Please submit RESERVOIR articles to the CSPG office. Submission deadline is the 23rd day of the month, two months prior to issue date. (e.g., January 23 for the March issue).
To publish an article, the CSPG requires digital copies of the document. Text should be in Microsoft Word format and illustrations should be in TIFF format at 300 dpi., at final size For additional information on manuscript preparation, refer to the Guidelines for Authors published in the CSPG Bulletin or contact the editor.
Advertising inquiries should be directed to Kim MacLean. The deadline to reserve advertising space is the 23rd day of the month, two months prior to issue date. All advertising artwork should be sent directly to Kim MacLean.
The RESERVOIR is published 11 times per year by the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists. This includes a combined issue for the months of July/August.
FRONT COVER
Banff National Park, Alberta . Looking west from Observation Peak onto the Peyto Lake delta
CSPG
EXECUTIVE
PRESIDENT
Colin Yeo • EnCana Corporation colin.yeo@encana.com Tel: (403) 645-7724
VICE PRESIDENT
Lisa Griffith • Griffith Geoconsulting lgriffith@griffithgeoconsulting.com Tel: (403) 669-7494
PAST PRESIDENT
Jim Reimer • Result Energy Inc. jim@resultenergy.com Tel: (403) 539-5207
FINANCE DIRECTOR
Peter Harrington • Northrock Resources Ltd. harrington@northrock.ab.ca Tel: (403) 213-7665
ASSISTANT FINANCE DIRECTOR
James Donnelly • ConocoPhillips Canada james.donnelly@conocophillips.com Tel: (403) 260-8000
A message from the CSPG Assistant Finance Director, James Donnelly
It has been my pleasure to represent the Society as Assistant Finance Director for the past eight months.
The CSPG is ideally set up to provide a training ground for assistant directors in their first year on the executive so that they are ready to assume the role as director in their second year. I have taken full advantage of my apprenticeship training and have learned a great deal about the Society as well as the Finance Committee.
The primary task of the Assistant Finance Director in addition to “learning the ropes” is the creation of the budget for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins September 1st and then as Finance Director, to track revenue and expenses against budget through to the end of the fiscal year. Much of the data collection and organization associated with the budget is coordinated by the CSPG’s Business Manager Tim Howard with the support the office staff, to which I am truly grateful. I am also thankful for the help and guidance of the CSPG’s current Finance Director, Peter Harrington.
The CSPG is entering its 80th year of operation as a very large and active organization with approximately 3,500 members and over 50 committees run by a volunteer base in excess of 350 members. Revenue projections for the 2007/2008 fiscal year total just over $2.5 million, consistent with what the Society has experienced for the past few years. Revenues are generated from three main sources: Programs (Technical
luncheons, Education, Technical divisions), Conventions, and Services (Membership dues and social), which contribute 35%, 20%, and 16% respectively of total revenues. On the expense side, Operations (office staff and admin) and Programs comprise 62%, while Communications and Outreach make up 26% (refer to charts below). These revenues and expenses are consistent with last year’s performance and a modest profit of $60,000 is projected for the 2008 fiscal year.
As a not-for-profit organization, our budget tends to be very conservative, designed to break even or generate a small profit. Surpluses are invested in enhanced programs and services to our membership.
This past year we saw several new initiatives from the Outreach committee under the direction of David Middleton, including the 100 Student Jobs Initiative and K-12 education. Outreach is a critical component to the continued vitality of the CSPG and our profession. It is imperative as a society that we reach out and encourage our youth and young adults to choose earth sciences as a future profession. To this end, we have seen this program grow from 4 % of expenditures in 2005 to 10% this fiscal year.
As the above numbers indicate, the CSPG is heavily dependant on its convention and
(Continued on page 16...)
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PRIMEWEST ENERGY TRUST
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AS OF APRIL 24, 2007
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Upper Devonian Reef Strata and Hydrothermal Dolomitization in the Southern Northwest Territories September 10-14, 2007
Instructors: Dr. Alex J. MacNeil, Imperial Oil Resources and Dr. Brian Jones, University of Alberta
CSPG Member Earlybird: $2,048+GST/ CSPG Member: $2,275+GST/ Non-member: $2,844+GST
(The fees include accommodation, ground transportation, lunches, and guide book – airfare not included)
For more information visit www.cspg.org.
19th Annual CSPG CSEG Road Race and Fun Run
Wednesday, September 12, 2007 – 6pm SHARP
Eau Claire YMCA
CSPG/CSEG/CAPL Members:
$35.00 until Wednesday, September 5
CSPG/CSEG/CAPL Members: $45.00 until Tuesday, September 11
Non-Members: $45.00
Entry Deadline: Tuesday, September 11, 2007
For more information, contact Chris Manion at chris@forsaw.ca.
CORRECTION
2007 Gussow Geoscience Conference October 15-17, 2007
Banff Centre – Banff, AB
CSPG Members: $800.00 Non-Members: $900.00
Registration Deadline: Monday, October 8, 2007
For more information, visit www.cspg.org
1st Annual CSPG Education Week October 29th to November 2nd, 2007
Calgary, Alberta
Join us for a thrilling week of continuing education and a second chance to take the sold-out 2007 CSPG Convention Courses:
• Practical Sequence Stratigraphy: Concepts and Applications – Ashton Embry
• Architecture of Fluvial Reservoirs – Andrew Miall
• Stratigraphic Setting of Lower and Middle Triassic Strata – James Dixon.
Contact Travis.Hobbs@encana.com
The caption for the July/ Reservoir cover photo should read:
Calgary, Alberta. Receptaculites in Tyndall limestone quarried in Garson, Manitoba. Photo by Clint Tippet.
TECHNICAL LUNCHEONS
What banning the light bulb really means
SPEAKER
Peter Tertzakian Chief Energy Economist for ARC Financial Corporation and best-selling author of A Thousand Barrels a Second
11:30 am
Tuesday, September 11th, 2007
Telus Convention Centre Calgary, Alberta
Please note:
The cut-off date for ticket sales is 1:00 pm, Thursday, September 6th, 2007. Ticket price is $34.00 + GST.
Due to the recent popularity of talks, we strongly suggest purchasing tickets early, as we cannot guarantee seats will be available on the cut-off date.
Since the industrial revolution in the late 1700s, there have only been a handful of times when our society has meaningfully changed the way that we use, and the way that we are supplied our energy. Today, the events unfolding around us – economic, political, and environmental – signal that we are once again entering a period of such radical change, or an energy ‘break point’.
What are the signals? Is the movement to ban the incandescent light bulbs one such signal? How will today’s period of energy transition unfold? What are the challenges? What are the alternatives (you may be surprised)? And importantly, what does it mean to Canada, now a self-proclaimed “Energy Superpower.”
Chief Energy Economist at ARC Financial Corporation, and best-selling author of A Thousand Barrels a Second: The Coming Oil Breakpoint and the Challenges Facing an Energy Dependent World, Peter Tertzakian will explore these big-picture issues and focus them into implications for the upstream Canadian oil and gas industry.
BIOGRAPHY
Best-selling author of A Thousand Barrels a Second, published by McGraw-Hill, Peter Tertzakian is the Chief Energy Economist of ARC Financial Corporation, one of the world’s leading energy investment firms.
Peter’s background in geophysics, economics, and finance, combined with his entrepreneurial spirit, helped him rise from the trenches of hands-on oil exploration fieldwork to become
an internationally recognized, top-ranked expert in energy matters.
Often seen and heard through media outlets around the world, Peter’s been a featured guest on many high-profile radio and television shows including The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. In print, Peter has been featured in US News and World Report and has contributed editorials to widely read publications such as The Globe and Mail and Forbes.com. He also writes a weekly column, ARC Energy Charts, and is a soughtafter public speaker.
Peter has an undergraduate degree in Geophysics from the University of Alberta, and a graduate degree in Econometrics from the University of Southampton, U.K. He also holds a Master of Science in Management of Technology from the Sloan School of Management at MIT.
He lives in Calgary, Alberta, one of the world’s leading oil and gas centers, with his wife and two children.
Ultra-shallow gas, NW Alberta: geological origin and geochemical detection
SPEAKER
H.H. von der Dick
Chemterra International
CO-AUTHORS
P. Bauman
Crew Energy
D.A. Bosman
Chemterra International
11:30 am
Thursday, September 27th, 2007
Telus Convention Centre Calgary Calgary, Alberta
Please note:
The cut-off date for ticket sales is 1:00 pm, Monday, September 24th, 2007. Ticket price is $34.00 + GST Due to the recent popularity of talks, we strongly suggest purchasing tickets early, as we cannot guarantee seats will be available on the cut-off date.
In recent years, several ultra-shallow gas pools in the depth range of 35-300m (100900ft) that occur in Pleistocene glacio-fluvial deposits have been discovered in NW Alberta and NE British Columbia. Some of these shallow reservoirs, such as the Souza and Rainbow Gas Fields in the High Level area of Alberta represent substantial economic natural gas accumulations, but others also form drilling hazards in the form of blowouts and artesian flows when encountered unexpectedly. Two blowouts, one with fatal consequences, demonstrate both the exploration opportunities and the hazards of these gas occurrences.
The Pleistocene gravel/sand reservoirs were deposited in valleys formed by the advance of the Laurentide ice sheet into the area, about 10,000 to 43,000 b.p., and sedimentladen melt water eroding local bedrock. The Pleistocene topography eroding into the Cretaceous gas-bearing Bluesky Formation appears to play an important part in the occurrence of these gas-filled reservoirs. Unconsolidated fine-grain lithic greywacke and mudstones form relatively tight cap rocks, and the Cretaceous Shaftsbury shale is – at least in one case – the lateral seal. Thus, the Pleistocene gas-bearing sand/pebble
channels are encased in muddy fine-grained sediments and shales within these channels.
The occurrence of significant amounts of gas in geologically very young sediments poses the question of the origin of the gas. First considerations of faults as migration avenues of deep gas into these strata failed. In addition, with major gas generation ending in the distant past at Eocene times, it is difficult to explain these gases from an active thermal gas generation point of view. On the other side, gas composition, flow, and production characteristics are typical for natural gas derived from a common thermal source.
A key observation on the origin of the shallow Pleistocene gas comes from gas isotope data, showing that both major seep gases in the area and the young reservoir gas are of thermal origin. Based on the burial history of Eocene thermal gas evolution, gas emplacement in the area and the occurrence of these gases in sediments less than 50,000 years old, the following gas generation / gas emplacement scheme is proposed:
• Gas generation peaked at Eocene times at maximum burial, saturating the entire Cretaceous–Tertiary sediment column, including the pervasive Cretaceous Bluesky sands, above and adjacent to gasgenerating shales.
• Subsequent tectonic uplift, in particular the partial erosion of the Bluesky Formation by advancing ice sheets, led to widespread gas seepage and massive gas loss from the Mesozoic section; locally, the previously gassaturated Bluesky Formation was completely barren of gas due to partial erosion.
• Since the thermal gas generation “kitchen” has long ceased, the gas for the Pleistocene sediments can only originate from residual reservoir gas and solution gas / adsorbed gas at depth that survived initial uplift and reservoir breaching: continued breaching due to continued tectonic activity and isostatic rebound is believed to provide the mechanism for secondary gas mobilization/ migration and emplacement into the Bluesky Formation.
• In places where the Bluesky Formation is incised by Pleistocene channels, this second-phase Bluesky gas continues to migrate up. It is trapped on an interim basis in Pleistocene channels.
