Pipeline News October 2016

PIPELINE NEWS Saskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

October 2016

Canada Post Publication No. 40069240

FREE

Volume 9 Issue 5

Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show

Technology remains key

Husky spill cleanup A2

Sanjel reborn

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The Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show took place Sept. 14 and 15 at the city’s Agricultural Exhibition Association grounds. With a few less exhibits than before, it still attracted approximately 4,000 people through the gates. Photo by Brian Zinchuk Agricultural Equipment Technician

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PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

Technology remains the key to heavy oil development: Keynote ■ By Brian Zinchuk Lloydminster – After roughly 30 years working in the heavy oil business and tracking the industry around Lloydminster all that time, Rob Morgan has come to the conclusion that technology is the key.

The keynote speaker for the Sept 13 banquet preceding the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show, Morgan is senior vice president and chief operating officer with Crew Energy, a heavy oil producer active in the Lloydminster region. His career as a professional engineer has focused on heavy oil, including a previous stint as COO with Harvest Energy. He was vice president of operations and corporate development for Viking Energy Royalty Trust, and has also worked with CNRL, Petrovera, PanCanadian, CS Resources and Murphy Oil. “I was a summer student in Lloyd here in ’83-’84. I started with Murphy in ’85 and lived in Lloyd until 1990. They said, ‘Once you get heavy oil on your boots, you never get it off.’ I sort of took that with a grain of salt, but, my gosh, it’s absolutely true. Over the 30 years I’ve been in the industry, every company I’ve worked at has been in heavy oil. Twice, I’ve been in companies that had no heavy oil when I started, and the next thing I knew, we had heavy oil at the end of the day.”

Speaking metaphorically, Morgan said, “Heavy oil doesn’t only get onto

your boots, it kinda get’s into your skin, it gets into your head. There’s a lot of challenges in heavy oil.

When people say, ‘How do I learn in the oil industry?’ I say, ‘Go work in heavy oil.’

“It’s challenging. It’s not easy. Anyone who thinks heavy oil is easy needs to be shown the door. But there is such innovation that happens because it’s tough. There are so many things that get developed by people.

There’s so much learning that can happen.”

You also get to work with amazing people who solve technical challenges working with heavy oil, he added.

It’s with that long experience that he was able to gain some insight into getting more out of the ground. He kept a file on the local heavy oil price from 1983, as a summer student in the area, until now, and presented numbers up to June 2016.

He pointed out that in 1983, heavy oil was going for $25 per barrel, and a vertical well cost about $180,000 to drill and put online. That’s equal to about $60 per barrel today.

“Those were good times.

The industry was doing very well, up until 1985,” he said.

But when things are going well, silly things start to happen. As an example, he noted an operator was going through a fire tube a month on a 750 barrel tank near Kitscoty.

But instead of aligning the burner, the response was, “It doesn’t matter, we’re making money!”

Morgan said, “That’s

Rob Morgan is COO and senior vice president of Crew Energy. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

the problem when times are good. We lose our efficiency, we lose, in some perspective, common sense about how to run our business and what’s involved to make our business work.”

He noted it’s a cyclical industry, stating, “In 1986, that was the time OPEC decided it was losing market share, and they opened the taps. Sound familiar?”

A period of nine years followed with relatively low oil prices, with war in the Middle East as the notable uptick during that time.

He recalled how the president of PanCanadian pointed out in 1998 that the company was going through mechanical pencils at a rate of 60 per employee per year. “He wasn’t doing a presentation about mechanical pencils. He was making a point, and that point was there was far too much waste going on,” Morgan said.

After 1998, heavy oil prices started to rise due to growth in China and growth in general. The Second Gulf War led to a spike in prices, followed by a short-lived drop in 2008 with the global recession. Prices were then high until the recent downturn.

Some people have told Morgan that this current downturn is worse than 1986. To some degree, he feels that’s true.

“It’s been a significant impact.

“These adjustments in price are never easy.

They’re very tough on people. But there’s a good that comes out of it,” Morgan said.

He’s tracked production in the conventional heavy oil region centred around Lloydminster, extending south towards Kindersley and northwest towards Vermillion, but excluding oilsands regions. In the 1980s, that region produced around 50,000 bpd of heavy oil. It grew to a peak of around 350,000 bpd.

Comparing this production to his price chart,

Rob Morgan, centre, cut the chain to open the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show. he noted in the late-1970, early 1980s, heavy oil production grew almost three-fold to 150,000 bpd by 1986. The exponential growth curve was related to new drilling techniques and the introduction of cyclic steam stimulation.

After 1986 there was a period of “reality check and technology advancement.” After hope for prices to recover faded, businesses had to find a way to work in the lowprice environment.

“The result of that period of time, which I had the pleasure of living through, was an amazing growth related to technology,” Morgan said.

Production grew from 150,000 bpd to almost 250,000 bpd due to technological advancement in horizontal wells, 3D seismic and progressive cavity pumps. “All of it led to the cold heavy oil production wormhole enhancement.”

“It was an amazing time because the changing technology was phenomenal at that time. The result was amazing growth in the heavy oil industry.”

He pointed out this happened at a time when there was no ramp-up in price. “No, we got smarter.

We figured out how to do it and run a business at low commodity prices.”

The crash in 1998 saw production drop, in part to early horizontal wells declining very quickly. But when prices recovered, production grew again.

The next plateau, a “technology plateau,” as Morgan described it, saw prices increase dramatically, but production didn’t go up.

“Why? Because we tapped out our ability to extract oil with the technologies we had at that point in time,” he explained. “We had to develop new technologies, we had to work through those technologies.

A decline by 2008 was not so much price related, but technology limited.

By 2013-14, growth was driven by the very high prices. Also, instead of drilling horizontally into a five-metre thick McLaren sand, it was now possible to do so into a two-metre thick sand formation, and do it economically.

In the background, there was a lot of work being done with smallscale SAGD. Waterflooding pressures grew. High volume lift became economic.

But in the last two years, prices have come down dramatically. “We have to put our thinking caps on. The entrepreneurial spirit is very alive and well with the people I work with,” Morgan said.

“The people in this room will drive us forward.”

“And why do we keep going? Because technology is the answer. It has been the answer all through my career, and it will continue to be the an-

swer as we move forward.”

With roughly 40 billion barrels of heavy oil, only about 8.5 per cent has been produced. If 350,000 bpd of current production is maintained for the next seven years, that will only increase recovery another two per cent, leaving roughly 90 per cent of the oil still in the ground.

Early in his career, some people said that three to five per cent was all they were ever going to get out of the ground, but a lot of people said, “Nope, we’re not done yet.” And they weren’t.

Leaders “We need to be proud of our industry again. Canadians are leaders, particularly in heavy oil,” he said to applause. “We are also leaders in environmental and regulatory stewardship. Not many people talk about that.”

He talked about having worked for the Korean National Oil Corporation (which bought Harvest) for 18 months. They had assets all over the world.

