?ĆľĆ?Ĺ?ŜĞĆ?Ć? ĹŠĹ˝Ä? ĨÄ‚Ĺ?ĆŒ Ä‚Ćš >ĂŏĞůĂŜĚ ŽůůÄžĹ?Äž ŽŜ DÄ‚ĆŒÄ?Ĺš Ď°Í˜ DĂŜLJ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ĆŒÄžÄ?ĆŒĆľĹ?ĆšÄžĆŒĆ? ŚĂǀĞ ĆŒÄžÄ?ÄžĹ?ǀĞĚ Ä‚ ůŽƚ ŽĨ ĂƉƉůĹ?Ä?Ä‚Ć&#x;ŽŜĆ? ĨŽĆŒ Ç Ĺ˝ĆŒĹŹ ĨĆŒŽž ĹŻÄ‚Ĺ?Äš Žč Ĺ˝Ĺ?ůĎĞůĚ Ç Ĺ˝ĆŒĹŹÄžĆŒĆ? Ĺ?Ĺś ƚŚĞ ƉĂĆ?Ćš ĨÄžÇ Ç ÄžÄžĹŹĆ?͘

at Investors Group. “We are actually working with young people to people that are close to retirement. It is a great industry that we run – because you run your own business,� explained Altman. “Running your own business – you are also setting your own hours. If you’re making the wage that you want and

making sure your clients are well looked after, then your business is doing what you want. “I take a look at our office right now and we have ex- oilfield employees, we have ex- teachers, we have exuniversity graduates, we have farmers. We have people from all different walks of life. ɸ Page B13

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 Éş Page B12 “Our business really is the love of people and wanting to help people with their finances.â€? Leckie & Associates Chartered Accountants could lose a few of their bookkeeping jobs to oil companies during the downturn but otherwise they are busy. “Especially now, March is one of our busiest times of the year. A lot of companies have their taxes due by the end of the March. There’s a ton of work that way,â€? said chartered accountant Ryan Deis at his company’s booth. “We do financial statements and tax returns, but we also sometimes do cash flow management and projection forecasting – management consulting. We have a lot of December year-ends. “Even with the oil prices down, it doesn’t really impact our work right now. It will probably impact us another year or so from now.â€? Deis said that’s when they could lose some bookkeeping activity as oilfield companies will try to find ways to reduce their accounting costs. “So they will try to do some of their own

bookkeeping,â€? he noted. Chris Jack, an accountant with Hawkings Epp Dumont Chartered Accountants said accounting is a great and stable career in all economic climates. “One thing about the accounting industry is, it’s not really affected by the oilfield and oil prices and that kind of thing,â€? he said. “We are usually steady. We have steady work throughout the year. I guess depending on the work flow and the employees that are at our firm, it can vary whether we’re hiring or not.â€? He noted he hasn’t seen any oilfield accountants that have come to work for the company during the downturn. “I know we have had a few resumĂŠs come in earlier. There was a lady from an oilfield company, but I think this was before oil prices had dropped,â€? he said. Dejan Risteski, a heavy oil region recruiter for Aecom that recently purchased URS Flint said his company was getting lots of applications for trades positions during the downturn. “Right now, we’re looking for pipefitters, electricians and rig

welders. We are hiring out of Bonnyville,� he said. “We’re looking at hiring some ‘mod’ yard work. A lot of the work is for Devon so that’s what we’re working on now.� His said his recruiting goal at the business job fair was to get as many applications as possible for their future needs especially out of Lloydminster. “We’re talking to some business students and making some good connections,� he said. When it comes to selecting the right candidate Risteski said, “We usually go with experience and who is the most qualified. “Then you do interviews, and see who is the best fit.� Leanne Griffiths, Lakeland’s student employment advisor said the job fair helps to connect diploma and degree students from the Lloydminster and Vermilion campuses with employers as the term draws to an end. “It’s gives them an opportunity to network and hopefully gain employment. It’s a good time of the year. They are looking at graduation in another month or so,�

she said. The Servus Credit Union received a stack of resumĂŠs from students at the fair to go with some previous applicants from the oil and gas industry. “We are receiving quite a few that are coming into the branch with regards to many different positions that we have,â€? said Dianna Miller assistant branch manager. “It’s probably the best time of year for us to start receiving those applications.â€? The credit union is hiring for a member service representative and positions as associ-

B13

ĞŊĂŜ ZĹ?Ć?ƚĞĆ?ĹŹĹ?Í• Ä‚ ĆŒÄžÄ?ĆŒĆľĹ?ĆšÄžĆŒ ĨĆŒŽž ÄžÄ?ŽžÍ• Ä‚ĆŠĆŒÄ‚Ä?ƚĞĚ ƚŚĞ Ĺ?ĹśĆšÄžĆŒÄžĆ?Ćš ŽĨ Ä‚ Ä?ŽƾƉůĞ ŽĨ ŚĞĂǀLJ Ĺ˝Ĺ?ĹŻ Ć‰Ĺ˝Ç ÄžĆŒ ĞŜĹ?Ĺ?ĹśÄžÄžĆŒĹ?ĹśĹ? Ć?ƚƾĚĞŜƚĆ? ÄšĆľĆŒĹ?ĹśĹ? Ä‚ Ä?ĆľĆ?Ĺ?ŜĞĆ?Ć? ĹŠĹ˝Ä? ĨÄ‚Ĺ?ĆŒ Ä‚Ćš >ĂŏĞůĂŜĚ ŽůůÄžĹ?Äž Ĺ?Ĺś >ůŽLJĚžĹ?ĹśĆ?ĆšÄžĆŒÍ˜ ÄžÄ?Žž Ĺ?Ć? ĹšĹ?ĆŒĹ?ĹśĹ? ƉĹ?Ć‰ÄžÄŽĆŠÄžĆŒĆ?Í• ĞůĞÄ?ĆšĆŒĹ?Ä?Ĺ?Ä‚ĹśĆ? ĂŜĚ ĆŒĹ?Ĺ?Ć? Ç ÄžĹŻÄšÄžĆŒĆ? ĨŽĆŒ ĹŠĹ˝Ä?Ć? Ç Ĺ?ƚŚ ĞǀŽŜ Ĺ?Ĺś ŽŜŜLJǀĹ?ĹŻĹŻÄžÍ˜

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

.LQGHUVOH\ FRQĂ€GHQW LQ GRZQWXUQ „ By Geoff Lee Kindersley – The Kindersley area can look to high-netback Viking light oil produced in the region to help sustain economic growth during the current low oil price reality. “It is a quick return for the amount of money spent for the infrastructure, the drilling part, the return and to pay it off,â€? said Councillor Vaughn Biberdorf, who works as a battery operator for Penn West Exploration at Avon Hill north of town. Compared to other unconventional plays, he said, the Viking is shallower at only 700-750 metres in depth resulting in lower costs for drilling and completing a well. “In Alberta, it’s double the size of drilling and it’s more expensive,â€? said Biberdorf, who noted multistage fracking and horizontal wells half a mile long are proving to be the productive secret sauce. “There’s less drilling time and less payout for the rig costs and that, and yes, the return is there,â€? he said. Penn West was one of several

companies active in the area in late February, but Biberdorf is well aware that the overall pace of the industry is slowing down. “We’re still drilling as are other companies, I am sure until breakup – then re-evaluation after the end of the first quarter at the end of March,� he said. “We’ve got a big waterflood moving on – just starting and we’re trying to get that going. Things are going good yet.� He’s heard talk from maintenance companies in the area about being asked to cut rates, but he said that’s common practice. More worrisome to some are competitors from Lloydminster, north of Lloydminster and Calgary cutting costs to grab a piece of the action in the Viking. “We hope our guys can sharpen their pencils, but we want them to be sustainable as well,� said Kindersley Mayor John Enns-Wind as the impact of the downturn unfolds. “There’s been a number of con-

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tracts for individuals that haven’t been renewed. There’s been some layoffs,� he said. “For some of our seasoned guys, it’s the fourth or fifth time that they’re doing it. Experience has taught them how to manage their finances and what to expect with work. “For the guys who are going through the first or second time, it’s a different experience for them. “Some of them are a little bit nervous. They’re not sure how it’s going to pick up again whereas the senior

guys – ‘ya it will go.’â€? Despite the overall gloomy mood in the oil industry in the province, Enns-Wind said there’s a lot of confidence in the local economy. “Last time I checked there were about 250 positions advertised in the area,â€? he said noting the restaurant and hospitality association is still recruiting new workers. “We’re doing better – talking with my mayoral colleagues in Estevan and Lloyd, it seems we’re doing better,â€? he said. ɸ Page B15

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

Mayor John Enns-Wind strikes a casual pose at the new East Crossing strip mall near tÄ‚ĹŻĹľÄ‚ĆŒĆšÍ˜ dŚĞ žĂůů Ĺ?Ć? ŜĞdžƚ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ Ä?ŽŜĆ?ĆšĆŒĆľÄ?Ć&#x;ŽŜ Ć?Ĺ?ƚĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ĨƾĆšĆľĆŒÄž ĹšŽžÄž ŽĨ ĹśÄžĆŒĹ?LJ ŽĚĹ?Ğ͘ Plans for a new big box retailer are expected to be announced in the coming weeks near these developments.

