pipeline news november 2012

PIPELINE NEWSSaskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly Canada Post Publication No. 40069240

November 2012 FREE Volume 5 Issue 6

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From le : Jonathan Kmita, John Kmita and Tyler Kmita are the family behind John Kmita Ltd., a Weyburn-based service rig company that has been opera ng for 40 years.See story page C6. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

SECTION A3 Millennium S mula on to launch

4 McMillan visits Panther 4

6 Editorial

7 Opinion

9 Cenovus buys Oilsands Quest assets

10 Range One poised for growth

INSIDE

SECTION C1 Sun Country Well Servicing

3 Long Creek Railroad grand opening

6 40 years for John Kmita Ltd.

11 Keeping down me to a minimum

SECTION B1 Matrix o to phenomenal start

3 Birds challenge pipeliners

8 Arne & Burgess tackles Vantage Pipeline project

12 Steady growth for Rearden

22 Shi ing Gears: Key to business success

Stacey [email protected]

PIPELINE NEWSNEWSSaskatchewan’s Petroleum Monthly

Dec. 2012 FocusContact your Sales Rep

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A2 PIPELINE NEWS November 2012

PIPELINE NEWS November 2012 A3

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Story and photoby Brian Zinchuk

Pipeline News

Estevan – Mike

Heier is at it again. Th e

founder of Trinidad

Drilling Ltd. is now

launching an Estevan-

based frac company.

Th e outfi t will be

known as Millennium

Stimulation Service.

I guess you would

call me the founder,”

Heier said while visiting

their new yard where a

shop is going up.

“I’m on the board

of directors, CEO and

president.”

CEO is a position

Heier knows well. He

was founder and CEO

of Trinidad, a company

that now has over 3,000

employees and more

than 135 drilling rigs.

He stepped back from

the chief executive posi-

tion fi ve years ago, but

remains chairman of the

board. Lyle Whitmarsh

took over as CEO in

January 2012.

Heier founded

Trinidad back in 1995.

He ran it privately until

2000, then took it into

a trust, and was one of

the fi rst to come out

of the trust corporate

structure.

Along the way, he

was chairman of Al-

terNRG, a company

that acquired a huge

coal deposit and sought

to use gasifi cation

technology to exploit it.

However, he noted, “Th e

markets were unwinding

in front of our faces.

“I would suggest the

next economically viable

energy forms would

come through gasifi -

cation of low-quality

organic material – coal,

biomass, municipal

waste – converted to

syngas and coverted to

fuel.”

Heier resigned from

AlterNRG’s board in

April this past year to

pursue Millennium. “I

still own a sizeable piece

of it.”

Heier’s also involved

with Smart Completion

Technologies, a small,

private oilfi eld services

company.

Originally a mill-

wright, Heier’s experi-

ence includes a seismic

company and running

an oil company.

As for the origins

of Millennium, Heier

said it was the people

behind Smart that got

him going.

“Within a year of

being on that board,

the guys asked me,

‘Hey Mike, would you

consider starting a frac

company?’”

Th at was May 2011.

He started doing

research that summer,

and spent the fall of

2011 putting together

the management team.

Heier sought out a team

of which the majority

had worked together

before.

“It’s a people

gig. It’s all about the

people,” he said. “Poor

quality assets with good

people will outperform.

Th is always has been,

always will be, a people

business.

“We work hard at

creating an almost cult-

ish environment within

the fence.”

One of the results is

a low turnover of staff .

Page A8

Mike Heier

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The experience level of Millennium Stimulation Services is deep, to say the least. Here’s their bios, taken from Millennium’s website.

Paul Colborne - Chairman- President, StarValley Oil and Gas Ltd.- Founder, director & former CEO, Crescent Point Energy Ltd.- Chairman, Legacy Oil & Gas Inc.- Chairman, Surge Energy Inc. Michael Heier- Chairman and founder, Trinidad Drilling Ltd., one of the largest and most successful Canadian drillers currently operating over 140 drilling rigs and employing over 3,000 people in three countries. E. Craig Lothian- CEO & president, LEX Capital Management Inc.- CEO & president, Keystone Royalty Corp.- Director, PetroBakken Energy Ltd. Kevin Bennett- Independent Businessman- Former chairman, Crescent Point Energy Ltd.- Former director, Trinidad Drilling Ltd. Ken Strickland- Chief legal and business development offi cer, TransAlta Corporation- Director, Trinidad Drilling Ltd. Ron Dahl- CEO & president, Smart Completions Ltd.