“I can tell you, they were shocked at what we go through from a regulatory standpoint, emergency preparedness, how much the environment is part of what we choose to do, how much the environment is driven by the technologies we have. They have assets all over the world.

Don’t let anyone tell you we’re not leaders on the environmental side or the regulatory side.”

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Sharing The Energy

PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

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TOP NEWS

Husky spill cleanup expected to wrap up shortly ■ By Brian Zinchuk North Battleford, Prince Albert, Calgary – With 210 of 225 cubic metres of diluted heavy oil now collected, cleanup operations for the July 21 Husky oil spill into the North Saskatchewan River are expected to wrap up within a few weeks, according to Husky spokesperson Mel Duvall.

On Sept. 27, Duvall said, “We’re making very good progress on the cleanup. We’re on target to have everything completed by freeze-up.

The exact time frame, I can’t say we’ll be done by October X, but within the next week or two, we expect work to be wrapped up.”

Weather is the determining factor for final completion, he noted.

The majority of the work has always been close to the point of entry, north of Maidstone, where the spill occurred.

The spill was caused by a pipeline failure on the south shore of the river, roughly 300 metres from shore. It was near where the pipeline crosses the North Saskatchewan River, but not actually at the river crossing itself.

At least half of the spilled oil was contained on land and recovered at the site, before it reached the water, according to Duvall.

Most of that work has been in what Husky has designated “Division 1,” the first roughly 40 kilometres of river.

“Once you got beyond Division 1, it

became visibly less noticeable in terms of what was there. As you got further downstream it was the odd spot, here and there.

We were able to, using the boats and dogs, find those spots and do the cleanup as we went along. ” The company used dogs walking along the shoreline to identify areas where oil collected.

“We’ve made very good progress and we’re in the final stages of that work,” he said.

As recently as midSeptember, over 500 people were working on the spill response. That number was beginning to wind down towards the end of the month.

On Sept. 16 the Water Security Agency advised North Battleford, Prince Albert and Melfort as well as SaskWater that they may start diverting and treating water from the North Saskatchewan River and Codette Reservoir.

The decision came after approximately 88 per of the oil has been recovered, in addition to conducting significant technical study, monitoring and review. That number has since grown to 93 per cent recovered.

The water safety assessment was reviewed by an internal Government of Saskatchewan science committee, external academic experts from the Universities of Saskatchewan and Alberta, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Health Canada, and engineering consultants for the municipalities.

Advisories related to livestock watering and recreational use are also now lifted. Evaluations and assessments of impacts to aquatic life and other uses (fish and wildlife) are ongoing and separate from this assessment.

As of Sept 23 the Water Security Agency (WSA) had results for 229 surface water quality samples. There was one newly reported exceedance in raw water during the most recent reporting period for any treated drinking water quality standards, guidelines or screening values. Even with one new exceedance of the drinking water guidelines this does not impact the water treatment plants or turning on of the water intakes, the WSA said in a statement.

Duvall said Husky has done over 6,000 water samples. They’ve also done over 1,000 sediment samples. All the results have been shared with the province and affected cities.

Advisories related to livestock watering and recreational use were also lifted. Evaluations and assessments of impacts to aquatic life and other uses (fish and wildlife) are ongoing and separate from this assessment.

The wildlife mortality count is now at 148 (10 birds, 30 waterfowl, 52 small mammals, 41 fish, 13 crustaceans, 2 reptiles).

The WSA reported on Sept. 22, “WSA continues to collect sediment samples (mud, silt and sand) from the river bot-

tom, from eight locations from above the Point of Entry all the way down the river system to #55 Hwy near Nipawin. Up to Sept. 16, 2016 we have received results for a total of 90 sediment samples, 25 more than our last report on Sept. 9, 2016.

WSA has found detectable amounts of F3 and/ or F4 hydrocarbons in the seven of nine locations monitored.”

“Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon compounds (PAH) were detected in the sediments at eight of nine locations for which results are available, one more location than previously reported for Sept. 9, 2016. No PAH compounds have been detected near the #55 highway bridge near Nipawin. Since the F2, F3 and F4 and PAH compounds tend to attach to organic materials found in the sediments and are essentially nonsoluble in water, these are expected to be found in the sediments and less so in water.”

The WSA added, “Since petroleum components such as PAH are attracted to and partition to sediments and organic materials found in river bottom and suspended sediments, it is expected that such materials would be more frequently found in sediments. Of interest various PAH compounds are detected upstream of the spill site. PAH can arise from industrial operations, municipal wastewater effluents and other sources such as forest fires, auto exhaust, etc.

Previous historical studies have shown the presence of PAH in upstream reaches of the North Saskatchewan River.”

The report on what caused the spill is being put together and will be filed in later October, within the 90 day reporting deadline, according to Duvall.

Cities to reactivate water intakes North Battleford was intending on reactivating its water treatment plant river intake before freeze up caused any difficulties with the temporary water line built from the Town of Battleford to the City of North Battleford to provide additional water for the city, making up for roughly 40 per cent of the normal output of the city’s surface water treatment plant. (North Battlefords operates two water treatment plants – one that draw on well water, and another that draws on surface river water. The well water plant was not affected by the spill).

However, before North Battleford begins taking surface water, a new sand-based prefiltration system will be installed, according to city manager Jim Puffalt. The system, which is in several truck trailers, will draw water from the river, but from higher in the water column than the existing intake.

That intake is undergoing dredging work now, as it was at risk of being silted up before the spill occurred. One of the concerns with this spill has been heavier oil becoming

part of the sediment in the river.

After the raw river water goes through the new pre-filtration system, it will then be fed into the surface water treatment plant for normal processing.

The new system will allow for about 40 per cent of the normal water capacity of the surface water plant, which will be sufficient for winter, according to Puffalt, but not the summer. Therefore, they might use that water line from Battleford again next summer to supplement water supplies.

The new filtration system is being paid for entirely by Husky, Puffalt said. He wouldn’t provide numbers, but explained it would be “in six figures.”

Puffalt expects this system to be in place for at least six months.

In Prince Albert, the city is already drawing upon its surface water intake. According to a report from CTV News, the city has added three measures to its water plant to deal with any issues. The first is a realtime monitoring system to detect any possible hydrocarbons in its raw water. The second is greatly expanded usage of powdered activated carbon, using 10 times as much of the PAC is it used to, according to city manager Jim Toye.

The third step is a clarification process which separates and sinks into sediments, CTV reported.

Husky is picking up the tab.

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PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

PIPELINE NEWS

EDITORIAL

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Some doom, some gloom, but some promise and optimism: LHOS The Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show took place Sept. 14 and 15. For a while there was some question whether it should have even been held, according to Doug Gilby, long-retired former partner with of BAR Engineering, who acted as master of ceremonies for the Sept. 13 banquet. It’s a good thing organizers went ahead.

The number of inside booths was down a bit, and there was a slight change in the outside booths, but if you didn’t know that, you couldn’t tell. The number of people walking through appeared down as well, at approximately 4,000 people. But considering the show, during good times, would get 4,500 to 6,500, that’s not bad, according to show chair Paul Klaassen.

