[article which appeared in the August 1982 issue of The Roughneck magazine]

Thermal recovery activity is heating up (pardon the pun) in the Lloydminster area as a number of companies experiment with thermal reservoir stimulation techniques to increase oil production. There are 18 thermal recovery projects now operating in the area, and here is a brief description of each.

MOBIL-GC KITSCOTY 51-2W4
Located in township 51-2W4, this wet combustion thermal fireflood project has been operating since 1975 It consists of 95 wells on 640 acres and taps the Lloydminster Sparky Sandstone K-pool.

MOBIL-GC SILVERDALE 49-1W4
This is also a wet combustion fireflood project where the fire in the formation is kept ignited by injecting an air/water mixture. Located in township 49-1W4, the 82 well project was begun in l975 and comprises 640 acres, tapping the Lloydminster Sparky Sandstone Q-pool.

WESTMIN LINDBERG 3-13-55-6W4
Westmin Mineral Resources is the operator of a one well "huff and puff" or cyclic steam thermal project which began operating in late May of this year [1982]. The well was completed with high stress, high temperature materials and works on a one month steam injection, four month production cycle. Tapping the Basil Mannville formation, the 10 acre project is proving "encouraging" and depending on future results, it may be expanded.

HUSKY ABERFELDY 20-49-26W3
Husky's Aberfeldy steam drive pilot is located in a field that has been on primary production for years and is operating in the Sparky Sands at the 520M depth. It consists of 36 producing wells, 12 observation wells and 7 wells for steam injection. The project was started in February, 1981, and utilizes 2 ½ acre production spacing. Two ten acre expansion patterns have already been started.

HUSKY ABERFELDY 1,12,50-27W3
Husky also operates a fireflood project in the same field, tapping the Sparky sands. The 610 acre project uses six active injection wells and 38 producers. This is considered an old project by EOR standards as the first four injectors were put on in 1969, and the other three were added in 1971. This reservoir has been depleted on primary and waterflood, but twenty producing wells are presently averaging 50 cubic meters of oil per day. This fireflood is north of the steam injection project in the same field, and the producing sands are thinner

HUSKY PIKES PEAK 1-50-24W3
Husky Pikes Peak is an eleven well huff and puff thermal project and consists of 11 new and thermally completed wells. The project was started July l7, 1981, and the reservoir, the Waseka channel sand, has never been produced before. The sands are thick, almost 15 meters of pay, and lie at about 500 meters down. The project is presently producing 120 cubic meters of oil per day.

HOME KITSCOTY THERMAL PROJECT 51-2W4
This is a cyclic steam thermal project which can be later converted to steam drive depending on production rates and economics. It consists of three wells, 2 of which have been drilled and the third will be done later this year. Home has spent $2 million to date, comprises 320 acres, and taps the Sparky sands. It will be expanded to 30 wells if the economy permits.

HUSKY GOLDEN LAKE OXYGEN FIREFLOOD 11-48-23W3
Oxygen fireflooding is really at the experimental stage in Canada, and this project is similar to the other fireflood in the Golden Lake field except the downhole fire will be fed by pure oxygen not air as is common with the others. The project consists of 7 producing wells and 1 injector in an inverted 7 spot pattern. It will operate on air to start and be converted to oxygen at a later date. The 10 acre project, which taps the Waseka sands, is designed to be expanded by three should it prove successful.

HUSKY GOLDEN LAKE WASEKA 14-48-23W3
This Waseka sands fireflood consists of 17 producing wells, 2 injectors and 2 observation wells. Comprising 96 hectares, the first fires were lit in May of this year [1982] and some infield drilling is anticipated late in 1982 in the form of observation wells.

NORCEN BODO FIREFLOOD EXPANSION PROJECT
This EOR project 3 km. northwest of Bodo began on 20 acres, and is presently [1982] being expanded to 105 acres. The method of thermal heat generation is a fireflood, and has 9 producing wells and one injector, being expanded to 24 producers and 7 air injectors; The estimated cost of the expansion is $18 million, and depending on success, could be pursued further. Partners in the project are Canada Cities Service, Murphy Oil and Canadian Reserve Oil and Gas.

MURPHY EYEHILL 16-40-28W3
This thermal recovery project is an air fed fireflood and consists of 25 wells, 9 injectors and 16 producers. The startup date was February, 1982 and it is expected to run at least until 1990. On primary production the wells produced 30-40 b/d, but watered out after six months The $13.7 million project covers 180 acres and taps the Cummings formation at about 2500 feet.

MURPHY LINDBERG 6-13-58-5W4
This 7 well huff and puff project was begun in 1974 and converted to steam drive in 1981 after producing for six years. It is expected to run for three more years and the costs are already up to $2.5 million. It produces some 200 b/d of 10° API gravity crude from the Sparky G.P. (lower Grand Rapids) formation.

PETRO-CAN KINSELLA HEAVY OIL PROJECT 14-30-48-8W4
This 8 well fireflood project began operating in April of 1982 and taps the Sparky sands at 680 meters. There are four producing wells, 1 injector and three observation wells. There was no commercial production on primary as the wells made only 1 cubic meter of oil per day. The project covers 5 acres. It will run for at least two years, and is a 50/50 partnership with AOSTRA.

TEXAS GULF NORTH BATTLEFORD HEAVY OIL PILOT - MEOTO 23-46-18W3
This 20 well EOR project was started in the mid 1970's and uses both steam drive and cyclic stream as the thermal process. There are four, five spot patterns drilled, and one, nine spot, and all wells are on huff and puff at the present time with plans to switch to steam drive in the future. The spacing is 1.01 hectares per well.

DOME LINDBERG 18-55-5W4
This 56 well project uses an oxygen fed fireflood to heat the reservoir and has an estimated total cost of $25 million.

DOME CHAUVIN S. 26-42-3W4
Using steam stimulation, Dome Chauvin is a 4 well thermal pilot with a total estimated cost to date of $360,000.

DOME MORGAN 35-51-4W4
This 43 well project uses a combination of steam stimulation and in-situ combustion and Dome has invested $28 million to date.

MOBIL CELTIC S.E. ¼-10-23-52W3
Using a combination of wet combustion and steam stimulation, this 25 well EOR project has 5 injector wells and 20 producers, drilled in an inverted nine spot pattern. One pattern is complete and four others are partially complete. Using 5 acre spacing, this $25 million EOR project is tapping the middle Waseka sands but the fine sand is causing production problems. Mobil is set up to use fire or steam, and numerous other zones can be stimulated from the same wells using the equipment on location.

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