Éş Page B14 “It seems like we haven’t been hit as hard. It doesn’t mean we haven’t been affected. There’s still confidence in the area. “People are confident and they’re making cautious but optimistic decisions. We have to grow. “We’re too small for our shoes and so our commercial sector is growing, our retail sector is growing and oil will come back. “We just have to wait and be prepared and that’s what I see a lot of people doing. “There’s a lot of volatility in the oil market and for it to stay depressed for a long time – it’s difficult to imagine that.â€? Kindersley reported a record-setting building permit total of $28.9 million in 2014. “It’s a combination of commercial development residential development, industrial and retail development that’s driving some of these things,â€? said EnnsWind. “We’ve been doing

a lot of infrastructure work and planning is starting to pay off. I still think our record breaking years are ahead of us instead of behind us.� A ground breaking ceremony was held on March 6 for a new Boston Pizza at the 84room Canalta Hotels construction site in the Holland Industrial Park on the north side of Highway 7 West. Canalta is also paying a significant amount for the cost of a new lift station for sewage with project tenders issued. The second expansion of the Kindersley Inn fronting Highway 7 East is also expected to open by April with a total of 218 rooms available. The new 43 room Snow White Hotel is also expected to be open by April on Highway 7 just east of the Hwy 21 junction. Construction is also underway on a 109 room Best Western Hotel on 14th Avenue. A development permit has been issued for a new Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham

east of the new East Crossing strip mall at the east end of town. The new expanded home of Energy Dodge is currently being constructed at that location. “There’s still room to grow here,� said Enns-Wind about the outlook for building in 2015. “People are looking more long term and they need to get stuff started now, so when things do start up next year because prices have rebounded, they want to be ready for it.� Enns-Wind said he’s not surprised by the pace of growth in the early going of 2015

B15

A ground breaking ceremony was held on March 6 for a new Boston Pizza as part of the Canalta Hotels development at Holland Park on Highway 7 West in Kindersley. WŚŽƚŽĆ? Ä?LJ 'ÄžŽč >ĞĞ

despite the slowdown in the oilpatch. “We’ve been living with shoes that were too tight. We had to

expand,� he said. “What I’ve been pleasantly surprised with is that this is still going on with the

downturn in the oil prices and that there is still confidence in the area. ɸ Page B17

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

B17

A lot of different reasons to be upbeat Éş Page B15 “We still need a lot of employees for different businesses so there’s a transition out of the oilpatch into other areas. “We have some of our ag dealers and service companies looking at expanding. We’ve got the terminals that are expanding as well here and around town. “That all contributes. They employ a lot of people as well. There are a lot of different reasons to be upbeat.â€? ,#),#.35)( 5 ),5." 5.)1(5#-5 ")/-#(!5 ) /- 5)(5." 5 ,))%")&low Estates subdivision by Marathon ,)* ,.# The first two six-unit condo structures are completed and for sale and four new houses are under construction with eight lots sold in the first

phase development. The town is also talking with another developer about building several apartments at different locations for those who can’t afford homes. “It seems to be that we primarily need apartments, but there’s nothing firm to announce,� said Enns-Wind. “We kind of have a perfect wave – where all these circumstances come together but we need more housing for economic development. ^ )*& 5 , 5 .., . 5 35+/ &#.35) 5 life and they want positions to go to. Currently, we still have positions for people to come to. “We have a housing problem and )/,5+/ &#.35) 5&# 5@51 ], 5.,3#(!5.)5 address through a multi-use facility for arts and for recreation. “We’re doing all these things con-

currently, so we’re just plugging away at it.� Kindersley plans to spend about qg8i5'#&&#)(5."#-53 ,5)(5#.-51 . ,5 ' #(5, *& ' (.5*,)!, '51#."5 /#& 5 Canada funding. ." ,5+/ &#.35) 5&# 5*,)$ .-5&#% 5 a new swimming pool could hinge on the impact of the provincial budget on March 18. ^ĝ .]-5." 5qlj6fff5+/ -.#)(85 /,, (.&3651 5B'/(# #* &#.# -C5" 0 5 a revenue sharing with the province where we receive 20 per cent of the revenue from the five per cent sales tax

revenues. The premier said that’s on the table,� said Enns-Wind. “The premier is looking at chang#(!5." .5-)5 5B -% . " 1 (5 , (5 /(# #* &#.# -5 --) # .#)(C5" -5 been lobbying hard that that shouldn’t be that case. “Our local organization with the West Central Municipal Government Committee –we’ve been talking very much and talking with the province as well – ‘no you can’t be doing this.’� In the end, the province did not reduce its revenue sharing commitments in the 2016 budget.

POWDER COATING

Labour funding in budget Regina – Saskatchewan’s 2015-16 budget tabled on March 18 will fund a variety of programs to boost workforce training. “Saskatchewan continues to have the lowest unemployment rate in Canada, and there is strong demand for skilled workers in our province,â€? said Minister responsible for Immigration, Jobs, Skills and Training Jeremy Harrison in budget news release on March 18. “We are focused on addressing labour demand by investing in skills training programs that address obstacles to employment and efforts to support recruitment from outside the province.â€? Some of the budget enhancements to labour market programs include: R5qlff6fff5#( , - 5.)5 /&.5 -# 5 Education for a record investment of qhk5'#&&#)(65 (5#( , - 5) 5lh5* ,5 (.5 since 2007-08. The investment will add 200 seats for an estimated total program capacity of 8,780 seats – up 2,900 seats from 2007-08; R5qg5'#&&#)(5#( , - 5.)5." 5 ,)0#( # &5 , #(#(!5 &&)1 ( 5 /( 65 ),5 5 , ), 5.). &5) 5qih5'#&&#)(: R5qkff6fff51#&&5 5 &&) . 5.)5 support 100 new training seats at the Trades and Technology Centre .5 ,%& ( 5 )&& ! 5#(5 ),%.)(85Äť 5 centre opens this fall;

R5 /( #(!5 ),5." 5 ( 7 -katchewan Job Grant is increasing by qh5'#&&#)(5#(5hfgk7gl5@5 ),5 5.). &5 /( 5) 5qj5'#&&#)(: R5qhff6fff51#&&5 5 5.)5." 5 '*&)3' (.5 --#-. ( 5 ,)!, '5 for persons with disabilities, bringing spending on programs and services helping people with disabilities find a $) 5.)5'), 5." (5qgf5'#&&#)(: R5qg5'#&&#)(5#( , - 5 ),5." 5 -% . " 1 (5 **, (.# -"#*5 ( 5 , 5 Certification Commission creating iff5 #.#)( &5., #(#(!5- .-85 This brings the total number of - .-5.)5m6fff65/*5i6hfi5- .-5 ,)'5 hffm7fn5Bnj5* ,5 (.C:5 ( 5." , 5#-5 &-)5 (5#( , - 5) 5qkff6fff5.)5." 5 **, (.# -"#*5 , #(#(!5 &&)1 ( 85̓ Underutilization of the Skills , #(#(!5 ( ŀ.5B C5*,)!, '5 ( & -5qh8k5'#&&#)(5#(5 /( #(!5.)5 5 reallocated for the Canada Saskatchewan Job Grant and the apprenticeship program. In addition, the province will nominate a record 5,500 immigrants under the Saskatchewan Immigrant )'#( 5 ,)!, '5#(5hfgk65#( &/ #(!5 775 nominees through a new provincial sub-category linked with the federal Express Entry system. ̓ĝ 5( 15 -% . " 1 (5 2*, --5 Entry sub category was announced in January 2015 and will help attract skilled labour to the province.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

