The Central Mountainview Advisory Group (CMAG) will be hosting an open house to provide information to landowners and others impacted by the recent demise of Trident Exploration, say officials.
The public meeting is scheduled to take place at Reed Ranch School on June 25 from 6:30 to 8 p.m.
Based in Olds, CMAG is a synergy group that includes members from the community at large. It addresses issues around oil and gas development through open houses, mail-outs and other methods.
Speakers from the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), Surface Rights Board and the Orphan Well Association are all scheduled to make presentations and answer questions at the June 25 open house, says CMAG facilitator Paula Hall.
“We will have them each make a presentation and then we will open up the floor for conversations,” said Hall. “This is really for people looking for next steps; what do I do now?
“There are some of our members who have been directly affected and they have said, ‘look, there are all these wells that are near our property and that our neighbours are dealing with.' So we decided this matter is pressing for people in the community.”
Trident Exploration Corporation and Trident Limited Partnership ceased operations on April 30, terminating all of its 33 employees and 61 contracts.
The company has numerous wells and other facilities in Central Alberta, including in Mountain View County.
In Mountain View County, Trident Limited Partnership owes $393,600 in outstanding municipal taxes, $110,000 in school taxes, $9,600 in seniors’ housing requisitions, $3,000 in designated industrial taxes, and $50,700 in tax arrears, for a total of $567,700, while Trident Exploration Corporation owes $9,100 in municipal taxes, and a total of $10,270.
Anyone who has questions they would like to have addressed during the June 25 meeting can send those questions to CMAG in advance by emailing [email protected].
Questions can also be asked during the meeting, she said.
The AER has said it will “pursue all options to ensure that Trident’s infrastructure is transferred to responsible operators, safely decommissioned, or, as a last resort, transferred to the Orphan Well Association.
“Many of Trident’s wells were still operating, and once transferred to responsible operators, can still contribute to royalties.”
Overall, Trident’s total abandonment and reclamation obligations are estimated to be $329 million.