Geochemical surface seep records show, that the shallow Rainbow and Souza gas fields have enormous seep rates to the surface. Thus, we can assume a dynamic gas migration system from the deep subsurface into the Bluesky Formation, then either into Pleistocene traps (with limited seal capacity and consequently limited gas residence time) or direct seepage
to the surface. Where prominent faults dissect into the Bluesky Formation, these points develop into regional gas discharge locations. An active, dynamic equilibrium of subsurface gas supply into and seeping out of these young channels appears to be established. A preliminary gas drainage mass balance indicates that the major portion of the Pleistocene gas is derived from conventionally reservoired gas at depth. Previous solution gas and adsorbed gas, now liberated from isostatic rebound, play a minor role in filling the Pleistocene channels.
The high surface seep rates observed over established shallow gas pools provide a convenient and cost-effective way to explore for new pools. Using a combination of advanced numerical data processing and isotope data of seep samples as data filters to isolate thermally derived seep gas patterns provides a way to high-grade areas for shallow gas exploration. Thus, these seep surveys discriminate gas-bearing from freshwaterbearing shallow horizons. Once recognized, these geochemical leads may be followed up by more costly exploration tools such as resistivity surveys to confirm the presence of Pleistocene channels at shallow depth. The combined use of geochemical and resistivity surveys can be used to explore for economic gas reserves in shallow Pleistocene deposits.
BIOGRAPHY
Hans obtained his M.Sc. in geology and Ph.D. in geochemistry from the University of Aachen, Germany. Subsequent to his academic education in Germany Hans joined the Canadian oil industry in 1982 in the capacity of a research geologist, later as group leader of the technology division at Canadian Hunter, Calgary.
In 1991, Hans co-founded ChemTerra International Ltd. (CTI), a service company specializing in exploration and forensic geochemistry. Since 1992 Hans has been involved on a managerial level in projects in numerous countries around the world, both in exploration and environmental studies for the international oil and gas and environmental sectors.
His technical interests are all aspects of geochemical applications to exploration and production, environmental bio-geochemistry, and advanced numerical data analysis of chemical and geochemical data. He has authored and co-authored numerous papers on subjects of oil and gas generation on South Atlantic continental margin, on offshore Eastern Canada oil occurrences, geochemical-petrographic constraints of shale oil production, methods and application of seep data to exploration, and source-related contamination patterns in ground water.
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TECHNICAL LUNCHEONS OCTOBER LUNCHEON
Late Paleozoic sea-level fluctuations: a critical look at glacioeustasy in an icehouse world
SPEAKER
Michael C. Rygel
State University of New York College at Potsdam
11:30 am
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Telus Convention Centre Calgary, Alberta
Please note:
The cut-off date for ticket sales is 1:00 pm, Thursday, October 4, 2007. Ticket Price: $34.00 + GST
Due to the recent popularity of talks, we strongly suggest purchasing tickets early, as we cannot guarantee seats will be available on the cut-off date.
A comprehensive literature review shows that the magnitude of glacioeustatic fluctuations varied systematically throughout the Carboniferous and Permian. Plotting previously published, reliable estimates of eustatic change versus time shows that
Western Canada Geological Edge Set
For import into AccuMap, geoSCOUT and other applications.
All edges are formatted as map features for AccuMap and ESRI Shape files for other applications.
at least seven distinct subdivisions can be recognized. Changes in the magnitude of eustatic fluctuations match well with new information about the spatial and temporal distribution of glacial ice in Gondwana. Although any attempt to quantify the magnitude of eustatic changes during the Paleozoic is necessarily based on proxies and assumptions, this study represents the first comprehensive overview of the literature and is a necessary first step in comparing eustasy and sequence stratigraphy in “icehouse” and “greenhouse” worlds.
Erosional relief and facies juxtapositions in paleoequatorial successions record eustatic fl uctuations of 20-25 m, and possibly up to 60 m, took place throughout the early Mississippian (Tournaisian) – a widely recognized period of Gondwanan glaciation. The sedimentological record from middle Mississippian (Chadian to midBrigantian) shallow marine successions indicates that eustatic fl uctuations never exceeded 30 m, a decrease in maximum value that corresponds to the absence of coeval glacial deposits in Gondwana. Late Mississippian (mid-Brigantian) to earliest Pennsylvanian (Langsettian) strata are commonly cyclic and record eustatic fl uctuations of 50-100 m, an architecture caused by the return of glacial conditions to the polar regions. Middle Pennsylvanian (Duckmantian to mid-Asturian) glacial deposits are present in eastern Australia, but paleovalley depths in coeval strata suggest that eustatic fl uctuations did not exceed 30 m. Glacioeustatic fl uctuations of 60-120 m have been widely reported
from Late Pennsylvanian (mid-Asturian) to earliest Permian (mid-Sakmarian) paleoequatorial regions, an increase that corresponds to the growth of large ice sheets in Gondwana. In eastern Australia, depth of fl uvial incision and facies juxtapositions in early to middle Permian (mid-Sakmarian to Wordian) successions indicates that eustatic fluctuations decreased to a maximum of 40-70 m as ice volumes decreased. Erosional relief in paleoequatorial carbonates suggests that eustatic changes of 20-30 m occurred during the fi nal collapse of the Late Paleozoic ice age during the middle Permian (Capitanian).
This review confirms that far-field cyclic successions recorded changing glacial conditions in Gondwana, that Carboniferous-Permian glacioeustasy was extremely dynamic, that generalizations from small temporal intervals are probably not representative of the Late Paleozoic ice age as a whole, and that previous sea-level and coastal onlap curves for this interval might not be accurate. Furthermore, this study emphasizes the differences between eustasy in icehouse and greenhouse worlds, an important control on stratigraphic architecture and variable in stratigraphic modeling.
BIOGRAPHY
Michael Rygel is an Assistant Professor at the State University of New York, College at Potsdam. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown in 2000 and with a Ph.D. from Dalhousie University in 2005. His graduate work focused on the sedimentology and stratigraphy of Carboniferous strata in the Cumberland Basin of Nova Scotia. As a result of his graduate work, Dr. Rygel received the 2006 CSPG Ph.D. Thesis Award, Dalhousie’s Doctoral Thesis Award for the best Ph.D. in the Sciences and Engineering (2006), the A.L. Medlin Award from the Coal Geology Division of GSA (2004), and was a Killam Pre-Doctoral Scholar. Following his graduate work, Dr. Rygel worked as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on a project examining the sedimentological record of the Late Paleozoic ice age in eastern Australia. Dr. Rygel recently accepted a tenure-track position at SUNY Potsdam where he is continuing his research on Paleozoic depositional systems and teaching Sedimentary Geology, Historical Geology, and numerous introductory courses.
TECHNICAL LUNCHEONS OCTOBER LUNCHEON
Gas shale reservoirs: reservoir access and gas in place
SPEAKER
R. Marc Bustin
CO-AUTHOR
Amanda Bustin
11:30 am
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Telus Convention Centre Calgary Calgary, Alberta
Please note:
The cut-off date for ticket sales is 1:00 pm, Monday, October 22, 2007. Ticket Price: $34.00 + GST.
Due to the recent popularity of talks, we strongly suggest purchasing tickets early, as we cannot guarantee seats will be available on the cut-off date.
Successful exploitation of gas shale requires sufficient gas in place and reservoir access to enable sustainable economic production rates. In most gas shales, however, strata with the highest gas in place (free gas porosity plus sorbed gas) have mechanical properties that are less amenable to large scale fracing. Hence in thick heterogeneous shale intervals it may be necessary to compromise between zones of the highest gas in place and zones which can be most successfully completed.
Sorption isotherms, organic carbon content, geochemistry, mineralogy, porosity, pore size distribution, matrix permeability, rock mechanics, and microfabric analyses of many producing gas shales and many shales being actively explored provides insight as to the diversity and heterogeneity of the shales and the interrelationship between the key parameters necessary to construct exploration and development models. Shales rich in biogenic silica (part of the Barnett and some Devonian shales of British Columbia) and low in clays invariably exhibit positive correlations between sorptive capacity and silica and an inverse relationship with total porosity whereas if the silica is detrital quartz, the shales generally have high porosity but lower sorbed gas capacity due to lower organic carbon content (e.g., Second White Specks). Also, in many shales there is a predictable variation in pore
size distribution between biogenic- silicarich shales in which the pore size is skewed towards finer pores (<50 m) and detrital quartz or clay-rich shales in which pore sizes are skewed towards coarser pore sizes. The biogenic-silica-rich shales and shales that have experienced higher levels of digenesis are invariably more brittle and have lower Poisson’s ratios and hence are more amenable to fracing than the softer clay-rich and immature shales. Carbonate-rich shales generally have lower organic carbon contents and prove the most difficult to complete. The gas flow (diffusion and Darcy flow) of analyzed shales is very low with the lowest values occurring in areas of high effective stress in mature to over-mature clay-rich shales which also exhibit the greatest flow anisotropy. The importance of matrix flow on production is not only dependent on the permeability and diffusivity but also fracture fabric which reflects the mineralogy and microfabric of the shale.
BIOGRAPHY
R. Marc Bustin (Ph.D., P. Geol., FRSC)
R. Marc Bustin is Professor of petroleum and coal geology in the Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences at the University of British Columbia and president of RMB Earth Science Consultants and former principal of CBM Solutions Ltd. He has broad experience in the realm of unconventional gas exploration
and exploitation both in research and in his consultancy practice. His professional experience includes employment by Mobil Oil Canada, Gulf Canada Resources prior to joining the University of British Columbia, and subsequently with Elf-Aquitaine (France), CSIRO (France), and CNRS (Australia). Dr. Bustin has consulted in the area of fossil fuel resource evaluation and functioned as director and technical advisor for a variety of small through large petroleum companies in Europe, Africa, North America and Asia. Dr. Bustin has published over 160 scientific articles on fossil fuels.
Dr. Bustin received his Ph.D. in geology in 1980 from the University of British Columbia. He is or has been an associate editor of the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geology Bulletin, Sedimentary Geology, International Journal of Coal Geology, and the Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences. He is a member of the ICCP, AAPG, TSOP, and GSA. Bustin is a past recipient of the A. L. Leverson memorial award from the AAPG and received the Thiesson Medal from the International Committee for Coal Petrography in 2002 for his contributions to coal sciences/organic petrology and the Sproule Award in 2003 for contributions to the study of unconventional gas resources. Bustin is an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and a registered professional geologist in the province of British Columbia.
REGISTER ONLINE NOW for the largest conference on unconventional gas in North America. Visit www.csugconference.ca or www.csug.ca.
Technical Sessions – Day 1 and 2
Two days of focused technical presentations on unconventional gas exploration and development in the thematic areas of Geology, Drilling, Completions and Stimulation.
Short Course Day – Day 3
Six concurrent day sessions will be taught by industry experts and provide participants with the opportunity to increase their expertise in unconventional gas and career related technical skills.
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DIVISION TALKS GEOFLUIDS DIVISION
The origin, prediction, and impact of oil viscosity heterogeneity on the production characteristics of tar sand and heavy oil reservoirs
SPEAKER
Dr. Haiping Huang
CO-AUTHORS
Jennifer Adams, Barry Bennett, Steve Larter
Petroleum Reservoir Group, Alberta Ingenuity Center for In-Situ Energy, University of Calgary.
