The Energy Resources Conservation Board issued a report giving reasons for its decision to approve an application by Dome Petroleum Ltd. for a commercial oil sands scheme to produce up to 3300m3/day of crude bitumen from operations located in the Lindbergh sector situated near Elk Point, . Alberta. The project will involve capital investments of approximately 160 million dollars and result in 110 permanent jobs.
The ERCB approval for the total project area of 101.5 sections provides for the following: The phased development over a five-year period of 454 sections of land for new cyclic steam recovery operations. Each quarter section will be developed by drilling sixteen slant-hole wells from a single drilling pad. Additionally, the thermal recovery operations would incorporate the 2% sections of land currently being operated as experimental enhanced recovery projects.
Continued production from 265 existing primary wells which are presently distributed throughout the total project area. Drilling 150 new primary production delineation wells using the existing sixteen hectare well spacing.
The project will result in the construction of three new central processing, storage and steam generation facilities. Fresh water required for use in cyclic steam generation operations will be obtained from the North Saskatchewan River through the Westmin Resources Limited freshwater pipeline system. Additionally, the ERCB decision calls for further initiatives to limit the number of central facilities in the area and the placement of new primary wells on future drilling pad sites.