Pictured are the A-Event champs from Camaro Coil Tubing: (l-r) skip Jim Powell, third Trevor Gerein, second Ç Ä‚Ĺ?ŜĞ ĂŜĚ ůĞĂĚ 'Ĺ˝ĆŒÄš Ä‚ĆŒĹśÄžĆŠ Ç Ĺ?ƚŚ dÇ‡ĹŻÄžĆŒ &Ĺ?ĆŠÄžĆ? ĹšŽůÄšĹ?ĹśĹ? ƚŚĞ ĆšĆŒĹ˝Ć‰ĹšÇ‡ Ä‚Ć? Ä‚ ĆŒÄžĆ‰ĆŒÄžĆ?ĞŜƚĂĆ&#x;ǀĞ ŽĨ dÄžĆŒÇ€Ĺ?ƚĂ ƚŚĞ žĂĹ?Ĺś ĞǀĞŜƚ sponsor. WŚŽƚŽ Ć?ĆľÄ?ĹľĹ?ƊĞĚ

This B-Event rink from Cru Well Servicing includes (lr) skip Brent O’Donnell, third Evan Brown, second Tim ^ĹľĹ?ƚŚ ĂŜĚ ůĞĂĚ ŽƾĹ? ZĆľĆšĹŻÄžÇ‡Í˜ WĆŒÄžĆ?ĞŜĆ&#x;ĹśĹ? ƚŚĞĹ?ĆŒ ĆšĆŒĹ˝Ć‰ĹšÇ‡ Ĺ?Ć? dÇ‡ĹŻÄžĆŒ &Ĺ?ĆŠÄžĆ? ĨĆŒŽž dÄžĆŒÇ€Ĺ?ĆšÄ‚Í˜ WŚŽƚŽ Ć?ĆľÄ?ĹľĹ?ƊĞĚ

The C-Event champs from Huber Machining Ltd. are: (lr) skip Grant Huber, third Brent Ackerman, second Larrie dŚĂůŚĞĹ?ĹľÄžĆŒ ĂŜĚ ůĞĂĚ ZĹ˝Ä?ÄžĆŒĆš ^ĹľĹ?ƚŚ Ç Ĺ?ƚŚ ĆšĆŒĹ˝Ć‰ĹšÇ‡ Ć‰ĆŒÄžĆ?ÄžĹśĆšÄžĆŒ dÇ‡ĹŻÄžĆŒ &Ĺ?ĆŠÄžĆ? ĆŒÄžĆ‰ĆŒÄžĆ?ĞŜĆ&#x;ĹśĹ? dÄžĆŒÇ€Ĺ?ĆšÄ‚Í˜ WŚŽƚŽ Ć?ĆľÄ?ĹľĹ?ƊĞĚ

Fun trumps downturn at Unity spiel „ By Geoff Lee Unity – In curling there is an in turn, an out turn and this year, a downturn. Fortunately, the latter had little influence on throwing rocks during the 14th annual Unity Oilpersons Bonspiel played Feb. 26 to March 1 other than limiting the number of teams to 18. “I think it was only down a couple from last year so it wasn’t too bad,� said lead organize Dustin Brown who is a battery and field operator for Northern Blizzard. The guys that Brown curled with last year couldn’t make it so that accounts for one less team from a year ago. As for the others Brown said, “It could be the downturn right now. It’s just hard finding curling teams.� Brown ended up curling with some pals from Southern Pacific Resource Corp. hoping to repeat their past performance as B-Event champs from a couple of years ago, but to no avail. “This year we were the second team out. I think

I need to fire myself more likely. I was playing third, but I couldn’t make a shot all weekend,� confessed Brown. On the bright side, Brown won a draw for bar fridge donated by Molson Canadian and an excuse for a party with the fridge well stocked. The downturn did claim a couple of sponsors as expected, but perennial optimist Grant Huber reported, “It was good. Everyone had a good time. It’s time to rest up for next year.� His Huber Machining Ltd. rink came into the spiel as the defending A-Event champ, but had to settle this year as the C-Event winner over Diamond Energy. Prior to the event Huber put a self-proclaimed round of drinks bounty on his team that went unclaimed by the Heitt’s Welding rink the first to upend them early on. “I didn`t bring it up and no one on the executive said anything,� said Huber with a laugh. Ironically, Heitt’s rink got their comeuppance in a semi-final loss.

This year’s bragging rights as the A-Event champ go to Camaro Coil Tubing who defeated the Scott Anderson crew. Team Camaro included skip Jim Powell with Trevor Gerein, Dwaine Kopp and Gord Barnett on board. Skip Brent O’Donnell shared the B-Event spoils with his teammates Evan Brown, Tim Smith and Doug Rutley over a foursome from North West Bio-Energy. Tervita was the major sponsor of the 2015 event that drew 150 people to the banquet and dance. “We had Danny & The Dusters, the same band that played last year. We had a really good turnout for the dance. We had a few prizes to hand out,� said Brown in addition to his beer fridge. The banquet putt for a 40 inch TV donated by Country Ford was claimed by Brent Heitt while a reverse draw for $1,000 went to Larry Heitt. Proceeds from the bonspiel help to fund improvements at the host Unity Curling Club.

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,ĞĂǀLJ Ĺ˝Ĺ?ĹŻ Ć‰Ĺ˝Ç ÄžĆŒ ĞŜĹ?Ĺ?ĹśÄžÄžĆŒĹ?ĹśĹ? Ć?ƚƾĚĞŜƚ͕ ĆŒĹ?ƊŜĞLJ WĆŒĹ˝Ć?Ć?ÄžĆŒÍ• ĹŻÄžĹŒÍ• Ç Ä‚Ć? Ć‰ĆŒÄžĆ?ĞŜƚĞĚ Ç Ĺ?ƚŚ ƚŚĞ ,ĞĂǀLJ Ĺ˝Ĺ?ĹŻ Ĺ˝Ć‰ÄžĆŒÄ‚Ć&#x;ŽŜĆ? ƚĞÄ?ŚŜĹ?Ä?Ĺ?Ä‚Ĺś Ć?ƚƾĚĞŜƚ ^ĞĂŜ DÄ‚Ä?>ĞĂŜ͕ ĹŻÄžĹŒ Ä‚Ä?Ä?ĞƉƚĞĚ ƚŚĞ ͘ 'ÄžĹ˝ĆŒĹ?Äž :Ä‚Ć?ŽŜ >Ä‚ĹśĹ? ^Ä?ĹšŽůÄ‚ĆŒĆ?ĹšĹ?Ɖ Ä‚Ç Ä‚ĆŒÄš Ä?LJ WÄ‚ƾů Ĺ˝ĆŒÄšĆŒÄ‚Ĺ?ÄžĆŒ ĨĆŒŽž ,ĆľĆ?ŏLJ ĹśÄžĆŒĹ?LJ ÄšĆľĆŒĹ?ĹśĹ? Ä‚Ĺś Ä‚Ç Ä‚ĆŒÄšĆ? >ŽdžĂž͏ ^ ZÄžĆ?ŽƾĆŒÄ?ÄžĆ? >ĆšÄšÍ˜ DÄžžŽĆŒĹ?Ä‚ĹŻ ^Ä?ĹšŽůÄ‚ĆŒĆ?ĹšĹ?Ɖ ĨĆŒŽž ĂǀĞ >ŽdžĂž Ä‚Ćš ƚŚĞ >ůŽLJĚžĹ?ĹśĆ?ĆšÄžĆŒ Ä?ĂžƉƾĆ? ŽŜ DÄ‚ĆŒÄ?Ĺš Ď­Ď­Í˜ WŚŽƚŽ Ć?ĆľÄ?ĹľĹ?ƊĞĚ Ä?ĞůĞÄ?ĆŒÄ‚Ć&#x;ŽŜ ŽŜ DÄ‚ĆŒÄ?Ĺš Ď­Ď­ Ä‚Ćš ƚŚĞ >ůŽLJĚžĹ?ĹśĆ?ĆšÄžĆŒ Ä?ĂžƉƾĆ?͘ WŚŽƚŽĆ? Ć?ĆľÄ?ĹľĹ?ƊĞĚ