Biodegradation of crude oil in subsurface petroleum reservoirs is an important alteration process affecting most of the world’s oil deposits. The process preferentially removes light components from conventional oil to form heavy oil and tar sands, which are more difficult to produce and are more costly to refine. Although reservoir temperature is a key control on biodegradation, large variations in oil properties have been documented in accumulations from similar depths within a play area.
Data from several case studies representing marine- and lacustrine-sourced petroleum indicate that biodegradation is most active in a narrow zone at or near the base of the oil column in contact with the water leg. The availability of nutrients from a source (e.g., mineral dissolution) within the water leg is thought to have a significant impact upon the degree of biodegradation. Thus
the level of biodegradation increases with water leg thickness. Charge history and inreservoir mixing of continuously charged oil with residual biodegraded oil by diffusion also have a significant impact on oil physical properties.
The defining characteristic of heavy and super heavy oilfields is the large spatial variation in fluid properties, such as oil viscosity, commonly seen within the reservoirs. Traditional heavy oil and oil sands exploration and production strategies rely significantly on characterization of key reservoir heterogeneities and assessments of fluid saturations. While it is important to understand these reservoir variations, variations in fluid properties can often dominate production behavior but are usually ignored.
Heavy oil and oil sands are formed by microbial degradation of conventional crude oils over geological timescales. Constraints such as charge mixing, biodegradation rate, and water and nutrient supply to the organisms ultimately dictate the final distribution of API gravity and viscosity found in heavy oil fields. Large-scale lateral and small-scale vertical variations in fluid properties due to interaction of biodegradation and charge mixing are common, with up to orders of magnitude variation in viscosity over the thickness of a reservoir. These variations are often predictable and can be input into reservoir simulation models in a manner similar to specifying geological heterogeneity. In this work, we describe and illustrate quantitative geological controls on fluid property variations in heavy oil reservoirs.
BIOGRAPHY
Haiping Huang obtained his M.Sc. in Petroleum Geology (1988) from China University of Geosciences and his Ph.D. in Petroleum Geochemistry (2004) from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. Prior to joining the University of Calgary, Dr. Huang was a Professor in the Department of Energy Resource Geology at China University of Geosciences, where he taught Organic Geochemistry and Reservoir Geochemistry and developed his interests researching the origin of oil and gas, and how petroleum alteration occurs within reservoirs and its effect on development. His current research interests focus on origin of heavy oil and using geochemistry as a tool to facilitate heavy oil and oil sands development.
DIVISION TALKS PALAEONTOLOGY DIVISION
Discovering Canada’s Dinosaurs –Alberta’s gift to the world
SPEAKER
Dr Peter Dodson
University of Pennsylvania
7:30-9:00 PM
Thursday, September 20th, 2007 Room B101, Mount Royal College
From Albertosaurus in 1884 to Albertaceratops in 2007, Alberta has consistently provided abundant skeletons of dinosaurs over the years. Because of this, Canada is one of the top five dinosaurproducing countries in the world. We review the discoveries and the discoverers, from Joseph Tyrell, who gave his name to the world-famous museum in Drumheller, to Barnum Brown in New York and the Sternbergs in Ottawa and Toronto, to Phil Currie and associates today. The peak of Alberta’s dinosaur rush was during the decade of the 1910s, and more than threequarters of the dinosaurs we know today had been reported by 1940, yet discoveries of new kinds continue to the present time.
(...Continued from page 5)
membership dues as revenue sources. The convention committee and staff have done an excellent job once again this year and although the final numbers are not in, the convention was financially successful.
Thanks to the efforts of the office staff and the membership committee, we have seen a 10% increase in memberships over last year and we anticipate this trend continuing.
Sponsorship revenues under the direction of Kim MacLean continue to show healthy increases over the past few years, and we are hoping that a renewed emphasis on corporate memberships will show similar results in the future. In addition, we are anticipating two larger Reservoir publications this year, with increased associated advertising revenue.
With the establishment of the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in 1985, Alberta’s fossil beds are perhaps the most intensively sampled anywhere in the world.
BIOGRAPHY
Peter Dodson holds three degrees in earth sciences: B.Sc. University of Ottawa ’68; M.Sc. University of Alberta ’70; Ph.D. Yale University ’74. He has spent his entire career as a gross anatomist at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, and as a dinosaur paleontologist in the Dept. of Earth and Environmental Science at U. Penn. He is also research associate at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. He has done extensive fieldwork in the western United States and at Dinosaur Provincial Park in Alberta, where he did research for his master’s degree. In 1981, he discovered a new horned dinosaur in Montana, which he described as Avaceratops lammersi in 1986. Since 1995 he has visited China and India, and has participated in field projects in Madagascar, Egypt, Argentina, and China. He is co-describer of a gigantic sauropod from Egypt, Paralititan stromeri, named in 2001 by a research team from the University of Pennsylvania, of the diplodocoid sauropod Suuwassea from Montana in 2004, and of the basal neoceratopsian Auroraceratops from China in 2005. His work has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation, the National Geographic Society, the Pew Charitable Trusts, and the University of Pennsylvania Research Foundation. He is co-editor of The Dinosauria, University of California Press, 1990, 2nd ed. 2004; author of The Horned Dinosaurs
The CSPG’s Education Committee continues to generate healthy returns. An education week has also been added in October this year which should generate additional revenue.
The CSPG continues to be in good financial health. As new initiatives are created and new revenue streams expanded, our Society has been able to expand its presence and impact on petroleum geology in Canada. Our long-term investment portfolio designed to provide a safety net to handle unforeseen situations or pre-fund new initiatives continues to perform well and is now in excess of one million dollars.
We are well established in our new office space, but we continue to look for efficiencies to save money and provide better service to our membership. To this
(Princeton University Press, 1996); and of several children’s books, including An Alphabet of Dinosaurs (Scholastic 1995). He is currently working on a book on the dinosaurs of China.
INFORMATION
This event is jointly presented by the Alberta Palaeontological Society, Mount Royal College and the CSPG Palaeontology Division. For information or to present a talk in the future please contact CSPG Palaeontology Division Chair Philip Benham at 403-691-3343 or programs@albertapaleo.org. Visit the APS website for confirmation of event times and upcoming speakers: http://www.albertapaleo. org/
end, we have leased out one office to the Canadian Federation of Earth Scientists (CFES) and are currently in the process of negotiating the lease of another office to the AAPG. In addition to the CSEG who currently share our space, this will provide a one-stop shopping solution to each of our societies as well as allow for increased communication and cooperation among our groups.
I have learned a great deal in my short tenure as Assistant Finance Director and look forward to continued collaboration with this and next years executive, to ensure that your society is run as financially responsible as possible so that it has the ability to meet its goals and objectives, now and for future.
Dr Peter Dodson (right) and associates with the 67 inch humerus of a titanosaurian sauropod (Paralititan stromeri). This new species of dinosaur was discovered in Egypt.
New data for new resource types – CBM data for splitting commingled production
SPEAKER
Curtis Evans
Alberta Energy and Utilities Board
12:00 Noon
Tuesday, September 25th, 2007
ConocoPhillips Auditorium
(3rd Floor – west side of building)
401 9th Ave. SW (Gulf Canada Square)
Previous basic data requirements by the EUB for production of gas in Alberta focused on providing information to determine reserves of conventional gas pools. These are hydraulically interconnected production intervals where the pressure, porosity, and permeability are assumed to be consistent for all wells in the pool. Recent development of unconventional gas resources in Alberta has created a change in regulations for the collection of data for unconventional gas reserve determination.
Coalbed methane (CBM) is one type of unconventional gas resource where new data requirements are needed as CBM cannot be produced economically with the same data requirements as conventional pools. The data must be collected for administrative units with a different collection format. This means that the mechanism of data utilization at the EUB is also different:
• previously, the intent was to determine P* (or P ), and now the need is to determine P ,
• previously, the determination of AOF for a zone was standard, and now a series of individual completions need flow measurement,
• previously, porosity and permeability were determined from geophysical logs calibrated to core tests, and now the core results are sparse and indicate no reliance on geophysical logs for porosity and permeability,
• previously, data was used for a volumetric reserves calculation based on reservoir engineering, and now there is more application to generate a gas deposit style calculation with gas possibly present in all lithologies,
• previously, there was data collected for separate pools before commingling, and now
commingling occurs between resource types and pools before any data is collected so a new method to split production is required.
The talk will briefly review the reserves calculation method used by the EUB to fulfill its mandate to indicate to the people of Alberta what resource development is possible and what the impacts are. This will be a quick overview of the first points above, but the majority of the presentation will
concentrate on the new process of the last point of determining the production split.
INFORMATION
EPRD noon-hour talks are free and do not require registration. Non-CSPG members are also welcome to attend. Please bring your lunch. If you would like to join our email distribution list, suggest a topic, or volunteer to present a talk, please send a message to Michelle.Hawke@ bp.com
CSPG AWARD
Andrew D. Baillie Award
The Andrew D. Baillie Award has been presented annually since 1991 for the Best Student Oral and Best Student Poster
presentations given at the annual technical conference. The award recognizes excellence in presentation and encourages a high level of technical prowess worthy of Andrew Dollar Baillie. Andrew D. Baillie was an active CSPG member and in particular, an avid supporter of the CSPG Trust, and the educational activities that the CSPG promoted to the student members of the society and the general public in geology.
This year’s Andrew D. Baillie Awards were presented by Greg Lynch, the Society’s Assistant Outreach Director, at the Society Technical Luncheon, held on Tuesday, June 5th, at the Telus Convention Centre.
This year’s conference, the 2007 CSPG/ CSEG Joint Conference, was a twosociety convention with our colleagues in geophysics. John Cody and Mike Perz, the technical committee chairs for the conference, kindly made certain that all the presentations by students were evaluated by session judges and volunteers, and Graham Carter compiled the results.
The winner of the award for Best Student Oral Presentation was Chad Glemser of The University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, for his talk “Investigation of Pore Structure Within the Weyburn Oilfield using Synchrotron Microtomography” with co-authors Tom Kotzer of Canadian Light Source and Chris Hawkes of the University of Saskatchewan.
The winner of the award for Best Student Poster Presentation was Michelle R. Martin of Memorial University of Newfoundland for her poster “New Geoscience Data and Interpretation of the Region Around Bjarni/North Bjarni Field, Hopedale Basin” with her co-author Michael E. Enachescu of Memorial University of Newfoundland.
Greg presented Michelle Martin with her award for Best Student Poster and a cheque from the CSPG for $1,000 to accompany the award. Chad Glemser was unfortunately unable to attend.
Greg Lynch presents Michelle Martin with the Baillie Award for Best Student Poster Presentation.
