Oilsands blowout caused by steaming, regulator confirms – Northern Journal

July 29, 2014

Confirming the company’s recent admission that high-pressurized steaming practices may be at fault for the ongoing bitumen seepage near Cold Lake, an independent technical review by the regulator has confirmed the year-long blowout is not only the result of wellbore failures.

The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) reported last week that four “flow to surface” (FTS) incidents taking place at Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.’s (CNRL) Primrose in situ oilsands project are primarily the result of the company’s steaming strategy, which led to fractured caprock and wellbore failures.

“The independent technical review indicated that CNRL’s strategy to inject large volumes of steam at fracture pressure in closely spaced wells was a fundamental cause of the FTS incidents,” the AER stated last Tuesday.

The report concluded that the leaks were caused by three controllable factors, including wells with poor sealing, too much stress on the overlying shale and excessive volumes of oil being pumped to surface. It notes that natural fractures could also be at fault, requiring more geologic research.

Read more: http://norj.ca/2014/07/oilsands-blowout-caused-by-steaming-regulator-confirms/