The Kirby North plant in Lac La Biche will be a testing site for a chemical additive that is meant to improve the flow of heavy oil and bitumen in steam-assisted gravity drainage operations, conducted by Canadian Natural Resources Limited.
Canadian Natural is using $1.2 million in provincial funding for the initiative. According to information from the government of Alberta, the additive, called ChampionX, assists oil in flowing quicker, puts a stop to blockages, and also lessens the need for steam, reducing the amount of water needed.
The Kirby North site is situated 85 kilometres northeast of the hamlet of Lac La Biche, across from the Kirby South plant, on the opposite side of Highway 881. The plant makes use of Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) technology for recovering bitumen from oil sands resources located deep underground.
As stated in The Oilsands Magazine, roughly 80 per cent of the bitumen reserves in Alberta are too deep to be mined, and because of this, bitumen needs to be extracted on-location, or in-situ, using steam.
“Alberta companies now recycle about 80 per cent of the water used in their operations, reducing the need for freshwater, and using advanced filtration systems to treat wastewater,” reads a mid-December provincial release about the project funding.
The additive testing near Lac La Biche is one of three recently announced projects funded by the province through a $2.7 million investment from the Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) program. As explained by the Alberta government, the projects are designed to develop technologies to aid in the reduction of water use, while increasing energy production.
In addition to the Canadian Natural additive testing project, a $1.47 million investment through Emissions Reduction Alberta (ERA) will be put into two new water filtration technologies led by Aqua Pure Technologies and Eximius Environmental Solutions. The ERA is a provincial government-funded company created in 2009 to assist with the province’s economic and environmental needs. The ERA’s mandate is to reduce emissions while growing the province’s economy through innovative technology solutions.
While testing for the Aqua Pure Technologies project is being conducted in the Three Hills area, the ERAs’ testing site for the Eximius project has not yet been announced.
What is especially exciting about the three projects, says Justin Riemer, CEO of Emissions Reduction Alberta, is their potential to be commercialized. This, he explained, will offer the province’s oil and gas industry hands-on solutions to lower emissions, save water, and reduce costs.
“These projects have already shown great promise with support from our partners, and we’re excited to see how provincial funding through Emissions Reduction Alberta can help take them to the next level,” Riemer said.
Rebecca Schulz, Alberta’s minister of Environment and Protected Areas, said global energy demand is rising. She continued by stating that jurisdictions across the globe are looking at the province for ways to expand production while making the most of out of water efficiency.
“This funding will help test and advance three new technologies designed to help companies reduce water use and increase energy production at the same time,” Schulz stated. “It’s a win for the environment, the energy sector and the economy.”
