[en] Industrial terrorists are committing acts of sabotage against Canadian companies involved in petroleum and natural gas drilling, mining, logging, industrial-style farming and animal testing. The petroleum industry in Alberta has recently been the target of such industrial sabotage. The acts of vandalism have included shot-up signs, smashed car windows, ripped truck tires on isolated well roads, broken machinery, holes drilled in pipes and even entire wells cemented over and embedded with shotgun shells. Recently, the scale of the vandalism surpassed anything previously experienced in North America when bullets were fired at a gas plant in Grande Prairie County, narrowly missing the operators, and a home-made bomb blew a hole in a gas pipeline. Such assaults against the resource industry (oil, gas, forestry and fisheries) are increasing nationwide. Much of the vandalism goes unreported because companies do not like to admit that they have been targeted. Other incidents of eco-terrorism have included the sabotage and bombing of forestry equipment across the country. These acts of sabotage have shown just how vulnerable the resource industry is. Most attacks share a common profile. They are aimed at machinery, not at people and they are usually the work of urban protesters rather than angry locals. The Grande Prairie incidents do not fit the pattern because the saboteurs endangered lives by using explosives. One of the problems that may be contributing to the terror campaign in the Grande Prairie region is the flaring of unwanted gas from wells, which exposes hundreds of families in the area to as many as 250 chemicals, some of them toxic. For the moment, oil and gas companies are putting their faith in increased vigilance and security, but industry insiders hope that the province will step in before someone dies from a terrorist act

[en] Although no uranium discovery has been reported in the province so far, Alberta is experiencing an upsurge in uranium exploration activity. A portion of the Athabasca Basin, in which the Saskatchewan uranium deposits are located, lies in northeastern Alberta. Within this region 24 uranium leases and 19 uranium prospecting permits have been registered. In 1979 the Geological Survey of Canada published airborne gamma ray spectrometric maps of the area. Following introduction of amendments to the metallic minerals regulations to stimulate mineral development, the Alberta Department of Energy and Natural Resources will reopen the undisposed areas of the Athabasca Basin for the granting of mineral rights. (LL)

[en] Over the past 15 years, government and industry have invested heavily in research and development of new technology for extracting bitumen from the Alberta oil sands. The results have been a dramatic increase in the fraction of oil sands deposits that could be economically exploited and a drop in production costs. However, no rapid increase in bitumen recovery has been achieved and most new bitumen production projects have been postponed or cancelled. This is the result of very variable prices for bitumen and the inadequacy of a marketing strategy which relies on the sale of raw bitumen. Options such as transport of bitumen to southern markets are limited by the need to reduce bitumen viscosity for pipelining and by the limited market for emulsified or diluted bitumen. Another possible strategy, conversion of the bitumen to synthetic crude oil, is limited by high costs, product characteristics (too much diesel and not enough gasoline), and a market limited to specialized refineries. A third strategy is to convert and refine bitumen to transportation fuels in Alberta, using inexpensive local natural gas, and transporting the products through existing pipeline facilities. 3 figs

[en] The City of Calgary, driven by the specter of Year 2000 issues as well as deregulation, decided to replace its 18-year old mainframe with state-of-the-art customer information system for all its utility customers. The system selected is the SCT Banner Customer Information System from Enlogix, headquartered in Toronto. This is the only software developed that was actually in use by other utilities, including Westcoast Energy, Toronto Hydro, Edison Source and PG and E in California. The conversion from an S-390 mainframe system relies on Banner's Oracle database technology. The main server, an IBM-RS 6000, will be stationed at an Enlogix data center, located in Calgary. Desktop workstations using Pentium II processors, with 350 MHz will be used. The major factors in favor of the Banner System were the SCT and Enlogix proven implementation methodologies. The implementation, expected to take about a year, will change about 100 major policies, but the utility is going forward with only nine modifications to match its processes to industry standards. The system has been 'Canadianized' to fulfill unique measurements, regulatory and tax requirements

[en] Total North American demand for propane in 1999 was estimated at 1,700 MBPD, of which 1,300 MBPD represents demand by the United States. World-wide demand is about 3,500 MBPD, Europe and the Mid East combined, and Asia, each accounting for 800 to 850 MBPD. The United States is able to supply about 1,000 MBPD of its own demand ; the rest comes from imports. Total imports make up about 12 per cent of the U.S. supply; in 1999 just over 80 per cent, or about 120 MBPD of the imported propane came from Canada. The volume of export from Canada to the United states is expected to rise to about 170 MBPD, or 86 per cent of the total domestic supply shortfall in 2000. Prices at Edmonton ranged between 35 cents per gallon in Jan 1997, to about 42 cents per gallon in January 2000; during much of this period (from July 1997 to July 1999) the price was below 30 cents per gallon and as low as about 15 cents per gallon in January 1999. The price differential between Edmonton and Conway (the receiving point in the United States) was an average of 6 cents (US) per gallon. Total U.S. propane inventories during the same period and propane inventories against heating degree days and Conway propane prices are also shown in graphic form. The various graphs illustrate that in general, the price of propane at any given time is heavily influenced by the price of crude oil, however, in the short term competing fuels, weather conditions and inventory levels also play a part in determining prices. With regard to the future, a bullish outlook envisages flat to current prices, whereas a bearish outlook forecasts lower prices due to softening of the world economy, high U.S. and Canadian inventories, and the possibility of another warm winter. 18 viewgraphs