No one we spoke to is in great shape. For many, business is down substantially. That’s to be expected, two years into this downturn. But there were several good news stories we found, too.

Lifting Solutions, a continuous rod specialty company, had its fourth new flushby/gripper rig (what they call an Endless Rod Unit) on display. This caught our eye because these days, almost no one is buying new equipment. Their manufacturer, Celtic Pride, of Brooks, hasn’t laid anyone off, either. That’s especially rare to hear, since oilfield services manufacturing has taken a tremendous hit. They’ve kept going on the strength of their overseas sales to numerous countries. When was the last time you heard of anyone selling something to Romania? They have. The owner just got back from Oman.

Black Gold Rush Industries is launching a new

gen set unit that burns waste gas from wells. That product can work in complement with their combustor, which can burn off lean flare gas without enriching it with costly propane.

The CEO of the reborn Sanjel Energy Services was present as well. When the old Sanjel Canada Ltd. went down in the spring time, the company was broken up and sold off in various parts. But Shane Hooker, who had worked with Sanjel for 20 years, came back and with the backing of ARC Financial (where he was employed to seek out opportunities for the private investment firm), the cementing and acidizing division in Canada is still up and running.

And even better, they’re hiring at some locations.

Banquet keynote speaker Rob Morgan, COO of heavy oil producer Crew Energy, spoke of how technology has always been the key to the continued development of the Lloydminster heavy oil patch.

PCM Canada’s CEO Robert Heffner referred to that speech and idea when discussing his company’s new metal-to-metal pump. Ten years in development, it’s now in the field and being used in SAGD applications. Thermal production, he feels, is the future.

The icing on the cake? One person we knew came down for an afternoon, and left having placed an order for a new, decent-sized forklift. For the company that had that booth, it was definitely worth being there.

We look forward to the next Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show, in 2018. Hopefully by then, everyone will be smiling.

PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

What’s a few chopped up birds?

On the way back from the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show Sept 14-15, I took a highway that had always intrigued me, but I had never had the opportunity to travel.

Highway 17 is unique in that it has signs indicating it is both an Alberta and Saskatchewan highway. Heading sought from Lloydminster, it’s right on the border before skirting to the Alberta side for a bit, then crossing over to the Saskatchewan side. The first half hour or so of driving is dominated by heavy oil batteries on both sides of the road. These eventually peter out.

It’s where the highway crosses back into Saskatchewan again where the energy infrastructure gets interesting. There, on the horizon, are numerous white wind turbines. A few are so closed to the border, I wondered if they cut into Saskatchewan airspace as they turn. Apparently it was windy enough on the Alberta side to develop this wind farm, but for whatever reason, the political border might have been a wall.

It’s with this in mind that my email on Sept.

19 brought up something you don’t hear every day.

A wind farm proposed near Chaplin, Sask., had been denied approval.

The Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment press release read, “Environment Minister Scott Moe announced a wind energy project near Chaplin, will not be approved to proceed in its proposed location. This decision was made after completing an environmental assessment process that included feedback from environmental non-government organizations (NGOs) and the public.

“The environmental review for the proposed

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OPINION FROM THE TOP OF THE PILE

project near Chaplin identified environmental impacts of concern to the ministry, the primary concern relating to migratory bird activity in the area close to the site. The ministry received 137 responses during the public review process in 2015.

All but one of these responses supported wind energy, but expressed concern over the development’s specific location.”

It added, “Algonquin Power had proposed to build the 177-megawatt wind-power facility on behalf of SaskPower, which would have included a maximum of 79 wind turbine generators, approximately 50 to 70 kilometres of access roads and 110 kilometres of trenched transmission lines.”

But the most interesting thing is the statement, “This was the first wind electricity project to undergo an environmental impact assessment.”

What? Where’s the rubber stamp? I thought only the oil industry was evil! At least, that’s the message I get every time I turn on the TV. Pipelines, bad! Wind turbines, good! Heck, on the same day, no one less than David Suzuki spoke in Regina and Saskatoon to lecture us on the environment.

A few years ago some ducks died in a tailings pond near Fort McMurray, and the world went nuts. But how many protesters paint signs about the birds and bats that are whacked each day by the swooshing blades of wind turbines.

It appears that was a concern here. The province announced new siting guidelines for wind farms. A related announcement on the same day said, “A five kilometre buffer zone has been established around designated environmentally-sensitive avoidance areas such as national and provincial

By Brian Zinchuk parks, ecological reserves, important bird areas and key Saskatchewan rivers. In addition, proponents will still be required to evaluate wind energy project siting at areas outside of avoidance zones to ensure any potential environmental and wildlife impacts are still mitigated. The guidelines were developed with industry and environmental stakeholders.”

I wonder how many birds will die in Alberta as that province moves to replace its coal power generation to a large extent with wind turbines?

This denial is a tacit acknowledgement that wind turbines kill birds. Locating turbines away from “sensitive areas,” might lessen the impact, but I’ve yet to meet a bird that cares about what is defined on a map. They fly where they want to fly.

I’m eagerly anticipating the protestors driving from across the country to picket the next wind turbine installation. Perhaps some, like at least one Ford Explorer driver on their way to pipeline protests in North Dakota, will run out of gas, while their windows are scrawled with “Oil spills oil kills!”

Turns out windmills kill, too, otherwise there would be no problem putting them anywhere you damned well pleased.

The difference is, pipelines only kill wildlife when something goes horribly wrong, i.e. the North Saskatchewan River spill this past summer.

Wind turbines, on the other hand, kill birds on a regular basis throughout their entire existence.

Where are the protesters for that?

Brian Zinchuk is editor of Pipeline News. He can be reached at brian.zinchuk@sasktel.net.

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PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

PCM had a diverse display of artificial lift systems. From left are: Shawn Lorenz, Stephane Thomas, Michel DeLaville, Al Storms, Rob Patterson, Robert Heffner, Mario Martignoni and Wade Poitras. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

New technology to develop the next phase of heavy oil: PCM ■ By Brian Zinchuk Lloydminster - Rob Morgan, COO of Crew Energy, in his keynote speech to the Lloydminster Heavy Oil show banquet, spoke about

the importance of technological advancement to continued development of heavy oil in the Lloydminster region.

That is exactly the strategy PCM is taking, ac-

cording to Rob Heffner, CEO for PCM Canada Inc., as it develop cost effective and innovative solutions for the next step in thermal heavy oil development.

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CAODC revises forecast downward to the lowest numbers since 1977 ■ By Brian Zinchuk Calgary, Lloydminster – On Sept. 7 the Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors (CAODC) took the unusual step in announcing a revised 2016 Q4 drilling forecast.

The new forecast projected 3,562 wells drilled in 2016, a decrease of 25 per cent from original forecast of 4,728. Projected operating days fell 28 per cent from original forecast of 56,260 to 40,252.

The projected rig count for the fourth quarter is now 140 – a decrease of 31 per cent from original forecast of 204.

The fleet has already contracted 87 rigs to 671 from 758.

