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Statoil said CO2 levels up at Alberta site

Norwegian energy company Statoil said Tuesday it wants to cut its carbon dioxide emissions from oil sands production, though there may be short-term spikes. Statoil operates oil sands production facilities primarily in Canada. It said its oil sands production declined "slightly" last year. The company said CO2 intensity should decrease as it introduces additional technology at its Leismer oil sands operations in Alberta, Canada. There may be spikes in the interim, however. The Norwegian company said in a report Tuesday about 69.7 kilograms of CO2 were produced per barrel of oil. That was higher than expected, the company said, but lower than the 72.7 kg of CO2 per barrel produced in 2011. "Our long-term CO2 targets for reduced carbon dioxide intensity in the production process, with 25 percent by 2020 and 40 percent by 2025, remain firm," Stale Tungesvik, Statoil’s manager in Canada, said in a statement . Tungesvik […]

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Statoil’s oil sands production saw slight decline in 2013

Statoil ASA reported a slight decrease in its oil sands production in 2013 because of a planned multiweek plant shutdown for facility maintenance and the integration of new scientific research and experimental development measures, according to the company’s 2013 Oil Sands Report. Production decreased from to 15,000 b/d of oil in 2013 from 16,000 b/d in 2012 as carbon dioxide intensity increased to 69.7 kg CO/bbl from 55.6 kg CO/bbl. The CO intensity in 2011 was 72.7 kg CO/bbl. The report—which presents performance indicators for production, energy consumption, emissions intensity, and resource use at the Leismer Demonstration Project and in the Kai Kos Dehseh (KKD) leases in northern Alberta—stated that CO intensity rose because of facility maintenance and the integration of pilot technologies to reduce long-term CO intensity. The technology pilot measures are intended to both increase production and decrease CO intensity in the long term. Statoil said its […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Two percent of Canada’s oil gets to overseas markets

Only 2 percent of the crude oil produced in Canada made it to overseas markets last year, the National Energy Board reported. NEB, an independent regulator based in Calgary, Alberta, published its annual review of the Canadian petroleum sector. It said the oil industry is heavily influenced by the United States. "In 2013, approximately 71 percent of Canadian crude production was exported to the U.S. and 2 percent was exported to overseas markets from terminals on the east and west coasts," the report said Monday. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has tried to add a layer of diversity to an export economy that depends largely on the United States. European governments in particular have expressed concern about the environmental issues associated with bitumen, Canada’s heavier grade of crude oil. An increase in U.S. oil production has led the country to rely less on foreign imports […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Two percent of Canada's oil gets to overseas markets

Only 2 percent of the crude oil produced in Canada made it to overseas markets last year, the National Energy Board reported. NEB, an independent regulator based in Calgary, Alberta, published its annual review of the Canadian petroleum sector. It said the oil industry is heavily influenced by the United States. "In 2013, approximately 71 percent of Canadian crude production was exported to the U.S. and 2 percent was exported to overseas markets from terminals on the east and west coasts," the report said Monday. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has tried to add a layer of diversity to an export economy that depends largely on the United States. European governments in particular have expressed concern about the environmental issues associated with bitumen, Canada’s heavier grade of crude oil. An increase in U.S. oil production has led the country to rely less on foreign imports […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Canada signs off on four LNG export licenses

Canada is well positioned to help meet the growing market demands for liquified natural gas, Canadian Natural Resources Minister Greg Rickford said. "World energy demand is on the rise, and Canada has the unprecedented energy supply to meet that demand," he said in a statement. Rickford announced Wednesday the government approved four long-term liquified-natural gas export licenses for projects along the country’s West Coast. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has worked to diversify an economy that relies almost exclusively on the United States for oil and natural gas exports. "Opening new markets for our energy products supports our government’s top priority: creating jobs, growth and long-term prosperity for Canadians," Rickford said. Rickford said LNG from Canada’s West Coast can get to Asian markets in less than two weeks, compared with the month it takes a tanker to leave from export terminals in the Gulf of […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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A Canadian family’s ‘Plan B’ to pump tar sands oil