Millennium Stimulation Service to launch in Estevan


BRIEFS

Briefs courtesy Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin

Close to 50 per cent of

the rig fl eet in Western Cana-

da was busy as of Oct. 17, Rig

Locator records show.

For much of the late sum-

mer and fall, the active utiliza-

tion rate has remained within

a tight band between 47 and

50 per cent. In September

2011, active utilization rates

approached 70 per cent dur-

ing most of the month.

At the nine-month mark,

the average utilization rate for

2012 stands at 48 per cent, off

from 54 per cent in the com-

parable period last year.

Saskatchewan's rig utili-

zation rate stood at 63 on Oct.

16. with 85 active rigs and 52

rigs down. Over the fi rst nine

months of the year, an average

of 68 rigs have been busy in

the province compared to 77

a year ago.

British Columbia's rig

utilization rate as of Oct. 17

of was 68 per cent – 34 rigs

at work out of the total fl eet

of 50. An average 38 rigs have

been active in the January-

September period versus 55 a

year ago.

In Alberta, 261 rigs were

busy on that day (45 per cent

utilization rate). To the end of

September, an average of 265

rigs have been working com-

pared to 293 a year ago.

Rig utilization in Mani-

toba ran at 69 per cent with

18 active rigs and eight racked

rigs. Th at 18 was a jump of

seven rigs from two weeks

earlier. To the end of Septem-

ber, an average of 12 rigs have

been busy compared to 10 in

the January-to-September

period of last year.

Th e most active driller

on Oct. 17 was Husky En-

ergy Inc., which had 28 rigs

at work.

Rig utilization rate remains stagnant

Story and photo by Brian ZinchukWeyburn – Although he worked on service rigs in his younger

days, Minister of Energy and Resources Tim McMillan hadn’t

stepped on a drilling rig until Oct. 5. He had his chance at Wey-

burn’s Panther Drilling on Oct. 4, where the company was put-

ting the fi nishing touches on its brand new Rig 4.

Driller and relief push Morgan Griffi n led a tour that in-

cluded McMillan, Weyburn MLA and Minister of Health

Dustin Duncan, and Estevan MLA Doreen Eagles, as well as

several shareholders in the company.

McMillan asked how long it takes to clompete. Bernie

Bjorndalen, salesman for Panther, responded that work had

started in February, but planning began prior to that.

In the generator room, Griffi n said, “Th is is the heart of the

rig.”

Without electricity, nothing runs.

Th e tour progressed through the pumphouse, where two

pumps could be found side-by-side with an open wall between

them.

Eagles asked Griffi n how he got into it the business. “I

was working my way to an apprenticeship carpenter. I’m from

Churchbridge. I came with some friends, and they wouldn’t

take me home on Sunday.”

Th e group progressed through the various parts of the rig,

eventually looking over the mud tank, blowout preventor sys-

tem, substructure, drilling fl oor and doghouse.

“Th is is the most amazing machine in the world. It’s a fas-

cinating industry,” Matt Cugnet, a geologist who is part of the

ownership group, told the politicians.

Th ey were given the opportunity to have their hand on the

brake and run the hook up and down. “Look at the size of that

hook,” Eagles said, wide-eyed, as she brought the brake down.

After the tour McMillan said, “When I was young, my

uncle owned a service rig, and I was called to duty from time-

to-time when someone didn’t show up. But I never set foot on

a drilling rig. It was extremely interesting. I’ve watched them

from the side of the lease many times.”

