Alberta joins the shale-gas stampede

Firms jostle for position in Duvernay, Exhaw/Bakken; province in line for fresh E&P bonanza

THE ALBERTA petroleum industry is being swept up in a new land rush as companies dash to stake a claim on shale oil and gas prospects across the province’s 250,000 square miles. From the Duvernay gas and liquids-rich formation in Alberta’s far north, to the Exshaw/Bakken oil play of the deep south, a shift away from 65 years of conventional petroleum production is under way. The move portends a demand for new pipelines and storage facilities, says Ziff Energy analyst Simon Mauger, “which will essentially turn the way the industry has been doing business on its head”. For now, attention is concentrated on who is buying land, where and on what exploration plans they have. Answers are scarce. T