LET IT FLOW
Convention Award Winners
BEST GEOLOGICAL PAPER
The Role Of Bioturbation in Low Permeability Gas-Charged Reservoirs
George Pemberton*, Murray K. Gringras
BEST GEOLOGICAL POSTER
Successful Wellbore Placement Within a Mannville Coal Seam
Thanos Natras*, I McIlreath, C. Abaco, E. Christiaansed, D. Bourgeois
BEST STUDENT GEOLOGICAL PAPER & ANDREW BAILLIE AWARD
Investigation of Pore Structure within the Weyburn Oilfield using Synchrotron Microtomography
Chad Glemser*, Tom Kotzer, Chris Hawkes
BEST STUDENT GEOLOGICAL POSTER & ANDREW BAILLIE AWARD
New Geoscience Data and Interpretation of
the Region Around Bjarni/North Bjarni Field, Hopedale Basin
Michelle Martin*, Michael E. Enachescu
BEST GEOPHYSICAL PAPER
Anisotropic PP and PSv Prestack Depth Migration of 4C (OBC) Seismic Data, Offshore Trinidad
Tony Johns*, Raul Sarmiento
BEST GEOPHYSICAL POSTER
Using Steerable Filters to map Geological Features from HRAM Data of the Foothills of Northeastern British Columbia, Canada Hassan Hassan*, Robert A. Charters, John W. Peirce
BEST STUDENT GEOPHYSICAL PAPER
Multi-step Auto-Regressive Reconstruction of Nonuniformly Sampled, Aliased Seismic Records
Mostafa Naghizadeh*, M.D. Sacchi
BEST STUDENT GEOPHYSICAL POSTER
Integrated Open-Source Geophysical Processing and Visualization
Glenn Chubak*, Igor B. Morozov, Shannon Blythe
BEST CORE PRESENTATION
Sequence Stratigraphic and Depositional Facies Framework of the Lower Cretaceous McMurray Formation, Kearl Oil Sands Project, Alberta Thomas Nardin*, Joan Carter, Bob Falls, John Irish, Stan Stancliffe, Bogdan Varban, Nancy Wilson, Lidia Zabcic, Lynn Pratt
BEST STUDENT CORE PRESENTATION
Chasing the Elusive Deltas of the Upper Dunvegan Formation: A Practical Sequence Stratigraphic Model Illustrated in Core Michael J. Hay*
BEST INTEGRATED CORE PRESENTATION
Oil Sands Reservoir Characterization: A Case Study at Nexen/Opti Long Lake Laurie Weston Bellman*
HONOURABLE MENTION
The Future of the Global Oil Industry: Resources, Challenges and the Geoscience Workforce
G. Warfield ‘Skip’ Hobbs
Thanos Natras accepts the Award for Best Geological Poster from John Cody.
Laurie Bellman accepts the Award for Best Integrated Core Presentation from John Cody, Annual Convention Technical Programme Co-Chair (CSPG).
CSPG AWARD
President’s Special Recognition Award
The CSPG President’s Special Recognition Award has been presented only a few times in the history of the Society. The award is given to those individuals or organizations who are not members of our profession and yet, through their sustained effort, have brought great honour and distinction to the geoscience community. On Thursday, June 5th, at the CSPG Technical Luncheon at the Telus Convention Centre, the award was presented to Randle Robertson by Colin Yeo, the CSPG President, and Ian McIlreath, Randle’s nominator.
The citation for Randle Robertson’s award reads as follows:
“For outstanding achievement in the promotion and appreciation of Earth and Life Sciences. As Executive Director of the Burgess Shale Geoscience Foundation, he has helped give the Earth a voice though guided hikes, interpretive seminars, teacher workshops, and student research and science programs. The result has been a much greater appreciation by the public of Earth processes and the significance of the evolution of life through mainly the interpretation of the world-renowned fossils preserved in the Burgess Shale.”
Although not a geologist by training, Mr. Robertson has developed a true love of the wonders of earth history, and the processes that have shaped the earth, especially those resulting in the mountains to the west of Calgary. This passion was kindled over 25 years as a Park Warden in Yoho National Park and his many trips out into the back-country. It was during this time he was introduced to the world famous Burgess Shale and to the army of more recent researchers on what has become a World Heritage site. His enthusiasm led in 1989 to founding the Burgess Shale Foundation, which he is still intimately involved with today as its Executive Director. Along the way, there have been many successes and many setbacks but Mr. Robertson displayed two attributes common to all great leaders, vision and perseverance.
Since 1995 over 20,000 people of all ages and from around the world have participated on the Burgess Shale and two other principle hikes. It should be noted that these are the only science-
based hikes in the four western national parks. In addition, public presentations on earth science topics have been made to at least 22,500 people in venues from around campfires to the Jubilee Auditorium and to over 3,000 students from a number of US and Canadian colleges and universities.
Randle Robertson has consistently looked to find new ways to promote earth science education amongst young students and to get earth science taught in our high schools. The Science Education programs organized and run by the Foundation include:
The Burgess Shale High School Research Project – where original student research has been presented at poster sessions at our conventions:
• The High School Earth Science Internship Program;
• Earth Science Professional Development Workshop for High School Science Teachers in Canada and the US;
• Earth Science Curriculum Enhancement Matrix;
• Community Earth Science Education Network and;
• The Kids in Science Program where high school students in Calgary attend our
joint convention to see a day of science and its application, first-hand.
To accomplish all of this, he has convinced a legion of volunteers who share his vision to help. People like Jon Dudley, Clint Tippett, Murray Coppold, Charles Henderson, Paul Johnston, Nat Rutter, Al Fischer, and Jim Murray, to name but a few of the so many geologists who have helped and have become friends along the way.
In summary, Randle Robertson clearly grasps the significance of geology and firmly believes the public should hear the amazing stories that rocks can tell. What started as an interest became a passion that has led to a vision of building a new interpretive center and a related learning/ research facility focused on earth science at Field in Yoho National Park.
Randle thanked the Society for recognizing not only his efforts but those of the many volunteers and staff who have assisted him over the years. He spoke of the role of geoscience education in opening the eyes of our younger generation to the source of all of the resources we so often take for granted. He went on to single out the CSPG as a significant facilitator in that educational process.
Colin Yeo presenting Randle Robertson with the CSPG President’s Special Recognition Award.
100 STUDENT JOBS INITIATIVE
| by Claus Sitzler, P.Geol., Chairman, 100 Student Jobs Initiative, Director, CSPG Educational Trust Fund
The Educational Trust Fund (CSPG Trust) of the CSPG proudly presents another new outreach committee. The “100 student jobs initiative” is another post-secondary initiative to compliment the wildly successful Student Industry Field Trip program. With the rapidly aging geological workforce in the petroleum industry, the CSPG Trust and the CSPG need to be proactive in getting young blood into our profession while there are still mentors around to train them.
“The 100 Student Jobs Initiative” is the newest CSPG outreach committee. The goals of the committee are to 1) help students from across Canada get that all important first summer job and hopefully subsequent summer and full-time jobs, 2) give employers an easy conduit for finding summer students from across Canada without having to travel from University to University through all ten provinces, and 3) promote the CSPG and its activities to both undergraduate and graduate programs across Canada, raising the awareness of all students about the pending shortage of geo-
scientists currently and in the coming years. This will hopefully lead to higher student enrollment in the CSPG membership as well.
The “100 Summer Student Jobs Initiative” wants to simplify the search for student help. I hear all the time from managers that they are interested in hiring summer students but they don’t have the time to try to solicit resumes from schools across the country or they just send their posting to the University of Calgary or University of Alberta. We will again provide a wide selection of resumes from 1st year to graduate-level students for employers to quickly scan through. Within 15-20 minutes, a selection of resumes from across Canada can be identified to start their interview process.
I believe it is important to hire a crosssection of students from across Canada as different schools teach different ways of attacking problems and solving them. Every university’s Petroleum Geology program has a different teaching method based on
the professor’s own personal interests and research. There are 32 Geology programs across Canada, and the “100 Summer Student Jobs Initiative” will help the brightest and best Geological students from across the country get the experience they need.
The outreach program of the CSPG is instrumental in letting Canadian Geological students know that the petroleum industry exists and that we provide very strong competition for jobs with the hard rock and environmental geology sectors. The “100 Summer Student Jobs Initiative” provides a strong value added service for the students and is another good incentive from them to become CSPG student members through their student societies.
Although only getting our resume website up and running in February to March of 2007, we successfully attracted 220 student resumes with very equal representation from all the universities with Geology programs across Canada.
(Continued on page 22...)
We were able to test our web-based resume system and get feedback from the approximately 15-20 employers that reviewed our database. From this feedback, we will be able to provide a substantially improved database for the 2007-08 school year. We also intend to add the ability for employers to post summer jobs, work terms, student-related contract work, and graduated students looking for new jobs on the website. The feedback from the students was extremely positive, as a critical tool to help them get started as a geoscientist.
Though time didn’t permit the set up of training for the six students that were hired through the program this year, the committee hopes to have this part of the program fully functional for May 2008. We think it is important for the students, that we help place, to be able to perform some basic functions when they start their job. Functions like log retrieval and interpretation, the ability to build various types of cross-sections, contouring, basic geological computer system use, and an explanation of the various career options and paths that they can follow as geoscientists.
CANADIAN GAS POTENTIAL COMMITTEE (CGPC)
2010 REPORT - “Natural Gas Potential in Canada”
REPORT COORDINATOR REQUIRED
The Canadian Gas Potential Committee (CGPC) is a volunteer organization established in 1991 to conduct comprehensive, objective, and consistent geoscience-based assessments of the undiscovered natural gas potential of all sedimentary basins in Canada and to publish and distribute the results of this work to those parties interested in Canada’s gas potential. To date, the Committee has published three comprehensive reports (1997, 2001, 2005) on Canada’s gas resource potential and, based on industry and government user feedback, is currently planning and organizing for a fourth report, scheduled for release in 2010. The previous reports, available for sale in hardcopy and digital versions, have been well received by industry, government, and other stakeholders. Most of the organization and volunteers from the 2005 Report remain in place.
To move forward to a fourth report the Committee requires a part-time contract person (Report Coordinator) to work under the supervision of the Chairman of the Business Committee (Robert A. Meneley) and with the volunteer Team Leaders, to coordinate the planning, preparation, and printing of the Committee’s four-volume 2010 Report “Natural Gas Potential in Canada” in hardcopy and DVD versions.
In addition, the Report Coordinator will supervise an Administrative Support personto be hired - to ensure that adequate clerical support is provided, and will direct other contract staff with the Chairman of the Business Committee.
Some of the desired qualifications for the position offered are:
Exploration background and experience in Canadian sedimentary basins
Understand established explorations plays and geological constraints
Interest in resource assessment methodologies
Computer proficiency (MS Office at a minimum)
Strong supervisory, communication and technical report editing skills
Training in modern resource assessment methodology will be available. The position could be attractive to retired geologists, geophysicists and/or geological technicians.
Term: Three years starting in October 2007, subject to annual performance reviews
Time Requirement: Average approximately two days per week over contract term
For additional information on this challenging opportunity please contact: Robert A. Meneley (271-4793, meneley@telus.net) or Ed Petrie (297-7222, cdngaspotential@shaw.ca)
To apply for the part-time position of CGPC Report Coordinator forward your resume and anticipated remuneration to cdngaspotential@shaw.ca. Please be aware that not all respondents to this notice will be contacted for an interview by the Committee.
If these students are given the tools to perform, they can easily create significant value well beyond the salary that is paid to them. Even as simple as reviving a suspended well or a simple uphole completion or workover can add $10,000 - $100,000 in value to your company.
All of us have at least one neglected pool or play concept that deserves some attention. Summer students have the ability to take these neglected pools and try to find the hidden value. They will make a difference to your bottom line!
The “100 Summer Student Jobs Initiative” committee needs more volunteers. Committee positions are available for 1) soliciting employers, 2) setting up a training program, 3) Database management, and 4) Student liaison. Soliciting employers involves identifying and corresponding with potential employers, educating them about the program, and finding out how we can best help them find the summer student they need. Setting up the training program would involve finding creative new training tools for students and working with existing SIFT outreach programs to set up a specific “100 Summer Student Jobs Initiative” training program. Database management requires a person good with spreadsheets to keep the database current and having an updated copy in potential employers’ hands. It would also involve posting job requests onto the website in conjunction with the CSPG website guru. The students in the resume database need to be queried once a month as to whether they are still interested in having their resumes posted. This keeps the database current for the employers, as it is very frustrating to find an interesting resume and to call and find out that the student is not available anymore. The student liaison position involves keeping the interested students up to date of new postings and answering their questions when they have them. This person would also be involved in keeping the students resumes current and possibly provide resume assistance to the students. If you are interested in any of these positions or want more information, please contact Claus Sitzler at 100studentjobs@ cspg.org.