Asked about the three to fi ve new drilling rigs that get

launched each year in southeast Saskatchewan, McMillan com-

mented, “I think the oil industry is an amazing one for entre-

preneurship. Th e group that saw Panther as an opportunity,

that started investing six, seven years ago, is just an amazing

Saskatchewan story of entrepreneurs meeting the needs of the

great industry here in the southeast.”

“We talk so much about the price of oil and how many wells

are being drilled. All those are very important, but they all help

the others in the industry – the service side – rigs being built

here in Saskatchewan. Th at’s as big a part as anything.”

Minister tours Panther’s new rig

Saskatchewan’s Minister of Energy and Resources, Tim McMillan got to tour Panther Drilling’s Rig 4 on Oct. 5. It was his rst me on a drill-ing rig. He was joined by Minister of Health Dus n Duncan and MLA Doreen Eagles. McMillan represents Lloydminster, Duncan represents Weyburn, and Eagles takes care of Estevan. From le : Dan Cugnet, Ken Cugnet, Corey Hicks, Doreen Eagles, Tim McMillan, Dus n Duncan, Morgan Gri n, Ma Cugnet and Bernie Bjorndalen.


BRIEFS

Briefs courtesy Nickle’s Daily Oil Bulletin

Alberta Star Develop-

ment Corp. reports an ex-

cess of oil in mid-continental

North America. Due to in-

creased production in North

Dakota, Alberta and Texas,

as well as insuffi cient pipeline

capacity to transport this oil

south to major markets, it has

negatively impacted the com-

pany’s oil production revenue

this summer.

Th e company states this

oil glut has resulted in Cana-

dian product being sold at a

discount to the West Texas

Intermediate (WTI) bench-

mark crude oil price, as rising

production cannot fi nd pipe-

line capacity. Th is discount to

WTI has been even greater

for heavy oil such as Alberta

Star’s.

In spite of the reduction

in netback from the sale of its

heavy oil, Alberta Star made

dramatic overhead reduc-

tions to enable the company

to maintain a strong working

capital position of approxi-

mately $5.5 million. Fixed

general and administrative

expenses were reduced to ap-

proximately $36,000 a month

in September – a decrease

of 62 per cent over the same

month a year prior.

In its Oct. 15 news release,

which provides an update of

corporate development activ-

ity since the implementation

of management and board

changes in July, the company

states its management re-

viewed a number of advanced-

stage investment opportunities

in the precious metals sector,

taking advantage of new direc-

tor Tom Ogryzlo’s extensive

experience in the fi nancing,

engineering, construction and

operation of mining projects

on a worldwide basis.

Alberta Star dealing with crude oil glut

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Pipeline News got some one-on-one time with Energy and

Resources Minister Tim McMillan after he toured Panther

Drilling’s Rig 4, asking his thoughts on some of the items in

the news regarding energy policy and development. Here are

his responses:

Regarding Saskatchewan’s position on the proposed North-

ern Gateway pipeline, McMillan said, “We’ve been in favour,

we have been very supportive of any new pipeline capacity. We

think capacity is a constraint. We see the diff erentials between

West Texas and Brent crude, and a large portion of that is ca-

pacity, not just here, but down around Cushing as well. We have

publicly said we think Keystone XL is something that is good

for industry, and a gateway to the west is good as well. If it meets

all the environmental requirements, we will be in support of it.

On B.C. Premier Christy Clark’s assertion her province

won’t even hook up the Northern Gateway project to the elec-

trical grid, McMillan said, “I think there’s a lot of things going

on in the political sphere at this time in British Columbia. Th e

reality is, interprovincial trade is governed by federal law. Re-

source responsibilities were transferred to the provinces back

in the thirties. It’s constitutional. Saskatchewan has said we’re

not interested in the constitutional issues around energy. We

think those issues are established. For the good of Canada, they

should remain established as they are.”

As for how much this aff ects Saskatchewan, he said, “I

think our oilfi eld is in the middle of a continent with markets

we want to serve in other places, largely. We have 115,000 bar-

rels per day refi ning capacity. We produce over 440,000 barrels

per day. We know that fi nding those markets is going to be very

important immediately and in the medium term. Very interest-

ing things are going with oil by rail that is meeting demand

of refi neries on the East Coast. Potential pipeline reversals are

helping. But as the oilsands continue to grow, as production in

Saskatchewan continues to grow, we need more export capacity,

and we’re looking at all directions.”