Energy students feted in Lloydminster Lloydminster – Top performing energy programming students at the Lloydminster campus of Lakeland College were feted during the Lloydminster Campus Awards Celebration on March 11. The Vermilion campus that houses trades programs among others, held their awards on March 18. A total of 927 Lakeland recipients will be recognized with awards, bursaries and scholarships valued at $944,169 during presentations at both campuses in March. Another 365 students are benefiting from the Saskatchewan Advantage Scholarship program which distributed $182,459 in scholarships to 365 eligible Saskatchewan grads attending Lakeland College this academic year. Lakeland projects that by the end of June a total of 1,330 awards, scholarships and bursaries totalling $1,207,109 will be awarded to students.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

Report critical of Boundary Dam CCS project suggests the answer is wind By Brian Zinchuk Regina – The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, an Ottawa-based thinktank with a Regina office, put out a paper on Feb. 10 critical of the Boundary Dam Integrated Carbon Capture and Storage Project. Entitled SaskPower’s Carbon Capture Project – What Risk? What Reward? the paper runs 24 pages. Brian Banks and Mark Bigland-Pritchard authored the report. The report suggested the province of Saskatchewan would have been better off investing in wind-powered electrical generation or at least combined-cycle natural gas. The largest benefactor of the risky project was the oil company benefitting from CO2-enhanced oil recovery, and the province is committed to the development of fossil fuels over any other alternatives. The project The report’s introduction makes the point of the escalating costs of the project – first announced on April 26, 2011 as a $1.24 billion project, then rising to $1.4 billion. (On Feb. 11 SaskPower reported the total cost is $1.467 billion, which includes $240 million in federal contributions.) The paper sought to assess the “financial, environmental and technical risks of SaskPower’s CCS project versus the potential rewards/benefits of expenditures exceeding $1.4 billion.” They authors ask, “What are the current and future impacts on SaskPower’s finances? How will project costs affect electrical rates and ratepayers in years to come? Are the publicized environmental benefits as positive as claimed? Who is the major benefactor of the CCS facility?” Of 55 carbon capture and storage projects in various stages of planning or construction worldwide. Only one project, Boundary Dam, is a CCS post combustion coal-fired plant: other such projects have been abandoned or postponed for cost reasons, they note. Most American projects are intended for enhanced oil recovery, while Chinese, European and Korean projects intend to use deep saline storage similar to the associated Aquistore project that is part of the Boundary Dam initiative.

The Kemper County Energy Facility, which envisions carbon capture as part of a coal gasification system, is now expected to cost US$6 billion, double its initial budget. “The necessary preconditions to take CCS in North America to the next stage of development are: high North American natural gas prices (low natural gas prices make it more desirable as a fuel); continued logistical or policy barriers to low-cost renewables such as wind power; available indigenous low rank coals; a desire to control or lower CO2 emissions; either a serious carbon pricing regime or nearby oil fields that would purchase the CO2 for enhanced oil recovery projects; and suitable geological formations for CO2 disposal. Without these conditions being present, second generation CCS coal-fired plants are highly unlikely,” the paper states. Low-cost natural gas makes coal less competitive as a fuel. However, “Apart from Boundary Dam 3, remaining coal-fired capacity in Saskatchewan amounts to 1285 MW: 427 MW at Boundary Dam 5 and 6, 582 MW at Poplar River and 276 MW at Shand. Canadian regulations exclude renewal of these plants after their retirement dates if CCS is not installed: hence the choice will be between permanent shutdown and a problematic CCS conversion process.” Canadian regulations require that all new and any retrofitted coal-fired units must meet carbon dioxide emissions guidelines that can only be met with carbon capture and storage. If they are not retrofitted by their retirement date, they must be shut down. “These regulations could enable CCS in the USA and in coal-dependent Canadian provinces (principally Alberta and Saskatchewan); but whether it will generate new out-of-province revenue streams for SaskPower depends on whether the corporation has any significant intellectual property rights over the technology,” the paper said, adding, “The main reason the utility industry is resisting the new standards and CCS is that it forces coal to compete with natural gas and could raise wholesale electricity prices by as much as 80 per cent. The US Energy Department admits that first generation

CCS technologies have a captured cost of carbon dioxide of between $70 and $90 per tonne for wholesale electricity. Given the current absence of serious carbon-pricing schemes in the jurisdictions concerned, this is not good news for those wishing to sell CCS technology.” Financial risks There was a lot of risk involved for SaskPower, a relatively small utility. The report noted, “The $240 million contributed by the federal government covers only about one sixth of the costs. Investing $1.5 billion in experimental technology involves a high level of risk, especially for a company of SaskPower’s size.” They take aim at the ageing infrastructure argument SaskPower continually makes, stating, “Ageing infrastructure is SaskPower’s mantra, oft repeated in its rate increase submissions and in its annual reports. The need to upgrade ageing infrastructure has been the corporation’s historic go to position when seeking rate increases. It is a given that whichever energy path SaskPower embarks on its infrastructure will have to be upgraded, preferably with smart grid technology — and that its demand projections indicate a need for new capacity. But what is ironic is that SaskPower decided to rebuild (at reduced capacity) one of its oldest coalfired plants, Boundary Dam 3, rather than mothball it and build new, less expensive, less polluting electrical generation.” One area of the report is incorrect. It states, “It is also interesting to note that in the 2013 Annual Report the corporation predicts that it will need to invest one billion annually in capital expenditures to update its system as a normal practice. One billion just happens to be the approximate cost of the CCS part of the Boundary Dam project. SaskPower closed Boundary Dam 4 in 2014 and it would have to be retrofitted with CCS in order to reopen. Such investment levels are not possible without significant additional rate increases. Can a corporation with a current debt of $5.5 billion responsibly take on annual investments of $1 billion annually?” Boundary Dam Unit 4 is still in operation, SaskPower has confirmed. ɸ Page B21

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 Éş Page B20 The authors take issue with the cost of coal versus wind stating, “In its submission to the Rate Review Panel SaskPower admits the price for coal will increase in 2014 as contracts with producers expire and that was one of the additional reasons it applied for a three year rate increase. By sticking with coal-fired plants SaskPower will continue to face long term fuel input costs at a time when wind power, for example, is becoming more competitive.â€? They noted power rates are going up, and that SaskPower asked for a 15.5 per cent rate hike increase over three years, but, “Cabinet later approved the first 5.5 per cent rate hike, but scaled back the 2015 increase from five to three per cent.â€? While potash and oil companies can pass on rate hikes, senior citizen condos cannot afford such high rate increases, the authors assert. “The CCS plant will have a parasitic effect on SaskPower’s financial position for the next twenty years,â€? the report states. Financial rewards The largest income line item in the balance sheet presented is the sale of carbon dioxide. The report stated, “Sale of CO2, estimated to be $450 million, may be too high. SaskPower has agreed to provide Cenovus Energy a million tonnes of CO2 per year for ten years, but the actual price per tonne has not been made public and it is not known whether Cenovus is able to lower the amount purchased at any time. “Estimates range in the neighborhood of $20 to $25 per tonne over 20 years: thus total revenues could be $400-$500 million. But it is also questionable whether the Weyburn field will have an additional twenty year life span even with enhanced oil recovery technologies are applied. Will Cenovus continue to operate its enhanced oil recovery operation should the price of oil drop below $70