We are excited about the coming school year and look forward to getting lots of student resumes and posting lots of jobs for potential employers onto the website. (...Continued
for our future
CLIMATE CHANGE: Global Challenge, Business Opportunity
| by Clive Mather, President and Chief Executive Officer, Shell Canada Limited
(Originally presented as the Keynote Address at the “The Flow of Business I: Carbon and Energy Management” session during the 2007 CSPG CSEG Annual Convention; Calgary, Alberta; May 14, 2007)
Geo is probably a more popular prefix these days than it has ever been – commentators and journalists routinely use it to underline their global perspective. Geopolitical, geocentric, geospatial, geo-anything. At first school, I learned that the earth was round; later I was told it was not really round because the poles were squashed like an orange. At university, I learned that the technical name for this is an oblate spheroid, and later still I heard on the radio that our planet is actually a geoid. I looked it up: it means, “earth-shaped.” So for all you earth-shaped people, thanks for having me. Geologists and geophysicists: two great disciplines, two remarkable careers – and sometimes too jolly expensive?
I recall the exploration manager who drilled a series of abandoned wells in West Africa at horrendous cost and, apart from the intellectual fascination that dry holes have for subsurface scientists, of no use to anyone. Eventually, he came to the general manager and offered his resignation. It was refused point blank. His boss said, “This was the costliest training program I have ever paid for. I’m not having you take all that learning to the competition!”
And so it is – patience, perseverance, professionalism, or just pig-headedness – but one way or another we carry on and the
results do come. Techniques and technologies improve every year and, despite the increasing challenge of finding conventional resources, we continue to justify exploration budgets, not least here in Canada. Of course I have a dream that one day we won’t need to drill expensive wells to determine structures and scale – that is, we shall know from modeling in the office through advanced seismic – but that Holy Grail is still elusive.
Does this all matter? You bet it does! Energy is at the heart of modern civilization, it’s the core of sustainable development and it’s at the centre of how we address climate change and other systemic environmental issues.
The energy challenge is a worthy test for everyone in this conference and many more besides. If we address it and pass, then we can look forward to a future where mankind continues to enjoy the fruits and fullness of the natural world as we know it today. If we don’t address it or we fail, we face an uncertain future, where nature will compensate for the excesses of man’s impact on our fragile planet. We can see some of the possibilities already. There may be some upsides, like shorter winters in Calgary and enough sunshine in my native England to grow grapes and make half decent wine – unthinkable in my childhood. But there will be more downsides: remorseless desertification, wilder weather patterns, water shortages in some areas, floods in others, melting ice caps, loss of biodiversity. It sounds alarmist, but it is happening already and is predicted to intensify.
Now, energy is not the only issue here, nor the only solution. Population growth, agriculture, changing land use, fishing, etc., are all vitally important. But I want to spend just a few minutes thinking about energy.
The world’s appetite for energy is undiminished and indeed it must grow as populations increase and developing nations aspire to modern economies. China and India are the two biggest and most quoted examples, but Indonesia, Eastern Europe, and South America also represent huge populations with large aspirations.
New fuels like wind, biomass, ethanol, hydrogen, and solar get a lot of publicity. The reality is that it will take a long time for these alternatives to penetrate the market
to make a difference. Solar, wind, and hydro already make a contribution to the world’s energy supply but their combined impact is very small. It will take massive public policy support and consumer behavior changes to bring them to levels that would have a significant impact on total supply. And what of nuclear? It’s often touted as the get-outof-jail card if GHG emissions need to be attacked big-time quickly. Indeed, it produces minimal CO2 but it has other issues and is a hard political sell. So the general conclusion is that hydrocarbons – gas, oil, and coal – are going to remain the main provider for several decades to come. The issue will not be availability or affordability. The resources are there, not least in Canada, which boasts extraordinary conventional and increasingly unconventional deposits. Even at today’s prices, the economic incentive to produce them is very strong. No, the issue will be acceptability and especially the impact on our land, water, and air.
A few years ago, most of us probably thought the idea of climate change was interesting, but hardly gripping. How life – or politics – changes, especially here in Canada. Today, we live in a different world where at federal and provincial levels, environmental issues currently take centre stage. The same is true in Europe, where the European Union has just committed itself to Phase 2 of Kyoto. Americans too are pressuring Bush to take the issue of greenhouse gas emissions more seriously. And from what I read of the environmental impact of China’s economic revolution, they too are becoming increasingly concerned at deteriorating air, water, and soil quality.
My career in the oil and gas industry is coming to an end after 38 years. And you know, my generation may be the luckiest ever. No conscription to fight in world wars, a rising standard of living,, and the freedom to explore and enjoy this beautiful planet earth. My son belongs of course to another generation and one that is adept at finding cheap deals on the web. From his laptop, he can book a flight for as little as a few dollars. My satisfaction that he can enjoy a gap year before university from his savings rather than mine is tempered by my concern about the larger question of whether the “real cost” of air travel is captured in the price of the ticket. Who is responsible for the CO2 generated by (Continued on page 24...)
(...Continued from page 23)
more and more aircraft flying more and more often? Is it government or business or is it us as individual consumers?
The same applies to heating, air conditioning, road travel, sport, moving vast quantities of bottled water around the world to satisfy some consumer desire that is beyond me, fresh strawberries in your local supermarket 365 days a year, and so on. My central point is that whatever and wherever the demand for energy, let’s stop the finger-pointing and accept that we are in this together. Only by all sharing responsibility for action will we make a difference.
The issue of climate change was recognized in Shell Canada more than a decade ago. The company adopted a commitment to sustainable development as an overarching corporate goal and set public voluntary targets to reduce its GHG emissions. Shell Canada was not alone in this, but has certainly always tried to play a leadership role. Like many of you, I have watched Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth. Well, the truth is that I have seen enough evidence of melting ice caps and growing deserts to understand the problem. What grips me is the question, “So what are we going to do?”
Let’s start with business, which has a key role in developing new technology to help reduce energy needs and emissions. Two months ago, Shell sponsored an address to the Economics Club of Toronto by Sir Nicholas Stern, former Chief Economist of the World Bank. He makes the point in his 2007 book, The Economics of Climate Change, that the scientific evidence is now overwhelming: climate change presents very serious global risks and it demands an urgent global response. And as an economist – not an environmentalist, politician, or other activist – he argues powerfully that the benefits of strong, early action on climate change outweigh the costs. In other words, pay now or pay much more later. If we take action now, it’ll cost us a dollar, but if we wait, it’ll cost us four.
I agree with Stern and I agree with Gore, but I humbly suggest both are short on solutions. So let’s try to fill some of the gaps they conveniently leave. How do we:
• Take carbon out of the atmosphere?
• Reduce the carbon emissions of existing mainstream fuels?
• Promote the development of lower carbon or new greener, renewable fuels?
• Build a coalition of change that will ensure all the forces available work in alignment to address climate change?
Innovation through competition is what the private sector does best, so it won’t surprise you that I am a big proponent of technology as a key lever we can pull. Some of it – like extracting CO2 from the upper atmosphere – is still very tentative. Others, like wind and solar power, are already being deployed. In Shell Canada, we are tracking and supporting many technologies, but let me flag a few that have particular interest because of their relevance to Alberta and to our major operations here.
The first of these is carbon capture and storage. The technologies are expensive and challenging but the concept is simple: you capture CO2 emissions from factories and plants, compress it and pump it underground into old oil and gas reservoirs. For several years, we have been developing a project that could channel CO2 from our Scotford Upgrader to depleting oil fields where it would be used to enhance oil recovery. We continue to work with industry and governments to establish a common infrastructure and an economic environment for this project. It’s not easy – and it’s not economic – especially as a retrofit, but if we can do it, I predict three outcomes: we’ll make significant reductions in GHG emissions, we’ll learn a lot, and we will have a unique opportunity to position Canada as a potential exporter of the technology.
And then there’s cellulosic ethanol, which turns waste straw left after the harvest into ethanol as a fuel. This second-generation ethanol technology is attractive because the waste straw itself produces no net carbon and the overall carbon lifecycle emissions are reduced by 90 per cent. The fuel has strong environmental credentials and there is no issue of diverting a food crop into fuel. Shell has a significant stake in the Canadian company Iogen Energy, which already has a pilot plant in production in Ottawa and a commercial-scale facility planned.
As for energy efficiency, we’ve been at this for years and always will be, as it makes a compelling business and environmental case. One example: our warm water loop at Sarnia extracts heat from water already circulating in various parts of the refinery. The design of this initiative recovers enough energy to reduce projected GHG emissions by 10,000 tonnes.
A second example: we announced last year the first commercial application of a new froth treatment technology to improve energy efficiency in the oil sands extraction process. Developed by Shell Canada with the help of Natural Resources Canada scientists at Devon, Alberta, Shell Enhance
uses high temperatures to more efficiently remove sand, fine clay particles, and other impurities from oil sands froth. With this new technology, we expect to use 10 per cent less water and 10 per cent less energy per barrel of bitumen than conventional low temperature processing. And from this improvement alone, we expect to reduce GHG emissions by up to 40,000 tonnes per year.
And we continue to explore many innovative technologies that will demonstrate our commitment to action – like gasification of the heaviest bitumen molecules, which could represent a better environmental solution for asphaltenes and geothermal energy to heat and cool our buildings. We are planning to run a trial at our Calgary Research Centre this year.
Today, thinking differently about any business means gazing at it through a lens of sustainability. Let’s take sulphur: we are a major producer and marketer of sulphur from our oil sands and Foothills gas businesses. Through research and development, we have discovered some neat ways to offset carbon. In China, pyrite is roasted to extract sulphur to produce sulphuric acid; we acquired the technology to convert pyrite roasters to sulphur burners, which are more energy efficient and will reduce GHG emissions. We now incorporate sulphur in our asphalt, which means less use of bitumen, improved road performance, and lower GHG emissions. Shell Canada has also developed and patented a technology to produce sulphur-enhanced fertilizer. This can increase soil carbon sequestration while reducing nitrous oxide emissions. We’re working with fertilizer companies to further develop this technology.
All these are good practical technologies related to our business, which would contribute to Canada’s greenhouse gas management and reduction. But as standalone commercial investments, few are robustly economic – indeed some are very marginal. Alternative energy and carbon sequestration in particular require huge investments, especially in new infrastructure. Current rates of return make incentive for such investment low, and we cannot expect the market to stimulate necessary cash flow. It will take government action to make projects like this happen.
They need encouragement to get off the ground – which brings me to the role of government and the need for sound public policy. If Canada is to reduce its own emissions and seize the opportunity to position itself as a leading exporter of
environmental technology, public policy must stimulate action on many fronts, not least of which is technology development. The federal government’s new technology fund is a good start but it needs to be bigger and better. We need a realistic cost of carbon and the opportunity to build up substantial funds able to support the cost of carbon capture and other game-changing technologies.
Another opportunity for government is to ensure regulations require carbon management to be captured in the design phase of any new operation, building, or process – whether these are power stations, factories, hotels, shops, offices, or homes. Retro-fitting is very expensive and not a good use of scarce funds available for investment.