Asked if shipping crude-by-rail will have an impact on Sas-

katchewan’s royalties, McMillan responded, “I think, big picture,

yes. Finding the most effi cient way to transport our products in-

creases the revenues in the pockets of our industry, and increases

the revenues to government for the products they ship.

“I had a chat with the Irving refi nery manager from New

Brunswick. Th ey are importing a very large volume of their oil

from Western Canada, some of it from Saskatchewan. Instead

of paying a Brent price of $118 a barrel, going back a few weeks,

they were sourcing prairie oil for the West Texas price. About an

$18 diff erential at the time, they were paying $7 for the pipeline

cost and still coming out $11 dollars ahead of what they could

get Brent for, which was their lead supplier previous.

“I think it’s a good part of the advantage we have. Entre-

preneurs are always searching for the least cost to produce the

products.”

Oilsands Quest’s assets had recently been sold to Cenovus.

McMillan commented, “We weren’t involved with the transfer.

Th ere was court-appointed offi cials that made those decisions.

Now that it’s been stated who has made the purchase, it’s a com-

pany that has big fi nancial capacity. We know the Saskatchewan

side of the border has slightly diff erent geological challenges to

what is being produced in Alberta. But Cenovus has the adjoin-

ing property on the Alberta side of the line of what they just

purchased, and they are working on bringing it into production.

A company like Cenovus has the capacity to develop the tech-

nology and bring it into production. We think that’s very good

for Saskatchewan.

“We have a world that needs more energy, and we have

70,000 square-kilometres of potential. I think at some point yes

(there will be production).”

McMillan talks pipelines and oilsands

Minister of Energy and Resources Tim McMillan takes the controls of Panther Drilling Rig 4. Behind him is Minister of Health Dus n Duncan. Between them, McMillan’s ministry is responsible for bringing in the most money to the province’s co ers, and Duncan’s spends by far the most. They, along with MLA Doreen Eagles, toured the new rig on Oct. 5 as it neared comple on.


Publisher: Brant Kersey - Estevan

Ph: 1.306.634.2654

Fax: 1.306.634.3934

Editorial Contributions: SOUTHEAST

Brian Zinchuk - Estevan 1.306.461.5599

SOUTHWEST

Swift Current 1.306.461.5599

NORTHWEST

Geoff Lee - Lloydminster 1.780.875.5865

Associate Advertising Consultants:SOUTHEAST

• Estevan 1.306.634.2654

Cindy Beaulieu

Candace Wheeler

Kristen O’Handley

Deanna Tarnes

Teresa Hrywkiw

CENTRAL

Al Guthro 1.306.715.5078

[email protected]

SOUTHWEST

• Swift Current 1.306.773.8260

Stacey Powell

NORTHWEST

• Lloydminster Randi Mast 1.780.808.3007

MANITOBA

• Virden - Dianne Hanson 1.204.748.3931

• Estevan - Cindy Beaulieu 1.306.634.2654

CONTRIBUTORS

• Estevan - Nadine Elson

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NEWSPIPELINE

Mission Statement:Pipeline News’ mission is to illuminate importance of Saskatchewan oil as an integral part of the province’s sense of community and to show the general public the strength and character of the industry’s people.

EDITORIAL

An interchange during the Oct. 16 U.S. presiden-

tial debate focused heavily on energy. More impor-

tantly for us, there was some important talk about

Canada.

Specifi cally, Republican candidate Governor Mitt

Romney slammed Democratic President Barrack

Obama on the “pipeline of oil from Canada.”

Romney said, “Let's take advantage of the energy

resources we have, as well as the energy sources for the

future. And if we do that, if we do what I'm planning

on doing, which is getting us energy independent,

North America energy independence within eight

years, you're going to see manufacturing jobs come

back. Because our energy is low cost, they are already

beginning to come back because of our abundant

energy. I'll get America and North America energy

independent. I'll do it by more drilling, more permits

and licences.

