The queen charlotte, hecate and tofino basins of the offshore. Therefore, as project budgets are broken down, a large portion of the cost is assigned to data. The purposes of the zmapformat grid files are to create the 3d geologic and petroleum system models of the wcsb, and to publish these files such that others can use them in applications such as reservoir and basin modeling. Hydraulic fracturing and seismicity in the western canada sedimentary basin by gail m. The stratigraphic and structural framework of the basin has been described in con nolly et al. Alberta basin, large, petroleumrich sedimentary basin along the eastern edge of the rocky mountains in western canada.
The late devonian frasnian nisku formation in the western canadian sedimentary basin is a homoclinal ramp composed of four stacked carbonate cycles with reefs in both shallowramp and downslope settings. He was instrumental in burlingtons expansion into the western canadian sedimentary basin from 1999 to 2002. Its internal structure and the lateral variations in its shape reflect a long and complex history of development involving a. Pdf insitu stress in the western canada sedimentary basin. An integrated approach to discretized 3d modeling of. People measure time in hours, days, months, and years, but earth time is measured in millions and billions of years.
The major producing basin in canada is the western canada sedimentary basin, situated beneath alberta, northeastern bc, southern saskatchewan, southwestern manitoba and the western nwt. Hydraulic fracturing and seismicity in the western canada sedimentary basin. Experience suggests that monte carlo risk analysis has not gained widespread acceptance in canada over the last 20 years, despite an obvious need, because the process is too time consuming and labour is. Risk assessment is typically used for international exploration but presently is not widely used in the western canadian sedimentary basin. Paul mackay the western canadian sedimentary basin. Competition bureau continues tervita and newalta merger.
Western canadian sedimentary basin horizontal drilling in. Trenchless technology is commonly used in the petroleum industry. Thank you for your interest in viewing the aapg global super basins leadership conference presentations. Geology of canada canadian geology spans four billion years of earth history. Geological survey of canada, 601 booth street, ottawa, ontario, kia oe8, canada. Supply of western canadian sedimentary basin crude oil. Technical paper compositions and greenhousegas emission factors offlared and vented gas in the western canadian sedimentary basin matthew r. Purchase the sedimentary basins of the united states and canada, volume 5 1st edition.
Alberta gas supply and infrastructure analysis aeso. The georgia basin and fraser delta in southeastern british columbia. The depositional record of these events is partly recorded in the western canada sedimentary basin which is a prolific producer of oil, gas and coal. Aug 16, 2016 the western canadian sedimentary basin is a vast sedimentary basin underlying 1,400,000 square kilometres of western canada including southwestern manitoba, southern saskatchewan, alberta. The western canada sedimentary basin wcsb is known for its large.
The baldonnel and pardonet formations are the youngest major carbonate reservoir facies outside the williston basin in western canada. Most of the maps in the geological atlas of the western canada sedimentary basin were plotted using an inhouse cartographic program. Structural compilation project for the western canada. Exploring for deep basin gas resources in the western canadian sedimentary basin. The western canada sedimentary basin figure 1 is basically a simple northeasterly tapering wedge of sedimentary rocks, more than 6 km thick, that extends southwards from the canadian 1 present address. Geological atlas of the western canada sedimentary basin. Western canadian sedimentary basin work by the geological survey of canada gsc has identified significant potential in interior and offshore basins that are, to date, unexplored.
The number of active companies with reported production in the western canadian sedimentary basin shrunk by almost 17. Nisku formation deposits in the cynthia basin, a westward facing sub basin, contain two distinctly different reef types. Fernie region of southeast british columbia which is part of the western canada sedimentary basin. Precambrian basement of the western canada sedimentary basin. Western canadian sedimentary basin british columbia. Calgary, alberta, canada abstract all available information relevant to in situ stress orientations and magnitudes in the western canadian sedimen. Evaluating and managing risk in the western canadian. Modeling of the western canada sedimentary basin isopach grid files. His research on carbonates has concentrated on the deposition and diagenesis of modern and cenozoic deposits in the caribbean, surface and subsurface paleozoic rocks in the western canadian sedimentary basin, many of which are prolific hydrocarbon reservoirs, and spring deposits worldwide. The earths history is one of constant, but very slow change. The western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb is a vast 540,000squaremile swath of land in the western half of canada.