Should SaskPower have built this CO2 capture plant or more wind turbines. File photo

per barrel for extended periods of time as low prices negatively affect profit margins? With West Texas Intermediate oil dipping below $50/barrel in early 2015 Cenovus may not purchase the contracted amounts of CO2, and as a result SaskPower will forego revenues and be required to inject the CO2 in its Aquistore site and take on additional operating costs. Many risk factors are at play regarding the sale of CO2.� Sulphuric acid sales pegged for the next 20

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years are pegged at $60 million. Fly ash sales should not be attributed to the CCS project, but normal operation of the plant, they argue. Similarly, the report questions if SaskPower will be able to monetize any of its knowledge gained at the Shand Carbon Capture Test Facility or at Boundary Dam. The authors suggest that the Shand facility would not have been built without Boundary Dam CCS, and thus it should be included in the total bill. The biggest financial beneficiary, according to the report, is the Cenovus-operated Weyburn Unit. “SaskPower has taken on almost all of the financial risk but Cenovus will reap the greatest rewards.â€? Their calculations determine that oil production would remain at 30,000 barrels per day, resulting in an incremental increase of 10.9 million barrels per year of oil production as opposed to its 8,000 barrels per day production level in 1990. In 20 years, even at $50/barrel, this equates a potential gross revenue gain of $3.45 billion. The report does not account for the SaskPowersourced CO2 being in addition to the long-term Dakota Gasification Company-sourced CO2, or the possibility of production increasing as a result of having additional CO2 available for injection. Environmental risks Even though greenhouse gas emissions would be greatly reduced with CCS, that’s not good enough for the authors, who wrote, “The pollution effects of coal mining, burning coal, venting coal gases, and disposing of ash and other residues are well known. Burning coal releases more GHGs than any other fossil fuel per unit, twice that of burning natural gas. With a 90 per cent capture rate coal plants with CCS emit CO2 at a rate 1/10 that of a conventional plant, but this is still a significant amount, perhaps as much as 140 tonnes of CO2 per GWh of power.â€? ɸ Page B22

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

A lot of money on a risky project ɺ Page B21 Air quality issues, water contamination from coal washing and disposal of fly ash in unlined landfills, land degradation from strip mining, occupational risks to works and community health hazards such as increased asthma, cancers and pulmonary disorders are all listed ad side effects of coal-fired power. They stated, “The health impact of these toxic substances has not been documented for Saskatchewan, but is most likely significant. The financial cost — in medical treatment, environmental impact, insurance, etc. — may also be expected to be high.” They added, “Many experts agree that to believe coal can be clean is self-delusionary.” While the project is touted to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1 million tonnes a year, the report points out that between its three coal-fired power plants, three natural gas-fired power plants, two coal mines and three cogeneration plants, a total of 15.7 million tonnes of GHGs are emitted (the numbers include Boundary Dam Units 1, 2 still in operation.) Province-wide, the total is 74.8 million tonnes of greenhouse gases emitted per year. Plus, additional oil production from the Weyburn Unit due to CO2-EOR will result in more greenhouse gas emissions when that oil is consumed. “For each tonne of carbon dioxide injected, d, about 2.7 tonnes of carbon dioxide are eventually emitted from combustion of the oil recovered,” the report states. “This calculation does not even account for carbon dioxide losses in the course of the injection process: a substantial proportion returns to the surface with the oil.” “When all GHG emissions are considered the one million tonnes captured annually is not a significant reduction in the province’s contribution to climate change.” Conclusion The report concluded, “In 2011, SaskPower’s decision to rebuild Boundary Dam 3 and construct

a CCS facility is an important turning point in the corporation’s history. At a time when utilities and grid management corporations around the world are shifting decisively towards renewables as costs fall, SaskPower appears willing to lock the province into fossil fuel electrical generation for decades. SaskPower missed an opportunity to shut down its oldest and dirtiest plant and instead spent $1.5 billion on a very financially risky new technology, CCS. In future CCS may become lower cost and technical issues may be resolved, but in 2011 it was an extremely poor fit for SaskPower and the purchasers of electrical power. When corporations take high risks, then the potential for high rewards should be the result, not so for Boundary Dam 3 CCS. The financial losses for Boundary Dam 3 are high and the future rewards are far from proven.” The authors suggested SaskPower should have instead built wind farms. “Coal when compared to wind is about $300 million more expensive over 20 years. When factoring in the capital cost of CCS, coal is even more uncompetitive. Wind is affordable. Twenty-six per cent of North Dakota’s power is generated by wind; Denmark almost 40 per cent, and Spain over 20 per cent.41 Wind could become a much more significant part of Saskatchewan’s electrical generation.” Germany and Denmark are held up as countries that have successfully integrated wind into their power generation. For Denmark, the number is quoted as 40 per cent of their power. Integration of solar power and smart grid technology are offered as ways to address grid issues. Alternatively, the Queen Elizabeth Power Station in Saskatoon could have been upgraded at a cost of $488 million, providing double the power at a fraction of the cost compared to BD3. Using natural gas, it would not be as climate-friendly, they noted. But even natural gas doesn’t get a free pass. “Those who, following the findings of climate sci-

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ence, believe that we must move to a low carbon economy much faster, put the emphasis on shifting to renewables such as wind, solar, hydro and biomass, and seek to minimize the degree to which natural gas is used as a “bridge” fuel. No fossil fuel can ever be carbon neutral; and there is evidence that emissions associated with natural gas are increasing as a result of methane leaks (especially from fracked wells), venting and flaring.” The report misquoted from a Pipeline News article (Page A14, Oct. 2014), stating, “Premier (Brad) Wall has stated that he had to convince a SaskPower board committee to support the CCS project.” In fact, the committee convinced the premier to approve the project, not the other way around. The authors suggested Wall’s in approval of the project was political in nature, stating, “To increase SaskPower‘s debt so substantially in order to garner US support for the Keystone Pipeline demonstrates the government’s commitment to the development of fossil fuels over any other alternatives.” The authors end by saying, “The predominant reason for the CCS to go ahead appears to be to recover more oil from south east Saskatchewan and reward the oil producing companies rather than adopting appropriate carbon pricing, and moving forward more rapidly on a menu of renewable energy options.”

About the authors According to the report, Brian Banks is a former director of CCPA Saskatchewan Office and board member, and is also a member of the board of Adult Educators Association of Saskatchewan. His career in education included K-12, adult education, post-secondary and training and development. Banks holds an arts degree from the University of Saskatchewan, a Bachelor of Education from the University of Regina and a masters degree in History from the University of Regina. Mark Bigland-Pritchard’s bio stated he is “an independent consultant in energy, environmental assessment and sustainable building. His background includes two engineering degrees, a PhD in architectural physics, several years of teaching energy studies at two major British universities, and a diverse range of consultancy, research and project management work. His current work-in-progress includes a technical assessment of a transition to renewables-only electricity in Saskatchewan (in conjunction with economist Brett Dolter), and home design to meet Passivhaus standards. The report also acknowledges the assistance of Dr. Emily Eaton, professor of geography from the University of Regina. Pipeline News reported on her summer tour in 2014 researching the impact of oil on Saskatchewan. The story appeared on page B7 of our August 2014 edition. Of the 52 endnotes in the report, eight referenced Pipeline News stories.