All told, the CAODC forecast a 69 per cent decrease in employment from 2014 levels, a loss of approximately 34,560 jobs.

CAODC president Mark Scholz spoke to roughly 40 people on Sept. 15 at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show, part of the organization’s ongoing Oil Respect campaign.

Afterwards he spoke with Pipeline News.

“We normally revise our forecast at the end of quarter one. We felt at the end of quarter one, the industry was so volatile that we decided to maintain our existing forecast, because it was anybody’s guess how poor 2016 was going to end up being,” Scholz said. “Once we looks at quarter one and quarter two actuals, we decided we needed to put out a revised forecast, because our existing forecast from November 2015 wasn’t even close to what reality was in the patch.”

“We revised our forecast down by about 25 per cent down in wells and overall operating days.”

He added, “2016 will go down as the worst year, since we’ve been collecting this information, since 1977.

It’s the worst year in a generation.”

Scholz wasn’t even born in 1977.

Companies have been cutting up drilling rigs, as reflected by the contraction in the fleet size. “We’ve lost about 90 rigs this year,” he said.

“Companies are looking at determining what are their most marketable rigs in a time like this. (They are) getting equipment that is not appropriate for the wells being drilled now off their books and out of the inventory.”

Some new rigs have been added to the fleet, but Scholz said most of those rigs would have been started prior to the downturn.

CAODC will be releasing its 2017 forecast on Nov. 22, 2016.

“If you ask 12 analysts where prices are going to go, you’re going to get 12 very different answers. There is so much volatility in this market space, I don’t think anybody knows where things are going to go. The problem with volatility is that, even if it gets to US$55 per barrel, it has to stay there. People are not going to be deploying capital unless they know things have stabilized.

We’ve seen this train go from US$50, a hold, come down to US$42, go back up to US$48, come back down to US$43. In order for us to get that confidence, it has to hold between US$50 to US$55 for six to 10 months,” he said.

“Many of the cost savings are not sustainable. On the service side, the day rates and hourly rates that drilling rigs and service rigs are operating at are not sustainable. It is not indicative of a healthy business model, for business success. I think, overall, the producers have done what they need to do to stay competitive. That is going to make the industry more competitive and positioned to see growth in the future.”

CAODC is concerned about government fiscal and regulatory policies making a bad situation worse.

“The introduction of new carbon taxes and

higher corporate taxes in Alberta, compounded with federal delays on new pipelines and LNG approvals, are creating significant investment uncertainty in Canada.

Although government does not have control over the price of oil, it has influence in ensuring Canada is an investment destination of choice once the industry recovers,” said Scholz in the Sept. 7 release.

He noted that by the end of the year, we will know the fate of a number of critical pipeline projects and whether LNG exports will become a reality in British Columbia. The ability to export Canada’s resources has a dramatic impact on our national economy. “If the federal government is serious about strengthening the

Mark Scholz, president of the Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors (CAODC), gave a presentation on the organization’s Oil Respect campaign at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

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PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

A new Sanjel has been reborn And they’re hiring, too ■ By Brian Zinchuk

Sanjel Energy Services is the new company formed around the nucleus of the cementing and acidizing division of the old Sanjel Canada Ltd. From left are Shane Hooker, Murray McFarlane, Don Kerr, Kevin Macedo, John Kulczycki and Trent Zevola. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

20 years. In the spring of 2014, I left the old Sanjel to pursue other opportunities. I ended up working for ARC Financial.”

ARC Financial is a private equity firm specializing in oil and gas investment, Hooker said. In the beginning, he was supporting ARC in doing their due diligence work. Eventually he became executivein-residence, where leaders with the right experience are asked to look for areas, including companies, to place capital, and then go

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“I actually started a company called Wayfinder Corp. They are still an ARC-sponsored company that is transloading natural sand and building a resin-coated

proppant facility to service the Hinton-Edson area.

“Because of my history with Sanjel, when the old story was playing out and it was known among investment groups what was going to happen, the

leadership at ARC came to me and asked if I would change my focus and try to acquire the cementing and acidizing assets.”

Hooker’s last four years at the previous Sanjel was serving as vice president for the

Canadian business unit.

“We’re pleased to have been successful in the purchase of the assets, and to have been able to offer over 200 people jobs with the new company. We kept

Page A9

▲

Lloydminster – Like the mythical phoenix, a new Sanjel has been reborn from the previous Sanjel which had gone bankrupt this past spring.

Pipeline News spoke to Shane Hooker, president and CEO of Sanjel Energy Services, on Sept. 14 at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show. Hooker was there in support of his company’s booth in the outdoor exhibits, where they had several trucks present and were serving up barbecued lunch.

“Sanjel Energy Services is a new company, born from the purchase of the cementing and acidizing assets of a company formerly known as Sanjel Canada Ltd.,” Hooker explained.

The predecessor company filed for CCAA protection in early April.

“From that point, there was a process where the assets were sold. They were a global company. The assets were sold through a competitive bidding process,” Hooker said.

“We were fortunate to be the company that was successful in our bid for the Canadian cementing and acidizing assets.”

The new company’s website lists nine field locations plus headquarters and a technology centre in Calgary. Saskatchewan is serviced

by Estevan, Kindersley, Swift Current and Lloydminster.

“Most of Sanjel Energy Services senior management worked for the former company.

My involvement with the former company was for a period of over

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a variant of the name, because we believe Sanjel has a strong reputation for operational excellence in our space of cementing and acidizing in Canada.

We wanted to build on that,” Hooker said.

In a way, the purchase of the assets was like coming home for Hooker, and others. Many of the senior management members had long experience with the former company. “We’re trying to tell our story to ensure that everyone understands that the old company is not the new company. The new company shares a similar name, for brand purposes, but is different in a lot of ways. Our ownership group is completely different. Our focus has changed and we are more streamlined.

“With the new Sanjel Energy Services, everybody gets up with a single purpose every day, to be the best cementing and acidizing company in Canada.

We’re service line focused. We’re regionally focused. We want to convey a strong service attitude to our customers and be Canada’s premier energy services company,” Hooker said.

In the transaction, they were able to negotiate the purchase and lease of existing service locations, allowing for

continuity.

There are no new builds at their manufacturing facility, as the fleet is currently running around 30 per cent capacity. Hooker pointed out they are one of the few companies that builds its own equipment. Maintaining a certain standard means refurbishment and updates.

Regarding working in the low-oil price environment, Hooker said, “There’s a structural shift that’s going on around cost of business. Companies have to try to find ways to align themselves with the new reality.”

The focus on safety can’t change. He noted, “We’re an operations company. We have to provide services safely and perfectly. Our culture has to reflect that in how we manage risk in the business.

Whether you have lots of money or little money to apply to the business, that’s a foundational value that can’t change.”

Efficiency and doing things that make sense are key, not cutting safety.

On the cementing side of the business, there are two parts. The primary side is led by the drill bit, and then there is the remedial side, dealing with old wells that need service work done on them or cementing for aban-

donment. The company is trying to balance between the two.