“We're going to bring that pipeline in from

Canada. How in the world the president said no to

that pipeline? I will never know.”

He hit the point again a few minutes later, say-

ing, “If the President's energy policies are working,

you're going to see the cost of energy come down. I

will fi ght to create more energy in this country, to get

America energy secure. And part of that is bringing in

a pipeline of oil from Canada, taking advantage of the

oil and coal we have here, drilling off shore in Alaska,

drilling off shore in Virginia where the people want it.

Th ose things will get us the energy we need.”

Obama’s answer on the pipeline issue was opaque.

He’s all for pipelines, but he didn’t say much about

That “pipeline of oil from Canada”

that pipeline from Canada.

Obama said, “What I want to do is to create an

economy that is strong, and at the same time produce

energy. And with respect to this pipeline that Governor

Romney keeps on talking about, we've – we've built

enough pipeline to wrap around the entire Earth once.

“So, I'm all for pipelines. I'm all for oil production.

What I'm not for is us ignoring the other half of the

equation. So, for example, on wind energy, when Gov-

ernor Romney says ‘these are imaginary jobs.’ When

you've got thousands of people right now in Iowa, right

now in Colorado, who are working, creating wind power

with good-paying manufacturing jobs, and the Repub-

lican senator in that – in Iowa is all for it, providing tax

breaks to help this work and Governor Romney says

I'm opposed. I'd get rid of it.

“Th at's not an energy strategy for the future. And

we need to win that future. And I intend to win it as

President of the United States.”

Th at says a lot to the Canadian oil industry. If

Obama was all for pipelines, Keystone XL would have

been built already. Enough pipelines have been built to

circle the Earth, but apparently crossing the 49th south

of Shaunavon is just a little too far.

Some people think that that no matter who wins the

election, that pipeline will get the go-ahead, and soon.

But listening to Obama, can we really believe that?

Canadians, at least those who realize that we still

need fuel to put in our cars, have been scratching their

heads at that. It seems President Obama is still more in-

terested in importing oil from the Middle East, because

Canadian oil isn’t good enough.


PIPELINE NEWS INVITES OPPOSING VIEW POINTS. EDITORIALS AND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ARE WELCOME.Email to: [email protected]

OPINION

Lee Side of LloydBy Geoff Lee

From the Top of The PileBy Brian Zinchuk

Th e fall of 1998 stands out very clearly in my

mind. I spent three months that year standing in

swamps. When I came home, my then-girlfriend,

now-wife noted I had a perfume of “eau-du-swamp”

about me.

It was so much fun, in fact, that by the time Oc-

tober came, standing in wet swamps with a howling

wind and not getting enough sleep resulted in me

getting pneumonia for a week. It was bad enough

that my foreman said something along the lines of

“Your mom lives 90 miles from here? Go home to

mom.”

Th at bout of pneumonia and one on the subse-

quent job has meant ever since then, when I get a

chest infection, it lasts a month, not a week, so it’s

something I don’t easily forget.

During that 1998 job, I was an oiler on an exca-

vator that was tasked with digging out all the swamps

on the Enbridge mainline right-of-way between

Regina and the Manitoba border. We were given

swamp mats, large 12x12 timbers bolted together, to

ensure the excavator wouldn’t sink into the ground.

At times, my operator was digging with water up to

the top of his tracks.

Th e idea was to dig out the ditch, and instead of

casting the spill to the far side of the right-of-way,

we cast it onto the ramp side – the side of the right-

of-way where you drive and weld the pipe. Th is made

a bridge through the wetland for the other crews.

We worked well ahead of them to ensure the spill

had time to dry.

If the water was too deep, pumps were used to

lower the water level, often pumping water from one

slough to the neighbouring slough.

Th is past month I spent time on two major proj-

ects, both National Energy Board-regulated. One is

the new Vantage Pipeline, which runs about 600 km

from south of Bengough to the Alberta border at

Empress. Th e other is the Bakken expansion project

for Enbridge.