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

B23

SaskPower responds to thinktank report critical of carbon capture strategy When SaskPower nearly hit a peak in power demand, wind was only generating 1 MW By Brian Zinchuk Regina – On Feb. 11 Mike Monea, president Carbon Capture & Storage Initiatives with SaskPower, spoke with Pipeline News in response to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives report entitled SaskPower’s Carbon Capture Project – What Risk? What Reward? “They really wanted to discuss why we didn’t do more renewables and why we didn’t we spend $1.3 billion building more wind turbines,” Monea said. He noted such arguments are typical for those who don’t see the “balance of power needs” a company like SaskPower has. “They don’t understand baseload power as well as they should. Actually, we wish they would come and talk to us so they can get a grasp of what we have to deal with here. “We are increasing our renewables as much as we possibly can. We’re going to be at 10 per cent (wind generation) here within the next couple years, which is pretty good. We have limited hydro because of the way our province is built. We have run of the river hydro, and they are becoming very expensive themselves. “Hydro’s not very good where it’s flat, and solar’s not very good at night.” Roughly 25 per cent of SaskPower’s generating capacity is from renewable sources. Coal accounts for 44 per cent of power production. “The story is we

need everything. We just don’t have an opportunity for nuclear now. That’s so far away, the cost is so great, with permitting and construction, it’s a long term project. Everything else, we need to seriously look at. We need to maximize our renewable portfolio while having baseloads so people aren’t mad at us when they turn their switch on and don’t have power.” At a press conference earlier in the day he noted there were questions about why they haven’t put more money into researching batteries for wind power. “In my mind, SaskPower needs to do a better job in communicating how power works, why we’re a reliable service and what we’re doing to keep our rates as low as possible,” Monea said. “Also, in the Estevan area, how we’re trying to keep jobs in the coal industry while creating a low-emission energy source.” He noted the other units at Boundary Dam, Shand and Poplar River Power Stations are not low-emission sources. The final number for the total cost was roughly $1.467 billion, including the rebuild of Unit 3 at Boundary Dam Power Station and the new carbon capture plant. “The capture side is on budget, but the total cost, roughly $1.4 billion, includes $240 million from the federal government of Canada,” he said.

Delegations that have visited the Boundary Dam Carbon Capture Project 9 United Kingdom 9 Hungary 9 Norway 9 Poland 9 Slovakia 9 Turkey 9 Thailand 9 Germany 9 Australia 9 Philippines 9 Indonesia

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A period of final adjustments which will take several months will refine that number. Monea doubts it will go higher. The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives report talks about how SaskPower could have spent that money on wind power generation. Monea said, “You need a lot of base power to support your renewables. You can’t really have 100 per cent renewables. If you do, you’re not going to have power all the time. That’s what people have difficulty understanding. “Every time we have to replace a plant, we can’t just put up wind turbines. It doesn’t work. It’s too simplistic.

It doesn’t work that way,” he said. “Last Sunday we hit a peak (of power consumption) at 6 p.m., suppertime. We had one megawatt coming from our wind turbines. There was no wind blowing. What did we use? We used coal-fired plants for the baseload, so nobody had disruption in their power.” That one megawatt was out of an installed base of 210 megawatts of potential wind power generation in this province. Four per cent of SaskPower’s generation capability is wind. As of Jan. 30, the capture plant was capturing roughly 2,600 tonnes per day, and he expected it to ramp up

to full capacity of 3,200 tonnes in the following weeks. The report suggested Cenovus might not want all that CO2, which would mean lost sales for SaskPower. Asked if Cenovus still wanted all that CO2, given that oil had dropped in price by more than half, Monea responded, “They are a company in for the long term for enhanced oil recovery. Within a few months, they will be taking 100 per cent of our capacity and applying it to EOR. “These are 30-40 year projects. You can’t let a trough in an oil price affect your injection process.” By that point,

Aquistore had not yet taken any CO2. They were conducting infectivity tests. Since the well had been sitting for two years, it needed some maintenance before proceeding with injection. The price for CO2 is fixed, with an indexed escalator clause. The price does not go down if the price of oil goes down, he said. There has been a lot of international interest in the project, and SaskPower has been leading numerous tours throughout the plant. “I counted up the countries the other day, and it came to 23. It sounded like that Hank Snow song – I’ve been Everywhere.”

B24

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

Mechanic changes stripes in downturn Lloydminster – When the going gets tough, the tough get going. That’s how it is for heavy duty transport mechanic Nathan Miller who owns NGM Mechanical Ltd. located northwest of Lloydminster on Range Road 20 off Highway 16. Miller is buying a service truck to conduct repairs in the field as the downturn in oil prices causes to him to diversify his shop-based business. “We’ve definitely taken an impact from it. I’ve probably lost 60 per cent of my customers because of it,� said Miller.

The downturn is also leading a lot of his oil hauling customers to modify their trucks for grain hauling to make a living. “I’m taking a lot of pumps off as a lot of them are going to haul grain now or gravel,� said Miller. “They’re branching out and they’re getting farther away from home now. I’ve been listening to what the customers want and that’s why we’re looking at getting into a service truck.� His new business plans began to take shape in December when the impact of the downturn hit home. “Usually I would be putting out about 120

invoices a month, and it’s down to maybe 40 invoices now,� he said in early March. With a service truck he could even downsize from his current two rental bays to one as he adjusts to market conditions. “I’m slowly getting into the service side of it – service rigs and I have pumpjack motors and stuff – diversifying a little bit,� he said. “I’ve been a mechanic for 13 years so it’s good to get into something different.� Miller has four kids to feed while his wife Trish Langville handles the bookkeeping. “The biggest thing right now we are look-

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ing at what kind of money we can spend into a service truck and do a little bit more advertising,� said Miller. “The nice thing is I don’t have very much overhead. I’m just a one man show so I can keep my hourly rate down. “I’m $100 an hour whereas a lot of shops are $120. That $20 makes a big difference. “Because I don’t have as much of an overhead (like) a lot of customers that I have been working with –I can adjust my hourly rate with them.� Before oil prices began to tank, Miller was fixing or certifying about four or five semis or trailers a day. Now, “It’s one here and one there.� The service truck is priority one to go to where his customers are if need be. “This way I’m not limited to what I can do. When you have a shop, you’ve got to try to pull the customers into your shop and have reason for them to come to you,� he said. “With a service truck, some people like that when you come to their shop. A tow bill costs a lot too,� he said as further justification for a service truck that he used to operate.

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Heavy duty transport mechanic Nathan Miller works on a Peterbilt truck at his NGM Mechanical shop northwest of Lloydminster.

“I ran a service truck for two and half years for a company out of Lloyd mostly working on service rigs,� he said. The service truck he’s looking at has a welder on it which has him thinking of going back to school to complete his welding ticket. “In school, I took a basic welding class, but it would be nice to get that extra certificate then a guy could branch out and do a little bit more things,� he said. Miller graduated from SIAST, now known as Saskatchewan Polytechnic, when he was 19. “How their program works is, you chose whatever you want to do,� he said. “If you want to go on the transport side of it, you do that or the heavy equipment. Over the years I’ve done a little bit of both – so the heavy equipment I can work into. “There aren’t too many things I can’t do from the mechanic side of it.� Miller came to work in Lloydminster as a heavy duty mechanic when his parents moved to the city after selling their cattle ranch in Mankota Saskatchewan. “I just worked for the various shops in town for Frontier Peterbilt for a few years until that last recession hit in ’09 so they let a few guys go,� he said.

Miller headed north to work for Cameco in MacArthur River helping to rebuild their fleet of trucks. He launched NMG in July 2012 with a partner before going it alone. He eventually moved into his current location in one of three 10-bay rental shops where he has all the tools needed for the job. “I’ve got pretty much all the diagnostic and the basic service equipment pretty much everything for a guy to work on a semi,â€? he said. Speaking from what he jokingly calls his “big bossâ€? chair (a folding lawn chair) Miller hinted he may try focus on truck and equipment air conditioning repairs this summer. “Maybe I’ll set up some packages for redoing air conditioning in semis and grain trucks and maybe automotive – do a little bit of that and door to door service,â€? he said. “You gotta do what you gotta do. A man’s got to eat and you got bills to pay.â€? Meanwhile, he said his biggest goal is taking care of the customers he’s got right now and keeping their trucks keep on the road so they don’t lose any downtime. “If they lose a day, that’s four loads they don’t have,â€? he said. ɸ Page B25

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 ɺ Page B24 “After you work on a guy’s truck for a year, you figure them out pretty good. You know things that should be done, things that he can let go for a couple of months. “Whereas, when you get a new guy in, it takes a while to learn his truck.” Miller said what sets him apart from the competition is that his work speaks for itself. “You do quality work, the word spreads. A lot of my advertising is by word of mouth. I’m just about pushing 40 -plus customers. For a single man that’s a lot of trucks,” he said. “Some of them have got three to four trucks. Fixing and repairing equipment comes from Miller’s farm DNA. “My dad always had to hide the grain auger motor just because I wanted to rebuild them all,” he

said with a laugh. “When I was 12 I did all the summer fallow for dad. We worked hard on the farm.” He said farming would be a good fallback right now if he could do it again. “It would be nice. Cattle prices are quite high. We had 600 head of cattle,” he said adding the ranch covered nearly five sections of land. He said it was a tough decision for his dad to sell it but he said farming is stressful. His dad is a welder at Waste Management in Lloydminster, a trade that kind of runs in the family. “Like dad said, back in the day my great-grandpa was a blacksmith and so was my grandpa,” said Miller. He noted there is always a need for welding as a mechanic. “There’s always stuff to fix on these trucks.