“By the way, we’re still hiring. We’re actually growing in this market. We’re always looking for good people. Regionally, things are different, be it Estevan, Swift Current, or wherever, but we’re hiring right now,” Hooker said.

The first three months as a new company had a lot of focus on getting business processes in place.

Essentially a start-up, now they’re refining their business. He added there are certain advantages to starting a business in a down cycle.

In a Sept. 27 press release, Douglas Freel, chairman of Sanjel Energy Services Inc. and a managing director at ARC Financial Corp., said, “We have intentionally capitalized Sanjel Energy Services to weather the current industry downturn while providing the company with financial flexibility to expand as market opportunities arise. We look forward to building on the current strengths and assets of Sanjel Energy Services.”

In that release, the company noted it had completed its 900th job as since commencing operations as Sanjel Energy Services on May 31.

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A10

PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

Lifting Solutions building new iron during downturn ■ By Brian Zinchuk

with guides feeding the continuous rod from the spool truck to the flushby and then into the well.

It combined what would otherwise be two separate units, a flushby and a gripper, thus saving the client the expense of two units travelling and having two units on site. The staffing is still the same, however, with three people working on the unit.

It is also capable of doing conventional flushby work without dealing with continuous rod.

“It’s a fairly significant savings based on a combined rate that’s very competitive,” Rowan said.

“This is the fourth rig that we’ve released this year, brand new, like this,” Rowan said.

Page A14 ▲

Lloydminster – With the now-two year crash in oil prices, not many oilfield services companies have been building and deploying new equipment. Lifting Solutions, however, bucked that trend, and had their fourth new rig of this year present at their booth in the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show Sept. 14-15.

Incorporated in October 2014, Lifting Solutions is based out of Edmonton.

“We are a manufacturer of Endless Rod and a service provider of the same. We are a manufacturer of variable frequency drives.

We also have several research and development projects on the go. We’re dealing with coatings and sucker rods and continuous

sucker rod, carbon fibre and such,” Rowan said.

Endless Rod is Lifting Solutions’ brand name for continuous rod.

Lifting Solutions is an evolution of several companies working with continuous rod.

Back in 2008, Rowan was displaying continuous rod solutions for Tierra Alta. “Tierra Alta was merged into Apex Advance Solutions about five years ago. Lifting Solutions acquired Apex Solutions in 2014 along with several other related companies,” Rowan said.

He described their new equipment, known as “Endless Rod Units,” as “a flushby with a gripper on the derrick for servicing continuous rod.”

A spool unit would sit adjacent to the rig,

Lifting Solutions’ newest Endless Rod unit rig, their fourth of this type, was present at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show prior to going out in the field for the first time. Martin Gubbins, left, heads up Celtic Pride Manufacturing, which made the new unit, and Ryan Rowan handles sales for Lifting Solutions. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

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A11

Tremcar hopes winter will improve drilling activity ■ By Brian Zinchuk Lloydminster – Serving up corn on the cob cooked in a barbecue that’s a scale model of a Tremcar tank trailer, Darren Williams was one of the exhibitors at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show on Sept. 1415.

Williams is vice president of sales with Tremcar as well as vice president of Tremcar West Inc. “On the crude side, it’s slow. We’re hoping a cold winter will help and things will pick up. There’s talk of lots of drilling around Kindersley,” Williams said.

“If they start drilling in Kindersley, I think they’ll start drilling in Estevan “I talked to one guy that owns his own oil company. You

can get a well drilled now for considerably cheaper than when it was booming.”

“This summer, they wanted to start drilling around Kindersley, but they couldn’t because of rain. They’ll probably start drilling now,” Williams said.

That statement was backed up by several oilfield services companies in Kindersley who told Pipeline News that week that high amounts of rainfall had substantially affected activity.

In a normal year, a good portion of their business is tied to the drill bit. The company has service centres in Weyburn, Saskatoon and Edmonton that are mainly relying on petroleum and dry bulk trailer repairs instead of crude oil

tankers. “Nobody is repairing anything unless they have to,” Williams explained.

Tremcar manufactures crude, petroleum, chemical, dry-bulk trailers.

They’re big into food grade trailers that carry products like milk. He said, “Tremcar is Canada’s largest manufacture of milk tankers.”

“Those types of trailers are selling not too bad.”

One of the trailers on display was a frac sand unit.

The food-grade trailers are pretty mature markets, without the peaks and valleys seen in the oilpatch.

Tremcar has two manufacturing facilities in Quebec, one in London, Ontario, and one in Strasburg, Ohio. They also have

a company called Boston Steel, which, ironically, makes aluminum products in Massachusetts that makes petroleum units for the northeast United States.

(When Williams refers to “petroleum,” he means refined products, like gasoline or diesel, as opposed to crude oil).

At the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show, he was seeking to get an idea of what people’s feelings are, to see if there’s any optimism. “Nobody seems to know when it’s going to turn around,” Williams said.

“I don’t think we’re going to see a whole lot happen until after the U.S. election, and even then, what’s Darren Williams served up corn on the cob at the going to happen?

Tremcar booth at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show.

Nobody can say.”

Photo by Brian Zinchuk

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A13

Ritchie Bros. to acquire IronPlanet and form strategic alliance with Caterpillar Vancouver - Aug 29, 2016 was a big day in the the auction business. On this day, two equipment auction powerhouses, Ritchie Bros. and IronPlanet, entered into an agreement that will see them combine, “To provide their customers with more ways to buy and sell equipment, trucks, and more,” according to the press release.

“This transformative transaction is the logical next step for Ritchie Bros., building on our multi‐channel platform, global reach and long‐standing customer relationships,” said Ravi Saligram, CEO of Vancouver-based.

Ritchie Bros. “Together with IronPlanet, we will create a combined company of trusted brands with the ability to pro-

vide customers around the world with a greater number of choices and platforms to sell, buy and list equipment when, where and how they want—whether onsite or online.

“Our commitment to diversifying our offerings is directly in line with customer demand for multiple selling and buying solutions. Ritchie Bros. and

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IronPlanet both have talented teams and winning cultures built on a passion for serving customers," added Ravi.

Founded in 1999, Pleasanton, Californiabased IronPlanet complements Ritchie Bros.' primarily end‐ user customer base, as it focuses largely on the needs of corporate accounts, equipment manufacturers, dealers and government entities in equipment disposition solutions. It conducts its sales primarily through online‐only platforms, with weekly online auctions and in other equipment marketplaces.

“This is an exciting day for IronPlanet, our customers, employees and shareholders,” said Gregory J. Owens, chairman and CEO of IronPlanet. “IronPlanet joining forces with Ritchie Bros. will allow the combined company to deliver a multi‐channel marketplace that will provide a full range of equipment asset management and disposition solutions.”

Greg continued, “IronPlanet has built a leading online marketplace and technology platform across a number of verticals, and when combined with Ritchie Bros.' strength in live onsite auc-

tions, will prove to be a powerful combination in driving value for our customers.”

The formal merging of the two companies is expected sometime in the first half of 2017.