What struck me in particular while riding

up and down these rights-of-way was the lack of

“swamp ditch” similar to what I worked on. A very

large number of these wetlands are being bored in-

stead of open cut.

Th at’s a huge change from just 14 years ago,

and at tremendous expense. Senior management for

both of the contractors I spoke to made competing

claims that they were working on one of most tech-

nical pipeline projects in Canada, despite the fact

that, compared to building pipelines in the Canadi-

an Shield, muskeg, or mountains, the Saskatchewan

prairie used to be considered fairly easy going.

Th e technical aspect has everything to do with

the much more stringent environmental regulations

their NEB permits have stipulated. Th ey are willing

to work within those permits, I must stress, as both

pointed out they must meet those requirements.

So instead of sending a Cat 345B excavator wad-

ing into the swamp with swamp mats and simply

digging a ditch, now,

especially on the Enbridge job, they are bringing in

a boring crew, a much more expensive proposition.

Th en on each end of the wetland, they must do a

tie-in weld, which necessitates a bell hole on each

end (and much more dirt moved). Tie-ins and bor-

ing are generally much more expensive than simply

digging open cut work. But that is the name of the

game now.

I should note that on the Enbridge job, almost

all the “wetlands” I saw were shoughs dry enough

to walk through without getting your boots wet, yet

they are still boring.

Back in the 1990s, we used to build pipelines

in June, July and August – the driest, and warmest

months. But due to concern over disturbing migra-

tory birds, that doesn’t happen anymore. Th e best

months for dirt work construction are now essen-

tially off -limits. Th e NEB would prefer workers deal

with ice and snow instead of working during the

most amicable months to build, all because of envi-

ronmental concerns over birds.

Th is is the reality pipeline builders must live

with today. So for all those who have been protest-

ing against new pipelines, perhaps they should open

their eyes to the current reality. Environment is fi rst

and foremost.

Brian Zinchuk is editor of Pipeline News. He can be reached at [email protected]

Th e winds of

change are blowing

through Alberta’s

energy sector with

the upcoming

completion of the province’s largest wind farm in

the village of Halkirk, east of Red Deer.

Th e $357 million project being developed by

Edmonton-based Capital Power Corp. will pro-

duce 150 megawatts of electricity. Th at will come

from 83 turbines over a 60 square kilometre area

straddling Highway 12 between Halkirk and Castor

upon completion in November.

Th e project will produce enough power to sup-

ply 50,000 homes and raises Alberta’s electricity

output from wind energy to approximately 1100

megawatts a year, third best in the country.

By comparison, Saskatchewan has a total wind

power capacity of 198 MW with plans to procure

another 177 MW of wind power by 2017.

SaskPower, Saskatchewan’s Crown electric util-

ity, is targeting approximately 8.5 per cent of its fu-

ture power supply to be provided by wind energy.

Ontario leads the nation with 2000 MW in op-

eration with another 3,600 MW being built includ-

ing some projects by Capital Power through On-

tario’s feed-in tariff .

What makes the Capital Power Corp. remark-

able is that Alberta is the only deregulated energy

system in Canada and doesn’t pay a higher price for

renewable energy like most provinces do.

Energy produced by the Halkirk project will

be sold into the Alberta spot market for electricity.

In addition, Capital Power will sell renewable en-

ergy credits (RECs) to the Pacifi c Gas and Electric

Company (PG&E) under terms of a 20 year-fi xed

contract.

Th e Halkirk project benefi ts from a California

law that requires every power company to produce a

certain amount of green energy, a condition that can

be met by purchasing green credits.

Th e power capacity of the Halkirk project

is based on the wind blowing 30 per cent of the

time as it surely must in the windy Estevan area of

Saskatchewan which is near the site of $1.24 bil-

lion coal-fi red carbon capture project at Boundary

Dam.

Th e Boundary Dam project includes plans to

capture and store one million tonnes of carbon di-

oxide a year, but wind power is renewable and gen-

erates no air emissions.

According to Environment Canada, 18 per cent

of Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions are created by

burning fossil fuels to generate electricity.