B25

There’s some welding I could do myself but when it gets into structural or suspension work I’ll get a welder in here to weld it. “This way he can sign off on it.”

Nathan Miller has been taking a lot of pumps and PTOs Žī Žŝů ŚĂƵůŝŶŐ ƚƌƵĐŬƐ Ăƚ ŚŝƐ E'D DĞĐŚĂŶŝĐĂů ƐŚŽƉ ĂƐ ŵŽƌĞ ůĞĂƐĞ ŽƉĞƌĂƚŽƌƐ ƐǁŝƚĐŚ ƚŽ ŚĂƵůŝŶŐ ŐƌĂŝŶ Žƌ ŐƌĂǀĞů͘

Husky Energy to replace Sunrise crews Calgary – Husky Energy is starting to produce oil from bitumen at the Sunrise Energy project in northern Alberta with its own commissioning workforce on site. The production start-up announced on March 11 was timed with same day layoffs of about 1,000 construction workers employed by Saipem Canada. The layoffs were reported by the Christian Labour Association of Canada in Fort McMurray that supplies skilled workers to Saipem contracted to work at Husky’s Sunrise. Husky spokesperson Mel Duvall told Pipeline News that construction at Sunrise is now largely complete and Saipem’s scope has been wrapped up. “Husky and its contractors will continue to oversee and manage the remaining commissioning work,” said Duvall in an e-mail on March 12. The $3.2 billion project is a joint 50-50 venture with BP located about 60 kilometres northeast of

Production for the Phase 1 project by steamassisted gravity drainage is expected to ramp up to its full capacity of 60,000 barrels per day (30,000 net to Husky) by the end of 2016. Bitumen from Sunrise can be processed at the Toledo refinery which Husky jointly owns with BP. As for scheduling work on Phase 2, Husky reported in December that they would take some time to look at and evaluate the results from Phase 1 before going forward with the next phase. Oil prices have fallen more than half since June 2014 prompting producers in Western Canada to ^ƚĞĂŵ ŽƉĞƌĂƟŽŶƐ Ăƚ ^ƵŶƌŝƐĞ ŶĞƌŐLJ ďĞŐĂŶ ŝŶ ĞĐĞŵďĞƌ reign in capital spending and projects. ϮϬϭϰ ǁŝƚŚ ĮƌƐƚ ďŝƚƵŵĞŶ ƉƌŽĚƵĐƟŽŶ ŝŶ DĂƌĐŚ͘ ,ƵƐŬLJ ĂŶĚ Husky reported in February that it was seeking ŝƚƐ ĐŽŶƚƌĂĐƚŽƌƐ ŚĂǀĞ ƚĂŬĞŶ ŽǀĞƌ ƚŚĞ ĐŽŵŵŝƐƐŝŽŶŝŶŐ ǁŽƌŬ up to $600 million in cost savings from its suppliers ĨƌŽŵ ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐ ĐŽŶƚƌĂĐƚŽƌƐ͘ and contractors. Photo courtesy of Husky Energy It is also cutting its 2015 capital budget to Fort McMurray. between $3 and $3.1 billion from its previous $3.4 Steam operations began at Sunrise in December. billion plan due to low commodity prices.

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B26

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

Be a productivity ninja Lloydminster – Oilfield managers faced with having to do more with fewer resources in the current low oil price environment need to learn how to become productivity ninjas. Ninjas do better work in a day rather than more work with the available resources. That’s the creed of Rachel Murray, a self-taught “productivity ninja� who shared some of her secrets with 87 business managers from all walks of life at a breakfast workshop on Feb. 18 at the Lloydminster Golf and Curling Centre. The first mystery she clarified for the benefit of Pipeline News is what is a productivity ninja? “It’s on my business card, and it’s really hard not to smile when I introduce myself and say ‘hi I’m Rachel Murray and I’m a productivity ninja,’� she said. “People kind of look at me funny, but it’s almost a childhood dream. We all wanted to be ninjas when we were growing up, didn’t we?� As a productivity ninja Murray said, “I get the best work done that I can with the time and resources that I have.� The enemy she said is information overload and that applies to harried oilfield managers faced with budget and staff cutbacks who can learn to fight back as productive ninjas. “They need to keep in mind that there are only 24 hours in a day and they only have so many resources to get the job, and that people are human,� said Murray minutes before starting her presentation. “It’s tough and there are cutbacks, but we can still get it done. “We’re concerned about you’re doing your best work with the time that you have and the resources that you have, and feeling good and not being too stressed out about it. “We still need to take care of our body as well as get the job done. There’s a balance that needs to be met in the oilpatch right now.� Having a Zen-like calm to deal with pressure is one of nine characteristics of a productivity ninja taught by Murray who allows for some group discussions. Her workshop helped managers make individual action plans and left them with practical tools to boost productivity and reduce stress levels so they can be more productive at work and in their personal lives. When it was suggested that companies could just hire her as a productivity ninja to get the work done, Murray replied with a smile, “Well I’m here to help

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people. “I can’t be everywhere at once. I wish I could.â€? Murray is a business software training consultant and a productivity ninja who offers “think productiveâ€? workshops to a variety of industries in Alberta. The Lloydminster workshop was hosted by the Regional Business Accelerator that connects, coaches and mentors entrepreneurs and businesses on both sides of the border city. Marya Pettigrew, executive director of the accelerator, said the workshop was timely for oilfield managers who work for companies facing difficult challenges to keep active during the downturn. “I think it’s even more important to be efficient in the workplace during times like this when you’re trying to do more with less,â€? said Pettigrew. “I think the tools you learn at a workshop like this are even more important because it allows you to manage not only the workflow more efficiently, but also the stress you might be dealing with on a daily basis. “The more tools we can give people at times like this the better.â€? ɸ Page B27

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 Éş Page B26 A total of 10 business clients of the business accelerator were at the workshop. The accelerator works to connect people to different levels of government supports and to potential sources of capital. “We help them develop technology that they might be bringing to market. It could new oilfield products. It could be new software programs,â€? said Pettigrew, who also spoke at the workshop. “We help them with the supply chain development which is really important. “The biggest thing we try to do is take an idea someone has and help make it a reality, and try to mitigate some of the risk by working with professionals in the region or at the provincial and federal level.â€? Lloydminster was ranked the top mid-size city in Canada to start and grow a business in 2014 by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business with many oil businesses seeking the services of the accelerator. “A lot of our businesses are new technology oilfield based or service based for the oilfield. So we do have a lot there. It’s probably a higher percentage than in other areas,â€? said Pettigrew. “So they’ll come to us and we’ll connect them to technology advisors at the federal and provincial levels and also potential grant funding to do test marketing – maybe connecting them to a university to finish that prototype.â€?