Ritchie Bros. acquisition of IronPlanet is subject to regulatory clearances and other customary closing conditions. Until the closing, both companies will continue to be in competition.

Caterpillar alliance Also on Aug. 29, Caterpillar and Ritchie Bros. entered into a strategic alliance expected to deliver significant benefits to both companies.

Under the terms of the agreement, Ritchie Bros. will become Caterpillar's preferred global partner for live onsite and online auctions with respect to used Caterpillar equipment, and will complement Caterpillar's existing dealer channels. Ritchie Bros. will provide Caterpillar and its dealers with access to proprietary auction platforms, software and other value-added services, thereby enhancing the exchange of information and services between customers, dealers and suppliers. The strategic alliance is also expected to strengthen Ritchie

Bros.' relationship with Caterpillar's independent dealers around the world by providing them enhanced and continued access to a global auction marketplace to sell their used equipment.

Caterpillar and its dealers own a minority position IronPlanet.

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The new strategic alliance between Ritchie Bros. and Caterpillar replaces and expands on existing agreements in place between Caterpillar, its dealers and IronPlanet. The new strategic alliance will become effective when Ritchie Bros. completes its acquisition of IronPlanet.

The strategic alliance between Ritchie Bros. and Caterpillar will have an initial fiveyear term. After completing the acquisition of IronPlanet, Ritchie Bros. will operate live onsite auctions at participating Caterpillar dealers' locations under the Cat Auction Services brand and also encompass Ritchie Bros.' other onsite and online brands.

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A14

PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

▲

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Page A10

“Lifting Solutions is focused on building our fleet in the downturn. We want to be prepared for when the industry comes back.”

“This equipment is very specialized and fit for purpose, focused around Endless Rod.” They have tandem steering and tri-drive.

He said a lot of the enhancements are focused around safety.

Since the gripper is mounted to the derrick, there’s no handoff between a gripper unit to the flushby. The controls located near the workfloor and on the workfloor eliminates climbing for the purposes of running the controls. The entire workfloor is on hydraulics so it can be moved up and down easily.

“This floor, we can

adjust to the proper height using hydraulics,” Rowan said, noting many units are pinned and thus not as adjustable.

Lifting Solutions has refurbished a number of its older gripper units and has put them back on the road. They also have a rod rig in Swift Current. There are three grippers in Swift Current, two in Lloydminster, and one in Medicine Hat. As for the new Endless Rod units, two are now based in Lloydminster, one is in Bonnyville, and the fourth has just rolled out of the factory.

Asked about demand for the new machines, Rowan replied, “Our utilization on these units is fairly decent, about 60 to 70 per cent at the moment.”

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A15

Manufacturer keeps going during the down times, buoyed by overseas sales ■ By Brian Zinchuk Lloydminster – Brooks, Alta.-based manufacturer Celtic Pride Manufacturing has been fortunate enough to keep going at a time when many oilfield services manufacturers have been struggling with low orders. The company’s success is in large part due to their extensive overseas sales.

“Our main business was coil tubing units,”

said Martin Gubbins, owner of Celtic Pride, during the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show on Sept. 14. “We’ve been doing these flushbys and injectors for seven years.”

“We haven’t laid off anybody,” he said.

Normally the company runs between 25 and 30 employees.

Celtic Pride bought back some old units to refurbish for when the business picks up again.

This would provide staff with projects to work on in between orders. But, so far, they haven’t had to resort to that fall-back plan yet, as there has been enough business to keep active in their primary work.

“Thankfully, we haven’t had to touch them yet. We’ve been selling a lot overseas. The Canadian oil patch is slow, but overseas is still fairly busy. Two weeks ago, I was in Oman,” Gubbins said. “We’ve sent quite a bit to Oman, Mexico, Columbia, Australia, New Zealand and Romania.”

The United States is another destination.

Some of those names might not often be referred to when talking about oil, but Romania, he noted, has a very old oilfield.

In the last few years, approximately 40 per cent of Celtic Pride’s sales have been overseas.

“We bid a lot of overseas work as well,” Gubbins said.

That means their equipment has to be able to handle any weather.

In Canada, temperatures may drop to -40 C, but in Oman, it can hit 47

C on the plus side. In that case, they use heavy hydraulic oil. The equipment has to have lots of cooling capacity, too.

Gubbins pointed out that Oman has steam injection over there, too, as well as 1,000 metre wells, just like the Bonnyville area.

A popular product going overseas is their truck-mounted gripper. Celtic Pride has a patented injector system that uses large ball bearings in slotted channels.

The spaces between the bearings allows debris to pass through and not clog up the system.

The new Endless Rod Unit (EMU) they had on display was their fourth rig for Lifting Solutions of its type. It’s a flushby with a gripper unit mounted on its derrick, eliminating the need for a separate gripper truck. The gripper is mounted on hydraulics which allow it to move away from the derrick for normal block operations, and then back into play as needed.

Gubbins explained there are normally one or two joints of normal sucker rod on the top of a string of continuous

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This brand-new Endless Rod Unit, made by Celtic Pride, integrates a continuous rod gripper (the green device mounted on the left side of the derrick) onto a flushby.

The company has been able to keep it staff, even during hard times, due in part to substantial overseas sales.

Photo by Brian Zinchuk. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Martin Gubbins displays Celtic Pride’s patented injector system for continuous rod. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

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PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

New thermal metal-to-metal pump now in the field the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show on Sept. 14-15 “I’ve been in the showed a large variety of industry for 37 years,” artificial lift technoloHeffner said. He was a gies, including hydrautradesperson initially, as lic jack, cable jack, PC a millwright. He started pump wellhead drive, in the oilpatch in 1980 and a horizontal pumpand worked for Husky ing system.

“We’re diversified from 1985 to 1996. At age 36 he became vice in artificial lift. As propresident of Corlac In- ducers turn to new techdustries, a position he nologies, we are steadily held for eight years. That trying to improve what included manufacturing we have to offer to the of artificial lift, wellhead industry to keep us susdrives and packaging of tainable in a low commodity price of oil,” PC pumps.

Two-thirds of Cor- Heffner said, adding lac, the artificial lift that service has carried business, was purchased the company in recent

by NOV in November years.

The metal-to-metal 2003, and that’s where Heffner ended up for PC pump was the hightwo years as general light of their display. But Heffner noted PCM manager.

In 2006 he started was started in the 1930s.

AMIK Oilfield Equip- “From PCM’s early bement and Rentals Ltd. ginning with company He was president and founder and French enmajor shareholder. In gineer René Moineau, December 2014 he sold who also invented the 75 per cent to PCM SA elastomer progressing out of France, staying cavity pump, to the presCEO for the Canadian ent day, pioneering and operations for the last innovation has always been part of the comtwo years.

PCM’s display at pany DNA.” ▲

Page A6

This illustration, provided by PCM, shows their Vuclain metal-to-metal pump in SAGD applications. Image courtesy PCM “Introduced in the mid-1980s, the PC pump is what saved heavy oil. From the ’90s to present, it’s been the number one pump of

choice to get cold heavy oil production out of the ground, better known as CHOPS (cold heavy oil production with sand),” Heffner said.