Origin of sulfaterich fluids in the early triassic montney formation, western canadian sedimentary basin author links open overlay panel mastaneh h. These resources include coal, natural gas, and oil sands. The western canadian sedimentary basin is a foreland basin in which rocks have been subjected to greater lateral compression than in the three other locations, and where a significant volume of former overburden has been eroded. Pdf regional heat flow patterns in the western canadian.
Grid files for the 3d geologicpetroleum system model of the. A reservoir and geomechanical model of the colorado shale. Geological survey report series 20051421, web publication and associated data files. Assessment of undiscovered conventional oil and gas resources of the western canada sedimentary basin, canada, 2012. The upstream oilfield services industry in western canada a. View western canada sedimentary basin research papers on academia. Canadian independent oil and gas companies pancanadian energy corp. Western canadian oil and gas, exploration and production industry. All available information relevant to in situ stress orientations and magnitudes in the western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb were examined to provide a better understanding of how regional. The stress regime of the western canadian sedimentary basin j. Case study of a large conventional oil pool discovery in a. Marc bustin university of british columbia, vancouver, bc, canada summary the matrix permeability of major shales in the western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb were.
Geoscan supports the mission of natural resources canada through the timely access to information. Geothermal gradients in the alberta part of the western canadian sedimentary basin have been studied on the basis of 55,244 bottomhole temperature values from 28,260 petroleum exploration wells. This is an online version of the outofprint geological atlas of the western canada sedimentary basin, as well as digital data and shapefiles for some of the content. Canada has an ultimate volume of crude bitumen in place estimated to be 2500 billion barrels.
Canlin energy corporation is a privately held, long reserve life, natural gas weighted producer in the western canadian sedimentary basin. The oldest rocks are preserved in the stable archean crustal blocks of which the largest include the superior, slave, hearne and north atlantic cratons. Trican builds western canadian ofs reach in friendly merger with canyon services. The oil sands deposits in the western canada sedimentary basin wcsb comprise of at least 85% of the total immobile bitumen in place in the world and are so. The coalbearing strata of the lower cretaceous mannville. Fortythree formation waters were sampled from different geographical locations and formations fig. Geological atlas of the northern canadian mainland sedimentary basin david w. Supply of western canadian sedimentary basin crude oil page 2 alex frei february 2002. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only, and does not imply endorsement by the u. The western canadian sedimentary basin is a vast sedimentary basin underlying 1,400,000 square kilometres of western canada including southwestern manitoba, southern saskatchewan, alberta. This wedge is about 6 kilometres thick under the rocky mountains, but thins to zero at its eas.
The basin was formed when the earths crust sank along the continental side of the rocky mountains. Origin of sulfaterich fluids in the lower triassic montney formation, western canadian sedimentary basin mastaneh h. In this study, we combine teleseismic data from crane and a canadian. A regional diagenetic and petrophysical model for the montney. Other published studies on similar topics in the western canadian sedimentary basin reveal that spatial distribution of rock mechanical. The viking formation of the western canadian sedimentary basin has been of interest to the hydrocarbon industry ever since the name was first used by slipper 19182 to describe the gas producing sandstones of the kinsella field of east central alberta. These data combine to give a coherent regional picture of principal. Although commonly described as a shale, it is a siltstone over most of its subcrop, which presents complications for. Western canada sedimentary basin, structural compilation project, saskatchewan, manitoba, alberta, phanerozoic, faults, lineaments, structure, seismic, aeromagnetic, gravity. This remained a tectonically active region into eocene time and during this interval produced important deposits of copper, lead, zinc, molybdenum, gold, silver, tungsten and other commodities. Extent of the western canada sedimentary basin is approximated by the outer boundaries of the labeled alberta basin province, williston basin. Shale oil and gas resources in organic pores of the devonian duvernay shale, western canada sedimentary basin based on petroleum system modeling.