We also need to increase public awareness of environmental issues and the implications for individuals. Our strategy in Shell Canada is to focus on youth. I have personally taken this message to post-secondary students across Canada. The next generation is certainly receptive and can play a special role in educating us ‘baby boomers.’ We may tune out when politicians and environmentalists start preaching, but we will listen to our son or daughter. We must recognize the cumulative impact of our combined activities – that consumer-driven activities contribute 80 per cent of Canada’s carbon emissions while business amounts to 20 per cent of that total.
The simple fact is that each of us must get involved if we are to tackle climate change effectively. We need to take personal responsibility for our own carbon footprint – the impact of our energy usage, travel and waste. We must stop talking about “the” environment as if it were some remote concept and start taking action to protect “our” environment. And yes, that means you and me.
None of this is easy. The policy, the technology, the changes in individual behaviour – but is there an opportunity for business? Well, there is certainly a challenge if an individual company gets ahead of its competitors with a major uneconomic investment. Its financial performance would suffer and so would its attractiveness to investors. But I think there are real opportunities too. At the most obvious level, any improvement in energy efficiency goes straight to the bottom line. Cutting energy bills makes good business sense. Sound public policy will directly favour those companies whose emissions reduction programs are the most successful – avoiding penalties or gaining investment credits. Emissions trading schemes will indirectly
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allow efficient companies to trade in financial markets and improve their cash flows versus weaker or inefficient competitors. With good communications, those efficient companies should be able to improve their reputation and gain market share amongst consumers.
It won’t be easy and it won’t be guaranteed. But the business incentive is clear and over time could become compelling.
All change is testing, but especially when it involves cost and risk. The key will be
leadership – from you and me, from politicians, civil servants, regulators, and investors. Shell has tried to play this role in Canada for many years, pioneering emissions targets and public reporting. In our view, we’re long past the time for doomsday pronouncements, no matter how entertaining – it’s time for industry to take action. Our best bet is to use our technological know-how to make that happen.
But it takes three to tango: government, business, and consumers. We need sound public policy, new technology, and personal
CANADIAN GAS POTENTIAL COMMITTEE (CGPC)
2010
REPORT - “Natural Gas Potential in Canada”
VOLUNTEERS REQUIRED
The Canadian Gas Potential Committee (CGPC) is a volunteer organization established in 1991 to conduct comprehensive and objective geosciencebased assessments of the undiscovered natural gas potential of all sedimentary basins in Canada and to publish and distribute the results to those parties interested in Canada’s gas potential.
To date the Committee has published three comprehensive reports (1997, 2001, 2005) on Canada’s gas resource potential and, based on industry and government user feedback, is currently planning and organizing for a fourth report, scheduled for release in 2010. The previous reports, available for sale in hardcopy and digital versions, have been well received by industry, government and other stakeholders.
To prepare the fourth report, the Committee requires additional Play Group leaders and general volunteers to assist in the resource assessment of established exploration plays in the WCSB under Team Leader Scott Oldale.
Some of the desired prerequisites are:
Exploration experience in the WCSB
Understand explorations plays and geological constraints
Interest in assessment methodologies
Report writing and editing skills
Computer proficiency
Training in modern resource assessment methodology used by the Committee will be available to all interested volunteers.
For additional information on this volunteer opportunity please contact : Scott Oldale (770-1872, soldale@seaviewenergy.com)
Robert A. Meneley (271-4793, meneley@telus.net) or Ed Petrie (297-7222, cdngaspotential@shaw.ca)
action to preserve the diversity and beauty of Canada for generations to come.
I started with a little teasing about geocareers. Let me end by saying how much I respect geologists and geophysicists, both for the enormous benefit they have brought to modern civilization and the extraordinary technical progress they have made over my career. It’s that progress which gives me confidence that we can address the environmental challenges ahead. But it is time to get started.
REFERENCES:
1. Gore, Al. (2006.) An Inconvenient Truth. DVD
2. Stern, Nicholas. (2007.) The Economics of Climate Change: The Stern Review. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
INFORMATION
Clive Mather was appointed President and CEO of Shell Canada Limited effective August 1, 2004. Shell Canada Limited is a large integrated petroleum company in Canada with three major businesses. Exploration & Production explores for, produces, and markets natural gas and natural gas liquids. Oil Sands is responsible for an integrated bitumen mining and upgrading operation in the Athabasca area of Alberta and Shell Canada’s Peace River in situ bitumen business. Oil Products manufactures, distributes, and markets refined petroleum products across Canada.
Clive’s career of 38 years with Shell has spanned all of its major businesses, including assignments in Brunei, Gabon, South Africa, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. His last position was Chairman of Shell U.K. Limited, based in London.
Clive is a prominent business leader, who writes and speaks internationally on business, leadership, and corporate social responsibility (CSR). He was chairman of the U.K. Government/Industry CSR Academy and currently serves on the board of directors of the C.D. Howe Institute in Canada. Clive is a trustee of the Royal Anniversary Trust and an advisory board member of the Relationships Foundation, both in the United Kingdom. He was a director of Placer Dome Inc. until its takeover in January 2006. He has previously held many public appointments in the United Kingdom including commissioner for the Equal Opportunities Commission, deputy chairman of the Windsor Leadership Trust, chairman of the Petroleum Employer’s Council, and chairman of the Lambeth Education Action Zone. He has also been chairman of the IMD Business Advisory Council in Switzerland.
Alberta’s Professional Geoscientists and Engineers provide Albertans with many of the essentials of daily living. The work that they do allows all of us to enjoy warmth, light, power, water and the ability to travel and communicate over distance.
Since 1920, Members of APEGGA, The Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists and Geophysicists of Alberta, have made a difference in the daily lives of millions of Albertans by bringing science and innovation to life.
The P.Geol., P.Geoph., P.Eng., and R.P.T. professional designations represent the highest standards of quality, professionalism and ethics in geoscience and engineering. APEGGA Members can take pride in the role they play and the contribution they make to Alberta. APEGGA and its over 47,000 Members are committed to public safety and wellbeing through the self-regulation of the geoscience and engineering professions in Alberta.
• Carbonate Depositional Systems, Diagenesis and Porosity Development
• Quick Guide to Carbonate Well Log Analysis
• Seismic Imaging of Carbonate Reservoirs
• Seismic Interpretation n the Exploration Domain
• Understanding Seismic Anisotropy in Exploration and Exploitation
• 3D Seismic Attributes for Prospect Identification and Reservoir Characterization
• AVO/Seismic Lithology
• Evaluating Seals & Pay
• Risk Analysis in Stratigraphic Traps
• Geochemical Exploration for Strat Traps
HOSTED BY THE NORRIS CONFERENCE CENTER 9999 RICHMOND AVE., SUITE 102 HOUSTON, TX 77042
713-780-9300; FAX: 713-780-9490 SPECIAL AAPG GROUP RATES AT NEARBY HOTELS!
Tuition for the week is only $1295 for AAPG Members or $1395 for Non-members* or $325/day for individual courses
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For more info or to register call +1 918 560-2650 email: educate@aapg.org or visit www.aapg.org/fec/ More science than you can shake a pick at.
RESOURCE ASSESSMENT and GIS
| by Ben McKenzie
This is the sixth of a series of articles discussing oil and gas resource assessment.
RESOURCE ASSESSMENT
As mentioned previously, resource assessments have been carried out by a number of agencies over the years. Some notable publications include the Geological Survey of Canada’s 1987 Paper 87-26 –Conventional Oil Resources of Western Canada, as well as a series of bulletins on gas resources broken out by different stratigraphic intervals (e.g., Bulletin 517 – Mannville Gas Resources of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin); the EUB’s 1992 Report 92A – Ultimate Potential and Supply of Natural Gas in Alberta, and the EUB / NEB 2005 joint update – Alberta’s Ultimate Potential for Conventional Natural Gas; and the three reports issued by the Canadian Gas Potential Committee (e.g., Natural Gas Potential in Canada 2005, Volumes 1-4).
The basic data used in these assessments are the reserves files developed and maintained by the various government agencies charged with oil and gas regulation. In the course of petroleum exploration and development, hundreds of wells are drilled each month in Canada. The successful wells are analyzed to determine size of reserves, producing formations, and reservoir parameters. This information is then aggregated by pool and forms the basis for the government reserves files. Assessment of the reserves files are augmented by non-aggregated well data, which provide additional information on drilling and discovery histories, as well as proprietary geological and geophysical data.
Individual pools are identified and defined from the geological and engineering data derived from well control. By definition, a pool is a discrete geological entity; however, any number of individual pools may be combined to form a field. Although the pools combined this way may be related due to similar geological characteristics and geographic location, designation of a field (in Canada) is largely done for administrative purposes. For assessment purposes, the pools are grouped into plays based on geological mapping. A generally valid assumption in resource assessment is that pool sizes (i.e., hydrocarbons in place) form a statistical population that is distributed lognormally. Gaps in the distribution aid in the estimation of the number and size of undiscovered pools.
Although assessments to determine estimates of both oil and gas resources are necessary for long-term planning by both public and private organizations, natural gas has been focused on – both in Canada and elsewhere – because of two primary reasons. First, natural gas is a preferred fuel from an environmental and engineering standpoint – it is cleaner and easier to use than any of the alternative major energy
sources. Second, because it is a gas, it requires a significant amount of advance planning and capital to develop and bring to market. While coal or oil may be shipped overland from remote sites via truck, rail, or pipeline, gas is largely limited to transportation from wellhead to market by pipeline only.
(Continued on page 30...)
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Resource assessments are not typically concerned with specific locations. Their goal is to predict undiscovered resources by analyzing discovered pools. In a roundabout way, location information is used to determine whether or not there is room for additional discoveries. For example, if reservoir parameters for a particular play type indicate a minimum size for an undiscovered pool, then that size has to be possible in the play area defined, e.g., a four-square-mile pool cannot be possible if there are no gaps that size in the existing well control. (However, it is important to remember that significant pools can be overlooked, even with fairly tight well control.)
Location coordinates are vital in resource assessments using geographical information systems. While it would seem obvious that a pool’s location should be easily obtained, that is not the case in practice. The first issue is what type of location to use –geographic center of the pool, average lat/ lon derived from the individual wells in the pool, first well in the pool, etc. Government reserves files usually provide some sort of pool location. This is typically some form or portion of an unique well identifier (UWI). This is assumed to be the first well for the pool. However, identifying the discovery well can be difficult in that many pools are found by re-evaluating old wells for by-passed pay zones. Thus, a pool may have been drilled through in search of other targets but not recognized or, if recognized, not exploited because of low economic potential or engineering issues at the time. Also, pools (the geological entity) might cross field boundaries (the administrative entity) and not be recognized as being a single reservoir until a significant number of later wells have been drilled (Figure 1). As
another example, in the Alberta oil reserves file, location information is given only for fields and only at a township/range/meridian level. Thus, in Figure 1, all the pools would have the same location.
Reserve parameters identified from the government reserves files provide much of the information needed for resource assessments; however, individual well data is also important. Well data is updated more frequently than the reserves files (daily, weekly, or monthly vs. yearly) and so may give early indications of new pools. It would seem obvious that identifying the wells belonging to a particular pool should be easy to do. However, in addition to geological complexities, the government files were started decades ago and had to deal with the limitations of early computer hardware and software as well as the pool revisions that come with continued drilling results. While the petroleum industry in Canada has the best access to data in the world, there is still the need to massage the data in order for it to be useable.