A PC pump can handle up to 50 per cent solids, he noted. But in thermal, screens are used to block sand.

“With thermal, you don’t bring the sand to surface. You hold it back in the reservoir through screen placement in the horizontal section of the wellbore,” he said. The sand volume is reduced to less than one per cent.

Looking ahead, SAGD is where it’s at. Husky indicated as much several years ago, when the company signalled a substantial shift to thermal. Heffner said, “Going to the future,

what’s revolutionized the industry is SAGD.” “That technology recovers up to 80 per cent of the oil reservoir, as opposed to the average 10 per cent, with CHOPS. With PCP, and most wellbores you can get roughly 10 per cent of recovery with primary production – cold heavy production, with no secondary recovery.”

Waterflood can improve that number quite a bit, but it’s also costly to move that much water around, he noted.

“For the big players … thermal is the way of the future,” he said.

“Over the past 10 years, PCM has deployed its metal-to-metal pump in more than 11 countries.

Today it is in production

in Fort McMurray area and there are 100 pumps producing in northern Alberta today, with one company starting up 38 metal-to-metal pumps this fall.”

“We also have the wellhead drive with a new, innovative and patented stuffing box design that will control leakage and spills. It will be going out on test here in the next month,” he said.

“We overcome the wellbore pressure with a cooling, lubricating fluid. We over-pressurized the stuffing box so that if any debris enters the packing, it will be flushed out. The key to the stuffing box is we over-pressurize the well so no contaminants can enter it. We lubricate it 24/7, and it’s managed by itself. It’s worked well.

It’s been working well in primarily CHOPS well.

We’ve got one running on test for nine years that still hasn’t failed.

Our second prototype of our gear well-head drive, has eight years without a drop of oil to the ground.”

This has been developed into the new PCM B-100 thermal wellhead drive which will be launched locally this fall.

“Where the industry and pricing is, being very down, like Rob Morgan said last night in his speech, heavy oil (businesses) have to find the next technology to advance heavy oil. I believe it is thermal. The recovery of the reservoir is up to 80 per cent with SAGD technology.

“We’re excited about it, as we look to the future,” Heffner said.

Kim Leipert

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PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

New vent gas electrical generator from Black Gold Rush Lloydminster – Last year at the Saskatchewan Oil Show in Weyburn Black Gold Rush Industries was showing off its enclosed vapour combustor designed for combusting low pressure vent gas. This year, at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show, they have another new product in addition to their combustor on display – a power generating system that takes advantage of low pressure vent gas on a wellsite. It’s their latest tool in Black Gold Rush’s methane reduction technologies.

The product is called the Rush Power 1000, and the 1,000 indicates the amount of continuous watts it produces.

Dallas Rosevear, general manager, explained, “It uses low pressure vent gas which is already being wasted to generate the continuous 1,000 watts of power for your site.”

It does this by integrating a Sterling engine, which Rosevear says is a one of the most highly efficient engine designs in the world.

“It takes very small amounts of waste gas to generate that power,” he said.

Since gas output can vary, the system has a battery storage system, with two batteries. It draws power from the batteries when gas power is low, and stores power otherwise. An

integrated inverter puts out clean power. The European-built Sterling engine operates on a 50 hertz cycle. The inverter converts it to North American standard 60 hertz.

“You could run your lighting, your SCADA, security, or your burner management systems all together,” Rosevear said.

That’s more economical than using big diesel gen sets to run that same equipment.

Additionally, heat tracing can be powered by the system.

The generator can run alongside the combustor depending on the amount of vent gas you need to deal with or as

a standalone system. It is possible to also group multiple units together.

Using waste gas instead of good, valuable propane offers a significant savings to the oil company. Rosevear also said it will qualify for carbon credits.

The Rush Power 1000 uses maximum 14 cubic metres per day of gas.

Rosevear said that between the Rush Burner, used to heat oil in the tanks, Rush Power to generate power, and the Rush Combustor, it is now possible to completely eliminate all vent gas on a well site.

Their products are made in Sundre, Alta.

Dallas Rosevear stands beside a display of the Rush Power 1000. Behind him, the tall cylinder is the Rush Combustor. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

40 YEARS OF SERVICE DONE RIGHT

SPHAGSORB • Fiberglass Pipeline Construction • Sand and Gravel • Backhoe Service • Bobcat Service • Environmental Services • Electrical Trenching • Grader Work • Cat Work (6-way Dozer) • Sewer and Water • Rural and City

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Cell: (306) 421-0566 Fax: (306) 487-3253

A17

A18

PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

Lightstream files for creditor protection with intention for sale Company continues to pay all service providers, suppliers, contractors and employees (Daily Oil Bulletin) Calgary – The company once known as PetroBakken has hit the rocks, as Lightstream Resources Ltd. announced on Sept. 19 it had not been able to reach a satisfactory settlement agreement with unsecured creditors.

Lightstream Resources Ltd. has not been able to reach a satisfactory settlement agreement with respect to the litigation that has been commenced by certain holders of the company's 8.625 per cent unsecured notes due Feb. 1, 2020.

Under the terms of a restructuring support agreement dated July 12, 2016, as amended and restated Aug. 26, 2016 between the company

and an ad hoc committee of certain holders of the company's 9.875 per cent second lien secured notes due 2019, a settlement of the unsecured noteholder litigation, acceptable to both the company and the ad hoc committee, had to be reached on or before Sept. 16, 2016.

As a result of the failure to reach such a settlement, in accordance with the terms of the support agreement, the company is required to discontinue its currently contemplated plan of arrangement under the Canada Business Corporations Act, commence proceedings under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) and seek an initial order under the CCAA for the pur-

poses of implementing a sale transaction under the CCAA by way of a credit bid by the secured noteholders or other form of transaction within the CCAA proceedings acceptable to both the company and the ad hoc committee, all subject to the terms and conditions of the support agreement.

Accordingly, the company intends to initiate proceedings at the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta to implement the CCAA sale transaction pursuant to an initial order on Sept. 26, 2016. The company anticipates that the stay prohibiting any person, including holders of the company's unsecured notes and secured noteholders, other than the lenders

We are Now Recruiting for The Following Positions for our New Weyburn Office!

FIELD SAFETY COORDINATOR Requirements:  Minimum of 3 years in a related Safety Position  NCSO designation preferred  Oilfield Facility and or Pipeline Construction and Maintenance experience preferred

• • • • • • •

Pipeline Superintendents Crew Foremen Truck Foremen QC Personnel Pipefitters Equipment Operators Labourers

*For all positions, standard Oilfield tickets required*

Please send your resume with experience, training, and list of current tickets to: resumes@banditenergy.ca

under the company's revolving credit facility, from terminating, making any demand, accelerating, amending or declaring in default or taking any enforcement steps under any contract or other agreement to which the company is a party, that was initially granted on July 13, 2016 and re-confirmed on Aug. 29, 2016 will be supplemented and replaced by a broad stay of proceedings pursuant to the terms of the CCAA initial order.