Wcsb sees company count shrink from 201418 rigzone. The western canada sedimentary basin wcsb is the thinner part of the same northeasttapering wedge of supracrustal rocks that forms the eastern part of the cordillera. Supply of western canadian sedimentary basin crude oil page 1 alex frei february 2002 is a crisis brewing with canadas oil supply. A timeline of petroleum exploration in british columbia pdf. Hydraulic fracturing and seismicity in the western canada sedimentary basin confirms the horizontal drilling technique which in essence creates an underground miniearthquake to open up. Walter department of geological sciences, the university of michigan, ann arbor, m1 48109, u. The oil sands are an important and vast canadian resource.
Jan 31, 2018 the western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb is a vast 540,000squaremile swath of land in the western half of canada. The jurassic system of the western canada sedimentary basin records the transition in its tectonic setting from a passive backarc platformal basin to a foreland basin at the western margin. Coderre energy and emissions research laboratory, department of mechanical and aerospace engineering, carleton university, ottawa. Wood5,6 1university of calgary, 2geological survey of canada, 3aarhus university, 4university of alberta, 5encana corporation, 6now with calaber1 resources. Briefly, the study area is part of the western canada sedimentary basin and com. These maps have custom projection parameters depending upon the geographic extent of the area shown. Biodegradation and origin of oil sands in the western. At low tds there is a high variation in acceptable rw values, while at high tds the range of acceptable rw values is much smaller.
Map units were defined that include all significant oil and gas reservoirs in the basin. Origin and evolution of formation waters, alberta basin. It consists of a massive wedge of sedimentary rock extending from the rocky mountains in the west to the canadian shield in the east. Factors affecting the permeability of shales in the western. Pdf petroleum generation and migration in the western. If we combine the quasiabsence of heavy primordial noble gas with the high 4he.
Controls on lithofacies variability in late devonian, cynthia. Oil production in canada comes from three principal sources. The western canadian sedimentary basin the wcsb is a vast sedimentary basin underlying 1,400,000 square kilometres of western canada. Initial inplace reserves for crude oil for the combined units are 6 x 10 6 m 3 38 million barrels, and 2 x 10 9 m 3 4.
Exploring for deep basin gas resources in the western. The peace region of northeastern british columbia lies within the western extent of the western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb. What are the map projections for the maps of the geological atlas of the western canada sedimentary basin. The lower triassic montney formation of the western canadian sedimentary basin is a worldclass unconventional resource of gas, gas condensate and oil. A reservoir and geomechanical model of the colorado shale, western canadian sedimentary basin melanie regehr, baker hughes april 1518, 2012 spwla topical conference. Shale oil and gas resources in organic pores of the. The primary petroleumproducing sedimentary basin is the western canada sedimentary basin wcsb, which extends.
Reid held various operations and managerial positions with burlington in several regions of the continental united states, including the permian basin, the williston basin and the anadarko basin. Crude oil and natural gas resources open government portal. It extends from british columbia through alberta and saskatchewan into manitoba. Compositions and greenhousegas emission factors offlared. Origin of sulfaterich fluids in the early triassic. It consists of a massive wedge of sedimentary rock extending from the rocky mountains in the west to the canadian shield. The western canada sedimentary basin wcsb is a vast sedimentary basin underlying 1,400,000 square kilometres 540,000 sq mi of western canada.
Origin of sulfaterich fluids in the lower triassic. Geological survey recently completed a geosciencebased assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of provinces within the western canada sedimentary basin. This is a pdf file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. Regional heat flow patterns in the western canadian sedimentary basin. Western canada sedimentary basin research papers academia.
Ideally the map units form relatively thin units of permeable strata overand underlain by poorly permeable sediments. Physical processes occurring in tight gas reservoirs from western. Introduction basement faults and lineament zones in the western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb have long been known. Eaton, hadi ghofrani, dan walker, burns cheadle, ryan schultz, robert shcherbakov, kristy tiampo. Western canada sedimentary basin the traditional center of canadas oil production has been the western canada sedimentary basin wcsb, which stretches from british columbia across alberta and saskatchewan to manitoba and part of the northwest territories. Brian tuffs, james wood, and dan potocki encana corporation, calgary, alberta, canada. Abstract the western canada sedimentary basin, a simple northeasterly tapering wedge of sedimentary rocks more than 6 km thick, extends southwest from the canadian shield into the cordilleran foreland thrust belt.