Another use for the individual well data is the determination of drilling density in a play. The unique well identifier (UWI) system actually tracks well events rather than individual locations. For that reason, a single x-y location (i.e., a single hole in the ground) may have several UWIs attached to it, indicating the different zones completed. Each location can be classed according to the deepest stratigraphic zone penetrated, which aids in estimating the undrilled area in any particular play and, thus, the play’s potential room to grow.
Reserves data will typically consist of estimated in-place reserves; recoverable reserves; reservoir parameters such as porosity, area, and net pay; etc. As
mentioned previously, the government reserves files are aggregated summaries of information derived from analysis of individual wells. By definition, reserves only exist if the hydrocarbons are economically and technically recoverable in a given timeframe. Thus, reserve numbers will always reflect a limited set of the total resources that exist. For example, a reservoir may be essentially 100% saturated with hydrocarbons but will always have some minimum porosity below which they are not technically or economically producible. This affects maps produced from reserves data in that there are lower limits not captured in those files.
Another issue with reserves files is that typically they identify a pool’s averaged values by a single location. In the Alberta gas reserves file (for example), this location is usually the discovery well. Since a large number of gas pools are one-well events, this is not an issue. However, if the pool is areally extensive, the location may not reflect the true distribution of the parameters. Figure 2 shows a hypothetical case where a porosity map generated from reserve data would suggest that reservoir quality is increasing to the northwest while the well data would show it improving to the southeast. Thus, maps generated strictly from reserves data will be incomplete at best and potentially misleading.
In addition to the reserves data, two other major datasets need to be considered in resource assessments. The well control (Figure 3) and seismic control (Figure 4) can be used to estimate undeveloped potential in an area. While both of these maps appear from the regional view to have completely covered all available land, a more detailed map (Figure 5) shows that there are large
(Continued on page 32...)
Figure 2. Map differences between aggregated (pool) and disaggregated (well) data
Figure 1. Multi-field-pool situation. Additional drilling shows that pools A-A, A-C, and B-A are all part of the same pool.
(...Continued from page 30)
areas of little or no data. This has more importance in light of the fact that most pools being discovered today are less than a section (square mile) in size.
Another point to consider when using existing seismic and well control in assessments is the validity of that data. Petroleum exploration has been going on for many decades. Drilling, logging, completion, and seismic technologies have evolved considerably over that time. Much of the data acquired prior to the 1970s is of limited use because the methods used lacked resolution and because technology to better evaluate the data did not exist then. This is of particular importance when considering seismic coverage. From personal observation, I would suggest that probably 25-50% of older seismic data is of marginal value in identifying oil and gas pools in the vicinity of the seismic lines simply from a data quality standpoint. This may be because of poor original acquisition practices in the field, the result of focusing on a particular
stratigraphic interval to the detriment of other intervals, how the seismic line is oriented relative to the pool shape, etc. As well, there are many ways in which seismic data can lead to interpretations which are inconclusive or wrong. In addition to misinterpretation as to what a seismic anomaly might indicate, there is the issue that the basic seismic data is subjected to a variety of mathematical manipulations before it gets to the interpreter. These processing parameters are based on “best guess” or regional averages, which may radically differ from the actual values locally. The consequences of incorrect seismic interpretation are significant. It has been estimated that seismic will incorrectly support an uneconomic prospect 37% of the time and, conversely, will not support an economic prospect 27% of the time (Abriel 2005). Another comment is that rarely is the complete stratigraphic interval evaluated during seismic interpretation. Typically, the interpreter is focused on only a small section of the data – partly due to time constraints, partly due to data constraints, and partly due to mineral
rights ownership constraints.
Likewise, well control may seem ample for determining a precise resource value in any particular area, but there are limitations to its quality also. In addition to the older wells which were logged with incomplete or poor quality log suites, many modern wells can suffer from the same problems. As an example, once a pool is discovered and generally delineated by drilling, the further development of that pool may have a large number of wells drilled that have a minimal suite of logs run and frequently the purpose of those logs is only to locate the currently producing zone. These production logs are of little value in identifying new zones that may exist within the pool boundaries.
To be continued…
REFERENCES : Abriel, W. L. (2005). Geophysical Uncertainty: Often Wrong, But Never in Doubt, AAPG Search and Discovery Article #40182.
Figure 4. Regional seismic coverage (red = 2D seismic data, green = 3D seismic data)(data from Accumap).
Figure 3. Wells drilled for oil and gas (data from Accumap).
Figure 5. Detailed example of well and seismic coverage (red lines are 2D and green lines are 3D seismic coverage). As a hypothetical question, how many ½-sectionsized pools could be missed given this degree of well and seismic coverage (data from Accumap)?
UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY
AAPG Student Chapter Trip to Long Beach
| by Mark Radomski, 2006 -2007 University of Calgary AAPG Student Chapter President
Over the course of the 2006-2007 academic year students from the University of Calgary’s AAPG Student Chapter planned and fundraised for a trip to the annual convention of CSPG’s affiliated organization, the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG), which was held April 1 to 4th, 2007. All the planning and work paid off when twelve students flew down to Long Beach, California and participated in what would become an educational and fun-filled week.
Prior to the start of the conference the student chapter went on a fieldtrip led by Dr. Morgan Sullivan of Chevron (Houston) and Dr. Stephen Hubbard of the University of Calgary. The group visited the famous Capistrano Formation outcrop located at San Clemente State Beach. There we explored the wave-cut bluffs along the beach while discussing the geometry and reservoir architecture of the submarine channels and slope turbidite deposits so easily visible at this location. It was a gorgeous warm sunny day in Southern California, made even more enjoyable by the news that back home in Calgary it was -5 degrees Celsius and snowing.
After the fieldtrip, the conference commenced and students were busy running from presentation to presentation during the day, taking full advantage of the exciting technical program. Evenings were spent unwinding at the Student Chapter Banquet put on by the AAPG, Halliburton reception, and Saudi Aramco reception
held inside the Long Beach Aquarium. Allin-all it was a great conference and much networking and learning was experienced by all.
The University of Calgary AAPG Student Chapter hopes to make a trip to the AAPG Annual Convention an annual event. We would like to thank Dr. Morgan Sullivan for leading our fieldtrip and all of our industry sponsors in Calgary whom made this event happen – they include: BP Canada, Chevron Canada, CNRL, EnCana, Imperial Oil, and Talisman Energy Inc. All of us students really do appreciate your support!
Dr. Morgan Sullivan and Dr. Stephen Hubbard discuss slope processes beneath the submarine channel exposure
Group photo of the U of C AAPG Student Chapter at San Clemente State Beach
2008 INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF PLANET EARTH
The International Year of Planet Earth – 2008 - provides an unparalleled opportunity to publicize and celebrate the contributions made by earth science and earth scientists to our society on a global scale. In conjunction with IUGS, UNESCO, and more than 60 countries worldwide, Canada will be a major participant in the Year of Planet Earth. We plan to speak to Canadians regarding the major roles that the earth sciences have played and will play in the past and future development of our nation.
In the earth science world, Canada is unique. We are endowed with major petroleum, coal, metal, mineral, and water resources. Resource extraction accounts for the largest component of our national GDP, representing one of the highest ratios among the industrialized nations. At the same time, we are strong and committed environmental stewards. Canada’s earth scientists explore and develop responsibly – and we conduct leading edge research on geohazards, climate change, palaeontology, and other important earth issues.
Canada’s IYPE Theme: WHERE on Earth? WHERE in Canada?
WHERE is the acronym for Water, Hazards, Energy, Resources and the Environment.
These fi ve key earth science themes will be featured in a mix of highly visible projects from the national to local level. Individual projects will be directed towards three principal goals:
OUTREACH
• Increase public awareness of the broad scope of earth sciences through a variety of outreach programs. Special emphasis will be directed towards our youth, encouraging them to consider pursuing a career in the earth sciences.
INDUSTRY IMAGE
• Use various media to demonstrate that Canada’s resource extraction industry follows clean, environmentally responsible practices. Plans include showcasing the high-tech nature of the industry, plus leading edge environmental protection and remediation projects.
GEOSCIENCE RESEARCH
• Identify mechanisms for funding programs of research excellence in the earth sciences.
Get Involved . . . Get Ready!
Earth Scientists contribute a lot more to the well-being of humanity and our ongoing survival on this planet than almost everyone realizes. IYPE provides the perfect opportunity to “blow our own horn,” while creating an outreach legacy.
So, please get ready and get involved! Be a sponsor. Be a volunteer. Propose a project.
For further information, visit our websites at: www.iypecanada.org or www.esfs.org.
CSPG VOLUNTEER PROFILE
Talking to Bill Ayrton
| by Heather Tyminski
When I decided to start profiling CSPG volunteers, it did not take me long to decide which volunteer I wanted to profile first. I wanted someone who has volunteered for many years and has helped sculpt the CSPG. I wanted to talk to Bill Ayrton.
Bill Ayrton, president and founder of Ayrton Exploration Consulting Ltd, has volunteered for the CSPG over the last 40 years. He was involved in marketing The Geological History of Western Canada (1964), he was Assistant Editor for the Bulletin of Canadian Petroleum Geology, he was the Vice-President (1975) and President (1976) of the Society, he was Co-Chair of the first joint CSPGCSEG Convention in 1975 and negotiated the profit-sharing agreement bringing the 1982 AAPG-CSPG Convention to Calgary. Ayrton also chaired the CSPG Advantage Training Program (1996), to name some of his volunteer roles.
Ayrton has been an influential force to the CSPG as a volunteer. For example, he is sometimes referred to as “Father SIFT” because he founded the Student Industry Field Trip in 1976. Before SIFT began, on a recruiting trip to the Maritimes, he noticed that university students from Eastern Canada knew so little about the Canadian Rockies that he thought there should be a program that brings students to Western Canada. A SIFT committee was formed and it raised $350,000 for this four-day field trip for students, which has evolved into a two-week experience that now includes lectures, field trips to the Rocky Mountains, a fly-over of the Rocky Mountains, a rig tour, and potential
employment opportunities. The original SIFT fund has now grown into the Educational Trust Fund. Because Ayrton has created such an important program, which has thrived over the last 30 years, he has had a central role in the CSPG’s growth.
When one volunteers for as many years as Ayrton, there is a large pool of memories. But when I asked him if any moment stood out, he immediately thought of SIFT: “Every May, watching a new group of SIFT students grasp the geology of the Western Sedimentary Basin. This is something I started 30 years ago, and students are still coming out. They come knowing nothing about geology and they leave as pros.”
He also reminisces on his role as the CSPGCSEG Convention Co-Chair: “Because the Convention Centre was just being built, we were planning the convention in the midst of construction…[Then] the weekend before the convention was to open, the basement of the Convention Centre flooded.” The carpet was replaced by the beginning of the convention, and Ayrton was given an unforgettable convention experience.
Though Ayrton does not have a specific volunteer committee position today, he continues to volunteer for the CSPG. Furthering his role in the Outreach Program, Ayrton was recently involved with publishing a poster he had created, entitled “The Mountains, The Rocks, The Oil & Gas;” this poster (which can be purchased at the CSPG Bookstore) is an overview of the geology in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, and it works as an introduction to those who would like to learn more about our geology. Ayrton may not have a specific role, but that does not prevent him from volunteering for the CSPG.