Learning how to become a productivity ninja is also essential for accelerator business owners to optimize their energy, concentration and motivation in a sustainable way. “We are not superheroes, we’re humans, and we’re doing the best job that we can with the time and resources that we have and be okay with that,� said Murray. “Be well adjusted with that and not take short term disability because you just drove yourself into the ground.� Murray also frowns at the tendency of some oilfield companies to equate productivity with working longer hours. “We think that’s a negative approach to productivity especially right now for those folks. We think it’s important to understand there is only 24 hours in day,� she said. “You’re only going to be able to get so much done so do the best that you can with the time that you have.� The workshop was also an Employee Attraction and Retention Network or EARN breakfast by Lloydminster Economic Development and sponsored by Alberta Works with productivity being a key issue for area employers. “We put on an event that’s mainly for HR managers and business owners – something to help them with recruiting and retention and training for employers,� explained Katlin Ducherer, an event and business development manager at economic development. Ducherer said hiring and retaining

B27

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employees is a huge issue in the oilpatch and businesses in all industries today. “I think one of the major things is quality of life and then how great can the business environment be,� she said. “So it’s not what you can pay them or what kind of benefits you can offer them. “It has to be a great work environment for employees as well. It has to be something that they want to come to every day particularly in Lloydminster where the unemployment rate is so low.� In fact the unemployment rate in Alberta for January was 4.5 per cent and just 4.1 per cent in Lloydminster with the effects of lower oil prices and capital spending yet to be felt. It’s never been more

important in the oilfield said Ducherer to be a productivity ninja when faced with the need to do more work with less resources. “The more tasks they put on employees, the more productive they’re going to have to be,� she said noting this

is applicable to all businesses today. “I think it’s really important because a lot of people especially in this day and age with technology – spending a lot of time using their phones and computers and e-mail and all that kind of stuff.�

As for the turnout for the workshop she said, “We’ve got engineering firms; we’ve got oil and gas firms; we’ve got people from the retail sector, the banking sector, agriculture – lots of different sectors. “We’re really happy with the diversity.�

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

4XLFN EXLOG VWRUDJH ÀWV DOO QHHGV Lloydminster – Move over sea cans. There’s a new portable, quick build storage container solution on the market for a variety of oilfield, industrial, construction and residential uses. Greg Yelland is the owner of QuickStor, a Lloydminster-based sales and rental dealer of The S.A.F.E. Co. containers in Saskatoon. “S.A.F.E. Co. is an acronym for store anything fast and easy,” explained Yelland. “We rent and sell portable storage containers and they come in a variety of sizes. “They are all 7 feet wide and 7 feet high and range from 7 to 20 feet long. If people need more space, I can connect two of them together end-to-end and they can be lifted by a forklift. “You can also put three side by side and they can still be lifted by a forklift.” The forklift sleeves are built into the bottom so each unit sits off the ground about 3 or 4 inches. “Water is not issue because they sit up. I will typically put up a 4 x 4 just to keep them up a little bit higher and to level them,” said Yelland. The standout feature of the S.A.F.E. Co. containers that QuickStor markets is they come flat packed for bulk delivery and easy set up anywhere in about 30 minutes Each container package stands about 11 inches high and includes two side walls; a back wall, a front door set, a one piece ¾ inch OSB floor, and a roof with an interlocking parts system. The existing units are made in Germany from galvanized steel with no tools required. The company is also introducing a new budget line of containers in April made in Turkey that will require a socket set and a screw driver to assemble. “They take a little bit longer to put together and are a little less money,” said Yelland. “But these ones from S.A.F.E. Co. have a C-channel on the bottom of the floor and the wall and they just snap together. “The tolerances are very tight. When they are put together there’s 1/8 inch between the floor and the wall.” That makes them rodent resistant with suitable ventilation space. The oilfield applications for the portable containers include using them to

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'ƌĞŐ zĞůůĂŶĚ ŝƐ ƚŚĞ ŽǁŶĞƌ ŽĨ YƵŝĐŬ^ƚŽƌ ƉŽƌƚĂďůĞ ĐŽŶƚĂŝŶĞƌƐ ƚŚĂƚ ĂƌĞ ĚĞůŝǀĞƌĞĚ ŇĂƚ packed for quick and easy assembly with no tools. WŚŽƚŽƐ ďLJ 'ĞŽī >ĞĞ

cover gas wellheads. “The Alberta dealer in Red Deer and Calgary has used them in the oilfield more than I have. He’s also put them out at pumpjacks as tool cribs. I’m just getting into working on that,” said Yelland. Yelland launched QuickStor last summer for the oilfield market, but the sudden downturn in commodity prices caused him to expand into other markets. “I’m actually working on three markets. One is oil and gas and I’m looking at producers and construction entities to start with,” he said with the second market being disaster and restoration firms. “If you have a flood they need to put your belongings some place so they can fix your house,” he said. “With my containers being flat packed, I can put containers in people’s back yards pretty much anywhere. There’s lot of place that you can’t put something like a traditional sea can.” His third market is residential storage for motorcycle and quad storage and for garden sheds. “My business is basically a two phone call service for rentals. Call me when you need something and I bring it out to you and put it where you want it,” he said. “When you’re done with it you call me again and I come and pick it up and take it away. “Pretty good” is how he describes the sales side of the business with seasonal ups and downs. “Winter is a down season for the storage industry. People don’t like to put their stuff into storage in the winter and they also don’t like to take it out,” he said. ɸ Page B29

PIPELINE NEWS April 2015 ɺ Page B28 “Anything rented over the fall stays rented over the winter. “I am happy that we’ve had some sales and I am certainly looking for some good sales to come.” When interviewed on March 4, Yelland hoped to sell a ton at the Lloydminster Home Garden Sport & Leisure Show March 27-29. There he can demonstrate the quick assembly and potential uses with spring and summer around the corner. “When people take a look at these they realize you can pack it down, you can take it out to the lake, you can move it around in your yard, you can take it to wherever you want,” he said. “You can use it is a garden shed so you buy it and put it up in one house and when you move to another location you can pack it. You don’t have to give it away with the house.” One of his customers is using a 3 x 7ft. container for indoor gun storage. QuickStor containers are delivered on a doubler wide snowmobile trailer towed by Yelland’s ¾ ton truck and lifted off in pieces by hand. “I don’t need a picker truck. That’s one of the advantages over traditional storage containers,” said Yelland. For the oil and gas market QuickStor sells or rent a specialty gas cylinder container and a hazardous goods container. Available options include a vandal bar, shelving, windows and other accessories. The units are priced from $2,100 for the 3 x 7 ft. shed to $5,200 for a 20 x 7ft. container that can be lifted with 3 ton load and $5,700 for a six ton load rating. Rentals range from $135 for a 7

x7 ft. container to $250 a month for 20x 7 ft. unit. Yelland also charges $75 an hour for delivery and set up with a part time helper. QuickStor is the fourth business that Yelland has owned including a couple of vending businesses. He’s been a health researcher and program evaluator consultant for 23 years and has a PhD in health research and masters degree in sociology. Several years ago, he lost his job as a program evaluator for Lakeland College and could have made a living consulting but there would be nothing to sell come retirement. He’s 54 years old with a plan to build up his rental fleet to 100 containers then build a self-storage site using containers for storage instead of traditional bricks and mortar. The master plan is to duplicate that growth fourfold over the next 15 years. “That plan will allow me to have physical assets to sell when I want to retire,” said Yelland. “I took a close look at this business before getting into it. I studied it for about two years. “ He said self-storage depots draw customers from about three to five miles around their business whereas QuickStor is limited by how much people want to pay him delivery. “Based on the population of the trading area around Lloydminster there’s room for 160 portable storage containers just for residential use,” figured Yelland. “When we consider the restoration use and the oil and gas industries there’s business for me to operate 200 to 300 storage containers.” Currently Yelland works out his home by phone fax and email and stores inventory on a neighbour’s ranch north of Lloydminster while the business grows.

B29

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Petroleum HR writes workforce series Calgary – The Petroleum Human Resources (PHR) division of Enform is releasing a four-part article series Petro Prices to Petro People to explore the impacts of declining oil prices on the Canadian oil and gas workforce, as well as short- and long-term solutions the

industry will need to meet the future demand for skills and labour. Part one titled. Industry Pulse can be read on the current March PHR ebulletin. This article examines the challenges faced by the oil and gas industry in the current economic climate. With

snapshots of the petroleum industry by province and by sub-sector, the article offers readers a balanced summary of how oil and gas companies are reacting to low oil prices in Canada. The second article titled Company Solutions and Alternatives! will be available on April 2.

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PIPELINE NEWS April 2015

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