Trican builds western canadian ofs reach in friendly. Assessment of undiscovered conventional oil and gas. Horizontal drilling, tight oil plays, western canadian sedimentary basin brought together industry leading drilling executives, decision makers, and technical experts from the bakken, cardium, viking, and other major plays in western canada to deliver integral insights into the applications of the different drilling tools, techniques and. Alberta basin depression, alberta, canada britannica. This study aims to reconstruct the stratigraphic architecture of the subsurface coal bearing mannville group deposits lower cretaceous, western canada sedimentary basin, south and central alberta, in order to characterize the occurrence of coal strata within this interval, by focusing on their geometry, extension and distribution. The western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb is a vast sedimentary basin underlying 1,400,000 square kilometres 540,000 sq mi of western canada including southwestern manitoba, southern saskatchewan, alberta, northeastern british columbia and the southwest corner of the northwest territories. The western canada sedimentary basin, a simple northeasterly tapering wedge of sedimentary rocks more than 6 km thick, extends southwest from the canadian shield into the cordilleran foreland thrust belt.
The stress regime of the western canadian sedimentary basin. The following table summarizes the potential that the gsc estimates for these basins. The upper triassic baldonnel and pardonet formations. Consisting of massive wedges of sedimentary rock about 6 kilometres thick under the rocky mountains, the wcsb contains one of the worlds largest reserves of oil and natural gas. Hydraulic fracturing and seismicity in the western canada. During an underbalanced milling campaign in an area of the montney formation in the western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb in 2017 to early 2018, a well servicing company experienced a series of three coiled tubing complete immobilization incidents.
Canadian natural gas reserves were 58 trillion cubic feet as of yearend 2006. The sedimentary basins of the united states and canada, volume 5. Eaton, hadi ghofrani, dan walker, burns cheadle, ryan schultz, robert shcherbakov, kristy tiampo, jeff gu, rebecca m. Canadas proven reserves of conventional oil are estimated to last 10 to 15 years at. Key reservoir details will be presented and discussed but most notable is that the pool is approximately 1100 million barrels ooip, making it one of the largest conventional oil pool discoveries in the western canadian sedimentary basin in the last 20 years. The hydrogeologic atlas enhances exploration and development activities by illuminating the relationship between the flow of water and the migration and accumulation of petroleum.
These resources are found in the countrys seven major sedimentary basins. Western canadian oil and gas, exploration and production. Origin and evolution of formation waters, alberta basin, western canada sedimentary basin. Please see our publications faq regarding the contours and map projections. Water resistivity atlas of western canada abstract dan block, b.
Africa subsahara bg group discovered gas in the taachui1 well and sidetrack in block 1, offshore tanzania. The wcsb is characterized as a wedgeshaped layer of sedimentary rock that is greater than three kilometers thick at the rocky mountains in the west and. The oldest rocks that have been found are about 4 billion years old. What is the western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb. Precambrian basement of the western canada sedimentary. Connolly department of geology, the university of alberta, edmonton, alberta t6g 2e3, canada lynn m. Geotechnical and hydrogeological data from well bore logs and rock cores were used to identify, map, and model the power production potential of geothermal reservoirs in sedimentary formations in the western canadian sedimentary basin across several municipal districts in western alberta. A groundbreaking study published today in seismological research letters has demonstrated a link, for the first time, between hydraulic fracturing fracking for oil and gas and earthquakes. A talk given by paul mackay at 2018 global super basins leadership conference in houston, texas. The western canada sedimentary basin figu re 1 covers an area of approximately 450,000 square miles, thickening from a zero edge along the canadian shield to over 6 kilometres in the rocky mountain foothills. Apr 07, 2009 canadas greatest potential for future sources of hydrocarbons lies offshore in the arctic and off the east coast. Hydrogeologic atlas western canada sedimentary basin.
Geological atlas of the northern canadian mainland. Crustal imprints of precambrian orogenesis in western laurentia. Most of canadas oil and natural gas is contained in the western canadian sedimentary basin wcsb, which covers alberta, northeastern. Pdf recent applications of avo to carbonate reservoirs in the. The region is considered mature for petroleum exploration.
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