Great oil and gas resources in the emerging shale prospects of the Canadian province of Alberta, have been identified in a new study that suggest that recent takeovers and land buys will yield substantial production gains for some of the largest oil companies in the world.
According to research conducted by the Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board and Alberta Geological Survey, the province’s shale formations which include the Montney, Muskwa and Duvernay could contain 58.6 billion barrels of gas liquids, 3,324 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 423.6 billion barrels of oil.
These figures put the formations in a comparable position to some of the major shale plays in the United States. The development of the provinces shale prospects are still in the early stages, though its oil sands are currently seen as the third largest crude deposit in the world with approximately 170 billion barrels of proven reserves and ultimate potential as high as 1.7 trillion barrels. The Muskwa play is located in Northwestern Alberta and has an estimated 14.8 billion barrels of gas liquids, 419 trillion cubic feet of gas and 115.1 billion barrels of oil. The Montney, in the west, crosses into British Columbia. The Alberta portion estimates resources at 28.9 billion barrels of gas liquids, 2,211 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 136.3 billion barrels of oil.
“The numbers fall in line, more or less, with many of the other shales, whether it’s Eagle Ford or Marcellus,” said one of the report’s authors, Andrew Beaton.
International Energy companies such as Chevron, Encana and Talisman Energy have been acquiring land positions in the Duvernay and Montney plays. Talisman has drilled four wells in its initial six well program on its land in the Duvernay formation, but has not released any information about the results. Exxon Mobil raised its reserves in both formations through purchasing Celtic Exploration for USD$2.6 billion last month.
The numbers realized in the research represent “endowment of hydrocarbons”. Recoverable volumes are dependant on geological and engineering constraints, as well as economic, social and environmental considerations.