Keystone XL, a pipeline proposal to pump Canadian oil sands through the heart of America, has alarmed environmentalists and become one of the most contentious issues of the Obama presidency. But there is a "Plan B" to cut the United States out of the picture, and it is championed by one of Canada’s wealthiest business dynasties. Since 2012, the billionaire Irving family has been advocating a proposal called Energy East. The 2,858-mile (4,600-km) pipeline would link trillions of dollars worth of oil in land-locked fields in the western province of Alberta to an Atlantic port in the Irvings’ eastern home province of New Brunswick, north of Maine, creating a gateway to new foreign markets for Canadian oil. The C$12 billion ($10.8 billion) line, which would pump 1.1 million barrels per day, would include about 1,865 miles of existing natural gas pipeline converted to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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A Canadian family's 'Plan B' to pump tar sands oil

Keystone XL, a pipeline proposal to pump Canadian oil sands through the heart of America, has alarmed environmentalists and become one of the most contentious issues of the Obama presidency. But there is a "Plan B" to cut the United States out of the picture, and it is championed by one of Canada’s wealthiest business dynasties. Since 2012, the billionaire Irving family has been advocating a proposal called Energy East. The 2,858-mile (4,600-km) pipeline would link trillions of dollars worth of oil in land-locked fields in the western province of Alberta to an Atlantic port in the Irvings’ eastern home province of New Brunswick, north of Maine, creating a gateway to new foreign markets for Canadian oil. The C$12 billion ($10.8 billion) line, which would pump 1.1 million barrels per day, would include about 1,865 miles of existing natural gas pipeline converted to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Canada Approves 4 LNG Export Licenses on Pacific Coast

By Judy McKinnon The Canadian government said Wednesday it has approved four, long-term licenses to export liquefied natural gas from proposed projects on the country’s west coast. The licenses, which had received approval from Canada’s National Energy Board in December, are for LNG exports from proposed Pacific Coast terminals backed by Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM), BG Group PLC (BG.LN) and Malaysian state-owned energy giant Petroliam Nasional Bhd (PET.YY), or Petronas. None of the proposed projects have been built or even formally approved by their sponsors. The government said in a statement that the licenses will allow for the export of up to 73.38 million metric tons of LNG a year. Western Canada is aiming to become a major global supplier of LNG by matching rising demand in Asia with abundant supplies of gas in North America. Specifically, Canada said it has approved export licenses for the proposed Pacific NorthWest […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Canadian oil exports down marginally for January

Canada exported about 2 percent fewer barrels of oil per day in January than it did at the same time last year, the National Energy Board reported. NEB published data on total crude oil exports for January, the last full month for which export data are available. Overall, it said Canada exported around 2.7 million barrels per day for January 2014, about 2.3 percent less than the same time last year. The bulk of Canadian oil deposits are in Alberta province in the form of the heavier grade of oil sands, or bitumen. In January 2014, Canada exported 1.8 million barrels of oil sands per day, about 1 percent more year-on-year, NEB reported Tuesday. NEB didn’t break down exports by destination in its Tuesday data set. Nearly all of Canada’s oil exports are designated for the U.S. market, though Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has tried to woo Asian […]

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Canadian National Railway to Phase Out Older Tank Cars Used for Fueling

Co. said Tuesday it will gradually phase out the older tank cars used to transport diesel fuel that it owns as part of its effort to improve safety in the wake of several fiery derailments. Canada’s biggest railway said it would spend 7 million Canadian dollars ($6.25 million) to remove from service the 183 DOT-111 railcars that transport fuel for its locomotives. The rail operator said it would replace those cars with 40 new ones meeting the latest safety specifications by the end of the year. It also plans to phase out and replace 143 DOT-111 cars that it leases for fueling. Mark Hallman, a spokesman with CN, said that DOT-111 railcars that ship crude oil across its rail network are owned by oil shippers and leasing agencies. He said Montreal-based CN is providing incentives to customers to replace the older DOT-111s and acquire more robust tank cars that […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple