Deep Basin: Canada’s next big play

“Staggering” reserves potential; gas is rich in liquids

THIRTY years ago, some of the Canadian Deep Basin’s pioneering geologists suggested the play could hold 440 trillion cubic feet (cf) of recoverable gas. At the time, the claim was met with widespread derision – but not anymore. The Deep Basin has attracted a swarm of converts of late, many turned into believers by the success of Mike Rose’s companies in using multi-fracturing and straight horizontal wells on a wide range of formations after vertical well production had become marginal and uneconomic. In 2008, Anadarko shelled out C$1.6bn ($1.64bn) for Berkley Petroleum, while supermajor Shell handed over C$5.9bn for Duvernay Oil, enriching a lot of investors in the process. The two medium-si