[en] This report contains an independent evaluation of the operations of the private marketing agents that are currently marketing the Alberta Crown's share of royalty crude oil. The evaluation includes a review of pricing performance, working relationship, current issues and the overall performance of the marketing arrangements during the fiscal years of 1997 and 1998. Overall, the outsourcing of sales of Crown production to agents is judged to be successful. For example, it has been noted that agents are becoming more aggressive in maintaining and increasing their margins. On the other hand, the increased level of aggressiveness in marketing, while tending to maximize Crown revenues, is also creating a potential conflict on how margins should be shared between the Crown and its agents. Also, there has been evidence of some management issues between the agents and the Crown concerning the extent to which the Crown should share in any increased value which the agent generates by increased third party marketing activities. These differences need to be addressed in order to maintain the strong performance of the marketing program. The consultants also recommend additional guidelines on risk management issues that more clearly define the Crown's risk tolerance. 2 tabs., 4 figs

[en] The Alberta Chamber of Resources programs and initiatives on oil sands and heavy oil, and strategies for revitalizing oilsands development in Alberta are described. The regional upgrader and satellite production facilities concept, and technology requirements for mineable oil sands by the year 2010 are discussed. Strategic alliances in furtherence of oil sands research and development and the National Task Force on Oil Sands Strategies are described. Changes in requirements for transportation fuels due to stricter regulations and environmental initiatives will cause a trend to lighter fuels with more hydrogen content, less aromatics, nitrogen, sulfur and metals. A preferred refinery configuration will be able to process heavier crudes and synthetic crudes, have no heavy fuel oil product, low sulfur products, low aromatics with high octane, and low operating cost. A regional or central facility that combines the processing capabilities of a bitumen upgrader with the process units of a refinery is preferred. Advantages of this concept are: value addition to the feedstock is maximized; dependence on refineries is eliminated; restriction on synthetic crude oil volumes due to capacity limitations at refineries is eliminated; directly marketable finished products are produced; more stringent quality specifications are satisfied; and the synergies between upgrading and refining improve overall economics of processing. It is recommended that the concept of regional upgraders be adopted for Alberta, strategic alliances be encouraged, incentives for bitumen production be provided, and a bitumen pipeline network be developed. 12 refs

[en] The growth of Red Deer as the center of the oil and natural gas service industry in the Alberta oilpatch was discussed. Red Deer is the home base of many of Alberta's major service companies (Haliburton, Schlumberger, Computalog, Nowsco, Canadian Fracmaster, Hughes, Bonus and Challenger), and new companies are regularly looking for industrial properties to establish themselves in the city. Industrial land acquisition currently runs at about triple of the average for the previous ten years. Another significant spin-off of energy wealth around Red Deer comes from the manufacturing of petrochemical building blocks of plastics, at nearby Joffre. With expansion projects that include Union Carbide Canada and Amoco Canada, predictions of population growth to 100,000 from the current 75,000, are commonplace. These expansion projects spell up to 2,500 construction jobs for the next three years, and then 400 new permanent plant positions that will pay $60,000 and up for skilled specialist jobs. There are some concerns about the threat of the Alliance Gas Pipeline project that if it materializes it might export many jobs, along with the natural gas, to the United States. However, these concerns are less serious than the fear that Alliance threatens to raise the price of the raw material by draining away surpluses from the industry, thus removing the major Canadian advantage in competition with U.S. industry. Alliance supporters counter that even at maximum export through the Cochin liquid pipeline, only half of the ethane production that will be potentially available, will be exported

[en] The specially demanding nature of oilfield jobs, and the allure these jobs hold for the specially hardy folk (the roughnecks) who work in the oilfields, is the subject of this article. Success stories of various individuals who achieved outstanding success in one or another branch of the oilfield service industry were chronicled to illustrate what youth, robust health, intelligence, and a yen for adventure can do for people desirous of getting a job in the oilfields for the first time

[en] The challenge of establishing a distinctive strategy for a new Canadian oil and gas company was discussed. In Calgary alone, there are about 500 companies trying to establish a fundamental business plan which is distinctive and superior to their competitors. A newly established company, such as Bow Valley Energy Ltd., has the advantage of starting with a clean slate. The questions that should be considered when establishing a business plan for a new company were cited as: (1) where should the company be focused geographically? (2) should exploration or development be pursued? and (3) how can value be added to each deal? It was noted that 50 per cent of the discovered petroleum reserves are located in the Middle East and Africa. Since 70 per cent of the remaining reserves are also located in these areas, it makes sense that a prime decision factor would be to focus on those regions of the world where most of the oil is located. However, it is imperative that in reorienting efforts towards those regions issues of fiscal regime and the political stability of these areas are also addressed. It was suggested that having the ability to recognize opportunities and act quickly to capitalize on them, management and operational skills to operate marginal fields profitably, and ability to efficiently manage late-life fields to extract a maximum amount of oil at a low cost, will be the most important assets for a new company to succeed. Focusing efforts in areas with proven, low-cost reserves potential would also be important in the current oil pricing environment. 2 figs