Devon Energy obtains approval for third Jackfish oil sands project
05 December 2011
US-based Devon Energy Corporation has received regulatory approval from the Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board and Alberta Environment and Water to move forward with the company’s third oil sands project in Canada. Construction of the 100% Devon-owned Jackfish 3 project will begin next month with startup targeted for late 2014.
Jackfish 3 will utilize Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD), the same recovery method currently employed at the company’s two previously completed Jackfish projects. Once fully operational, Jackfish 3 is expected to produce an average of 35,000 barrels of oil per day before royalties. Like Jackfish 1 & 2, Jackfish 3 represents an estimated 300 million barrels of gross recoverable oil. Devon expects to deploy approximately $1.3 billion of capital on Jackfish 3 through startup.
Devon’s original Jackfish project continues to produce near facility capacity and is among the best performing SAGD projects in the industry with high per well production rates, a low steam-oil-ratio and industry-leading operating costs, according to Devon. Jackfish 2 began producing in June of 2011 and net production volumes are ahead of plan, currently at 13,000 barrels per day. The company expects to reach full production capacity at Jackfish 2 of 35,000 barrels of oil per day in late 2012.
To further leverage Devon’s SAGD expertise, last year the company announced a joint-venture with BP in which it acquired 50% of BP’s interest in the Pike oil sands leases. The Pike leases are immediately adjacent to Jackfish and are of similar quality. Ultimately, this acreage will be developed through multiple phases similar to Jackfish. Devon expects its Pike and Jackfish projects to drive the company’s net thermal oil production from its current 44,000 barrels per day to between 150,000 and 175,000 barrels per day by 2020. This represents a 17—19% compound annual growth rate.
Devon is the only US independent with active operations in the oil sands and was among the first in the industry to use SAGD technology. The method allows production from oil sands reservoirs that are too deep for conventional mining operations. Steam injected into the reservoir heats the bitumen allowing it to flow to the surface. Devon’s Jackfish projects are designed to utilize saline water rather than fresh water.
Designed to use saline water rather than fresh water. The closest source of saline water is 1300 Km away?
Posted by: HarveyD | 05 December 2011 at 01:39 PM
From wikipedia:
"Saline water is a general term for water that contains a significant concentration of dissolved salts (NaCl). The concentration is usually expressed in parts per million (ppm) of salt.
Water that is saline contains significant amounts (referred to as "concentrations") of dissolved salts. In this case, the concentration is the amount (by weight) of salt in water, as expressed in "parts per million" (ppm). If water has a concentration of 10,000 ppm of dissolved salts, then one percent (10,000 divided by 1,000,000) of the weight of the water comes from dissolved salts. The salinity concentration level used by United States Geological Survey classifies saline water in three categories. Slightly saline water contains around 1,000 to 3,000 ppm. Moderately saline water contains roughly 3,000 to 10,000 ppm. Highly saline water has around 10,000 to 35,000 ppm of salt. Seawater has a salinity of roughly 35,000 ppm, equivalent to 35 g/L."
From a oil sands company's ad claiming it's ecofriendly: "we recycle 80-95% of the water we use."
So lets say they start with sea water and replace 10% of it with fresh each time they use it - they could run the water through the system 35 times before it no longer rates as "saline" and still drain the nearby river dry.
Posted by: ai_vin | 05 December 2011 at 02:30 PM
ai_vin...where will they get the saline salted seawater from?
Did they want to say they will re-use spoiled water or is it another effort to confuse the public or look (eco) good?
Posted by: HarveyD | 05 December 2011 at 07:39 PM
If the people were not willing to pay four dollars a gallon of fuel in the US and more elsewhere, the tar sands would not be used. ..HG..
Posted by: Henry Gibson | 06 December 2011 at 12:12 AM
Simple answer?
Yes.
I was trying to be sarcastic in my last post - come on man, like an oil sands company could ever be ecofriendly? Of course it's another effort to confuse the public & look good. The real reason they're recycling the water or using saline water is more likely to save money somehow.
Posted by: ai_vin | 06 December 2011 at 12:18 AM