Update: Canadian oil output hit by Alberta wildfires now partly resumed
Wildfires engulfing Canada's oil-rich province of Alberta have forced some major oil and gas producers to shut down their operations. Some of the production has now resumed.
PHOTO: Aerial view of the around 70 wildfires engulfing Alberta region as of 12 May. Twitter of @AlbertaWildfire
Approximately 20,000 b/d of oil equivalent were shut down by Pipestone Energy on 12 May. It restarted the "majority of its producing assets" from 8-12 May, before halting production again when the wildfires resurged. “While timing remains uncertain, Pipestone is ready to resume production as soon as the currently shut-down third-party infrastructure is restarted,” the company said.
Vermilion Energy has restarted around 60% of the 30,000 b/d production it shut down in the west-central Alberta region from 15 May. However, the company has not specified when the remaining 40% of production will be restarted.
Tourmaline Oil has informed that seven out of its nine halted facilities have fully resumed operations and were operating at full production capacity as of 10 May. The remaining two units have kept off 16,000 b/d of oil equivalent from the market, it said. The two units are expected to resume full operations in the “next several days”, the company said.
TC Energy has restarted all compressor stations that were shut down by the wildfire in Alberta on 10 May. No damage was reported to equipment at the units in close proximity to the wildfire, according to the company.
On May 12, Paramount Resources curtailed production of 45,000 b/d of oil equivalent in Grande Prairie and Kaybob Regions across Alberta. However, the company has not reported any “significant damage” to equipment.
In response to the Alberta wildfires, Baytex Energy halted a total of 24,000 b/d of oil equivalents on May 13. 20,000 b/d of production was halted in the Peace River and Peavine regions of northwest Alberta, as well as 4,000 b/d in west-central Alberta due to third-party shut-ins, it announced.
By Konica Bhatt
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