Trading of Lightstream securities on the Toronto Stock Exchange has been halted.

The company expects that trading will be suspended indefinitely and that the Toronto Stock Exchange will begin delisting review proceedings on an expedited basis.

In addition, the company has entered into a second forbearance agreement with The Toronto-Dominion Bank, as administrative agent and other lenders.

Under the terms of the forbearance agreement, among other things,

the lenders have agreed, subject to customary conditions and provided that the company commences proceedings under the CCAA in accordance with the support agreement and the forbearance agreement, to forbear from exercising their enforcement rights and remedies arising on account of the cross defaults that have occurred under the revolving credit facility, including in respect of the company's hedging liabilities, until Dec. 31, 2016.

On July 13, 2016 Lightstream began a “robust” sale and investment solicitation process (SISP). The company anticipates that the court will approve the continuation of the SISP under the CCAA proceedings as part of the CCAA initial order to consummate the CCAA sale transaction pursuant to further order of the court.

The commencement of the CCAA sale transaction is not expected to affect normal course business operations.

Lightstream continues

to have cash on hand and are continuing to pay all service providers, suppliers, contractors and employees as it pursues completion of the CCAA sale transaction.

As result of the commencement of the CCAA process, the company will not be holding the special meetings of secured noteholders or unsecured noteholders that were called to approve the CBCA arrangement on Sept. 30, 2016, as previously announced and will not be proceeding with its scheduled application for a final order of the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta to approve the CBCA arrangement on Oct. 5, 2016.

The meeting of holders of Lightstream's common shares will still be held as planned on Sept. 30, 2016 to conduct the required annual meeting matters including the election of directors and appointment of auditors, but the CBCA arrangement will not be considered at the meeting. The AGM was scheduled on Sept. 30.

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DESCRIPTION • Performs work as outlined if work outlined is not • Ensures that customers’ needed, or if repairs cannot on repair order with cars are kept clean. Notifies be completed within the efficiency and accuracy in Service Advisor immediately promised time. accordance with dealership of anything that has and factory standards. happened to change the • Documents all appearance or condition of work performed and • Diagnoses cause of any the vehicle. recommended on the Repair malfunction and performs Order. repair.

• Keeps shop area neat and clean.

• Road tests vehicles • Communicates with Parts when required.

Department to obtain • Maintains and is accountable needed parts. for all dealership-owned • Participates in manufacturertools and manuals. Returns sponsored training programs, • Saves and tags parts of the them to the proper place and schools and events. job if under warranty or in the same condition as they if requested by the customer. • Keeps current with were received manufacturer technical • Examines assigned vehicle • Operates all tools and bulletins. to determine if further safety equipment in a safe manner. or service work is required or • Supervises work of any recommended.

• Reports any safety issues apprentice technicians as immediately to management. assigned.

• Communicates with Service Advisor immediately if • Reports machinery defects or • Other duties as assigned by malfunctions to supervisor. additional work is needed, management O applicants of interest will be contacted to set up an interview.

Only PPlease email Resume to Joel Mryglod (joel@meritford.com)

PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

A19

This Alberta wind facility northwest of Kerrobert is so close to the Saskatchewan border, it casts a shadow into the Land of Living Skies. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Wind project near Chaplin denied due to bird concerns Chaplin – It turns out petroleum projects aren’t the only ones with environmental concerns, as the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment announced on Sept. 19 it was turning down a 177-megawatt wind-power facility which was proposed by Algonquin Power.

Meant to supply SaskPower, the project would have included a maximum of 79 wind turbine generators, ap-

proximately 50 to 70 kilometres of access roads and 110 kilometres of trenched transmission lines. The proponent’s environmental impact statement was reviewed

by Saskatchewan Environmental Assessment Review Panel (SEARP), a team of technical professionals from across government, including the Ministry of Environment.

“The government will continue to move

forward with green energy, with a goal of 50 per cent of power generation from renewable energy sources by 2030,” Environment Minister Scott Moe said. “Ultimately, there were potential negative impacts to birds and migratory corridors, as well as other risks, that led us to conclude this is

not an appropriate location for a wind energy project.”

This was the first wind electricity project to undergo an environmental impact assessment in Saskatchewan. Moe added that the experience gained during this review and consultation was invaluable in the development

of new siting guidelines for future wind and other renewable energy generation projects, which were also released Sept. 19.

Those guidelines include a five kilometre buffer zone has been establish around designated environmentallysensitive avoidance areas such as national and

provincial parks, ecological reserves, important bird areas and key Saskatchewan rivers. In addition, proponents will still be required to evaluate wind energy project siting at areas outside of avoidance zones to ensure any potential environmental and wildlife impacts are still mitigated.

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A20

PIPELINE NEWS October 2016

Lloydminster now has a local helicopter service ■ By Brian Zinchuk Lloydminster – His born and bred Australian accent comes through quickly, but Ross Schmidt now calls Lloydminster home.

He’s a helicopter pilot and base manager for Provincial Helicopters.

The company relocated its operations from Meadow Lake to Lloydminster.

They also have a base at Lac de Bonnet, Manitoba.

“We ran into a lot of headache building in Meadow Lake,” he said. “We were coming up to freeze-up, and we just couldn’t get anything built in time.”

It’s very important to keep helicopters warm in the win-

ter, and thus adequate hanger space was a must.

Lloydminster was a better location for fires, and being on the border, provided better opportunities on both sides of the line. The helicopter industry is notorious for difficulties in keeping good staff, and Lloydminster was more attractive location in that regard.

“All of our guys are on year-round,” he said. With a slowdown in the industry, keeping pilots on rosters working on a fly-in, fly-out basis is becoming less common.

The company has five pilots and five aircraft. Two are Jet Ranger 206s. There are two Long Rang-

ers, and one Bell 205, sometimes referred to as a single Huey for its single engine.

The business varies from year to year.

“We used to do a lot of seismic work and a lot of drill moves for zero impact drilling.

“Everything’s flown in. You can’t access it by road for whatever reason. It’s all sample drilling.”

Asked about activity, right now he said, “Everything’s slowing down. Guys stopped spending money until things turn around again.”

Therefore the company has moved into fighting fires and treeplanting. That includes areas north of Meadow Lake and around Prince Albert.

They go in when the muskeg is still frozen.

As such, they’re still looking at a satellite location at Meadow Lake.

“We did a little bit of seismic last year, exploration near Buffalo Narrows.”

Schmidt said, “Lloydminster’s never had a helicopter business here, from what we’ve been told.”

The Australian is 29 years old. He’s personally been flying for seven years. He started flying one of the smallest helicopters on the market, the Robinson R22, for herding cattle in northeast Australia.

He got his wings in 2009. He has a fixed wing pilot before, and was an airframe mechanic in Australia.

He’s certified to fly the Bell 206, Robinson R22 and R44.

Ross Schmidt is the base manager and a pilot for Provincial Helicopters in Lloydminster.

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