When asked why he began volunteering, his response was instantaneous: “I recognized as soon as I joined the Oil Patch in 1963 what a great volunteer-based organization the CSPG was, and I wanted to be a part of it.” But he has continued to volunteer because of the impact he realized he can make: “One of the things I’ve enjoyed the most is turning my ideas into action.” Ayrton certainly has many great ideas, as David Middleton once said, “Bill Ayrton has more ideas than a cat has kittens.” Implementing his ideas is central to Ayrton, and some of his ideas that are now a
part of the CSPG are the Tracks Award and the Manual of Operations. He also recently proposed the 100 Student Jobs Initiative because “we need to attract students to the Oil and Gas Industry.” Not only has Ayrton had many ideas, but these ideas are now an important part of the CSPG.
Volunteering for the CSPG is crucial to Ayrton, as he has given over 40 years to the society. As a result, he encourages others to volunteer: “Do get involved in some aspect of the CSPG that interests you. You will meet some great people and make some valuable contacts. You will get a lot of satisfaction by being part of a dynamic organization that can offer so much to geologists throughout their careers.” He hopes people continue to donate their time, as he remarks that government donations cannot always be found for all the programs that the CSPG runs and members enjoy.
Bill Ayrton is an innovator, a leader, and a role model. Thank you, Bill Ayrton, for all you have done for the CSPG.
CSPG Trust
Geoscientists for our future
CANADIAN SOCIETY OF PETROLEUM GEOLOGISTS CALL FOR NOMINATIONS 2008 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
In accordance with Article VI,subparagraph (a) of the By-Laws,the Nominating Committee hereby calls for Nominations to Stand for Election to the 2008 Executive Committee of the Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists.
Nominations can be made in two ways:
1) Formal Nominations are to be made in writing,signed by at least twenty-five members in good standing and endorsed by the nominee who is consenting to stand for office.Candidates nominated in this fashion will automatically be added to the Nomination Slate.Nominations should be forwarded to the CSPG office by September 15,2007.The slate of candidates will be published in the November Reservoir and the election will take place on December 13,2007
2) Informal Nominations can be made via email or letter;please confirm that the nominee is willing to stand for the office of choice and send to CSPG Office to the attention of the Past President.Candidates nominated in this fashion will be considered for addition to the Nomination Slate by the Nominations Committee.
The following vacancies exist for 2008:
• Vice President• Assistant Finance Director• Assistant Program Diretor
• Assistant Services Director• Assistant Outreach Director• Assistant Communications Director
Successful candidates for the Directorships will serve two-year terms and the elected Vice President,a third one-year term as Past President.Interested parties should contact the office for details and general requirements of service on the Executive.
STAR-STUDDED 2007 GUSSOW
Conference on Arctic Energy Exploration will leave no one cold
| by Benoit Beauchamp, Executive Director, Arctic Institute of North America and Gerry Reinson, Geological Consultant
Earlier this summer, Imperial Oil and Exxon Mobil Canada made the headlines by jointly bidding $585 million for an exploration license in the Beaufort Sea. These companies thus acquired the rights to an offshore area covering more than 500,000 acres some 160 miles north of Inuvik in the Northwest Territories. This massive bid was accompanied by smaller, yet equally successful bids, by ConocoPhillips Canada and Chevron Canada. This renewed interest demonstrates what industry observers have been saying for years; the far North is on the radar screen of many exploration companies and nobody wants to be left behind when the right conditions evolve to unleash the long-awaited era of energy development in the Arctic.
While the construction of one or two pipelines to tap into gas deposits of the Mackenzie Delta and Alaska’s North Slope is certainly one such condition, other factors for industry to ponder are as many as they are complex. They range from how much oil and gas is actually in the ground to a wide range of other factors such as the willingness of northern populations to partake in energy projects, the daunting task of taming an unforgiving harsh environment, the ever complex regulation process and its political ramifications, and a wide spectrum of engineering issues, both on land and offshore. Conducting energy exploration in the changing North in the 21st century is a quite different proposition than it was in the 1970s, the last time industry was there en masse.
Hosted in the idyllic setting of the Banff Centre, October 15-17, 2007, the 2007 CSPG
Gussow Conference on Arctic Energy Exploration will provide attendees with a multi-faceted view of what is in store for industry as it embarks on this new round of exploration in the North. The 2007 Gussow Conference is CSPG’s main contribution to the International Polar Year (IPY), only the fourth of its kind in history. While a handful of greying CSPG members probably remember that the last IPY was held in 1958 and called the International Geophysical Year, the new group of young exploration geologists and geophysicists know very little about the Arctic, and probably don’t fully realize that the area was in the cross-hair of industry some three decades ago, with the likes of Jack Gallagher and J.C. Sproule fueling legendary tales everywhere they went. But while these heroes of the past are no longer with us to tell how they did it in
previous times, the 2007 Gussow Conference will feature a truly excellent roster of invited speakers, each highly knowledgeable in his or her own field, who will address the wide range of topic covered by the conference.
In the true spirit of what the CSPG had in mind when it created the Gussow Conference series–coal bed methane and hydrogeology were the topics of the previous two conferences—the 2007 Gussow Conference is a thematic conference that will cater primarily to the traditional geoscientific interest of the CSPG membership, in addition to addressing a series of issues that relate to the conference’s theme, in this case Arctic Energy Exploration. The Conference will interest a variety of attendees from the young geologists who need a thorough introduction to the resource potential of northern sedimentary basins, and the seasoned explorationists who need to brushup on the most recent developments in the Delta, the Corridor, or the Arctic islands, to industry decision-makers who need to hear the latest on how to conduct business in the changing north. The conference will also be of interest to federal, provincial, and territorial representatives, as well as to a variety of stakeholders ranging from university professors and students, to community members, and land managers.
The geoscientific aspect and resource potential of Canada’s Northern Basins will be addressed by well known geologists from
Sedimentary basins of northern Canada
government and industry, such as Dennis Johnston, Devon Canada Corporation (Prospectivity and Hydrocarbon Potential of the Mackenzie Delta/Beaufort Sea Petroleum Province, a Northern Gulf of Mexico Waiting for it’s Time); Paul Price and John Hogg of MGM Energy (The Central Mackenzie Corridor: Recent Frontier Discoveries in a Northern Producing Basin); Lee Pigage, Yukon Geological Survey (Yukon Oil and Gas - Past and Future); Andrew Willis, PetroCanada (Alaska’s North Slope: Petroleum Exploration History and Future Potential), Ashton Embry of the Geological Survey of Canada (Exploration Opportunities in the Sverdrup Basin, Canadian Arctic Archipelago), Keith Dewing, Geological Survey of Canada, (Lower Paleozoic Petroleum Systems in the Canadian Arctic), Chris Harrison, Geological Survey of Canada (Giant Untested Basins on Canada’s Arctic Frontier: Northern Baffin Bay, Lancaster Sound and the Nares Strait Region), Kirk Osadetz, Geological Survey of Canada (Gas Hydrates - Fuel of the Not So Distant Future), and Gerry Reinson and Ken Drummond, Geological Consultants, (Petroleum Exploration in Canada’s Northern Basins – A Review). In addition, a series of posters addressing specific
geoscientific aspects on most sedimentary basins of Northern Canada will be displayed during the course of the conference and the authors will be on hand to answer questions.
Complementing the geoscientific part of the program will be an overview of arctic issues by Benoit Beauchamp, University of Calgary (The Arctic is Hot: A Perfect Storm of Northern Issues at the Dawn of the 21st Century), as well as presentations by some of Canada’s best know northern observers such as Doug Matthews, Energy Consultant (Northern Pipelines: They Look Pretty Good from this End), Nick Poushinsky of Jacques Whitford/AXYS (The Regulatory Process in the North: a Barrier to Future Exploration and Development?), Robert Overvold, Department of Northern and Indian Affairs (Aboriginal Views on Northern Oil and Gas Exploration and Economic Development), Rob Huebert, University of Calgary (The Development of Northern Energy Resources and Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security), Bonnie GrayWallace, Environmental Consultant (Key Environmental and Societal Issues Relevant to Oil and Gas Development in the North),
Steve Blasco, Geological Survey of Canada (Seabed Geoenvironmental Constraints to Hydrocarbon Development in the Canadian Arctic), and Georges Eynon, Canadian Energy Research Institute (Shipping Gas from the Arctic Islands: Pipedream or Not?).
A major highlight of the Conference will be the wrap-up panel, facilited by Kirk Osadetz, and consisting of Murray Todd, a pioneer from the early round of Arctic exploration and current President and CEO of Canada Hibernia Holding Corp, Michel Scott, VicePresident Government and Public Affairs with Devon Canada Corporation, a key player in the recent Paktoa well – the first offshore well in more than 25 years in the Beaufort Sea – and Henry Sykes, President of MGM Energy, an offspring of Paramount Energy that has embraced the future of northern oil and gas exploration with a passion not seen in more than a decade. The question “Where do we go from here?” will be put to the panel members, and attendees will also be invited to participate from the floor.
The 2007 Gussow Conference will be held at the Banff Centre, October 15-17, 2007. The registration cost includes two nights accommodation, all meals, the ice-breaker, banquet receptions, and free attendance to the jaw-dropping presentation, “Polar Possibilities: Adventures in Paradise” by Brian Keating of the Calgary Zoological Society. Attendance is limited, so please register for this important event as soon as possible. Remember, you will be participating in a world-class conference, while mingling with key players in industry, government, and academia, who believe that the Arctic is worth a closer look at a time of unprecedented pressure on national and international petroleum markets and supply/demand. You can register on-line at www.cspg.org.
2007 Gussow Geoscience Conference
47TH ANNUAL CPGO GOLF TOURNAMENT
June
20 – 22, 2007
At 1 PM June 20, 2007 on the Elbow Springs Golf Club 27-hole layout, 172 golfers teed off to kick off three days of golf and networking. Since 2004, this Tournament has been opened to anyone working in the Canadian oil industry as a geoscientist or providing services to this sector. There were seven female competitors this year. The contestants were grouped into 22 divisions of eight players with comparable ability. The winners of each match moves on while the losers were relegated to the chuckwagon races (Texas Scramble-best ball). Hole-sponsors ensured that competitors were well fed and hydrated.
In 2006 the CPGO Golf Tournament expanded its role to providing a community service in addition to its golf activities. To this end Hospice Calgary was chosen as a charity partner since a number of committee had personal experience with this group. This year it was decided to support Hospice Calgary once more before re-evaluating our position for 2008 and beyond. During the past two years nearly $20,000 has been raised to support their work.
The winner of the Paskapoo (Championship) Flight this year is Mike Hartwick. The runner-up is Dave Crowshaw. The winning Chuckwagon team consisted of Cam Kryway, Travis Brookson, Craig Boland, and Dan Gatto. The Quinn Memorial trophy for sportsmanship was awarded to Darren Aldridge.
The CPGO Committee on behalf of the contestants thanks all almost 100 sponsors who collectively ensured the success of this year’s tournament. All sponsors will be listed on the 2008 registration form but space limitations allow us to name only the trip and Platinum level contributions.
TRIP #1 (Phoenix) – Tristone Capital Advisors – won by Terry Dey
TRIP #2 (Las Vegas) – Recall Canada/Geostrata Resources/Geosearch Placement – won by Irene Park
TRIP #3 (Banff Springs Golf Package) – Arcis Corporation – won by Fred Turner
CPGO Champion – Mike Hartwick (third from right); l-r John Maher, Don Slater, Darrel Zacharias
Purcell Champion – Rick Nash (left); l-r Kim MacLean, Stacy Gould, David Middleton
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