Th e Canadian Wind Energy Association esti-

mated using wind to produce enough power for over

200 homes of electricity instead of burning coal will

leave 900,000 kilograms of coal in the ground and

reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions by 2,000

tonnes.

Th e association believes wind energy can satisfy

20 per cent of Canada’s electricity demand by 2025

with installed capacity currently at 5,511 MW – 2.3

per cent of Canada’s total electricity demand.

Alberta’s Capital Power project will create 14

permanent jobs in Halkirk which has a population

of 122. It will generate additional annual tax rev-

enue for the county and the town.

Th e project will also pay an annual lease fee to

dozens of landowners who have been compensated

for the use of their land for access roads and tur-

bines.

Th e Halkirk turbines need a minimum wind

speed of just 11 kilometres per hour to produce

electricity with the optimum wind speed of 60 km/h

which puts a lot of the province in the running for

wind farms.

Major wind power projects would be well suited

to southeastern Saskatchewan where there are strong

reliable winds near available transmission lines.

It’s only a matter of time before the winds of

change blow a little stronger in Saskatchewan as the

economies of scale make wind power profi table as it

will for Capital Power in Halkirk, Alberta.

Environment trumps all when pipelining through wetlands

Can wind energize Saskatchewan too?


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Page A3Heier goes with the “birds of a

feather, stick together” concept, with

high performing, high quality people.

Th e culture is almost “quasi-military,”

he said, which would be in keeping

with the fact he noted, “I’m ex-army.

I was a master corporal when I was

done. I routinely go back to that.”

“When you join me, you’re almost

taking a blood oath. I have laid my

career and future down for people. I

stand by where the value is created, by

the people.”

He called it a brotherhood, or a

sisterhood, if you will.

Dean Hillenga is his No. 2, as

chief operating offi cer.

Many of the management staff

were once part of the Century Oil-

fi eld Services (another frac company)

team before it was acquired by Calfrac

a number of years ago.

“I sought out a pre-existing team,

one that had worked at the same

place. Th ey jumped at the opportunity

to do it over again.”

“Probably 80 per cent of the

money spent in the energy industry

is spent creating the wellbore and

completing it. Th ese days, most of the

wells are multistage frac horizontal

wells. Not too long ago, two thirds of

the money was spent on drilling. Th e

drilling side has become much more

effi cient.”

Th ere are 20 diff erent things that

have made drilling more effi cient, he

said, including the use of polycrystal-

line diamond cutter bits. Trinidad set

records in numerous basins, he noted.

But since drilling is now more effi -

cient, completions are a larger portion

of the spending pie.

FinancingTh e response to their fi nancing

drive was surprising, to say the least.

“I expected to be on the road for

six weeks,” Heier said, noting they

were seeking $28 million.

“We closed the book in a week

with $45 million in deals. Basically,

we went viral. Th e other deals on the

street got pulled, ours went viral.

“I was somewhat humbled.”

Th e company is privately held

with over 240 investors. Some are in-

stitutions. But the largest shareholder

is two million of 28 million shares.

Directors and management have the

largest holdings.

Th ere is one minor fl y in the oint-

ment, however. Th ere’s not as much

Saskatchewan content as he would

have liked. Th at was a result of being

oversubscribed.

Spreads“Currently we’re building two

5,500 horsepower frac spreads,” Heier

said. Each will have two 2,750 horse-

power pumps plus all the support

units.

“We have under construction a

coil tubing support unit,” he added.

Th e equipment is due to show

up at the end of November or early

December.

“We’ll be operational by Q4, a bit

early,” he said. “Th e coil tubing unit

will show up early Q2.”

An 18,500 square-foot shop is

under construction. “We’ll be expand-

ing it by another 7,000 square feet in

a few years,” he said.

Th e location is a 10-acre parcel on

Shand Road, southeast of Estevan.

“Th ere will be more things we

will bring to the table our competitors

do not,” he promised.

Estevan base“Th is Estevan facility is Millen-

nium’s master service centre. Th is is

where we’re going to go from. Any

growth will be supported from here.

Asked why Estevan was chosen,

he said it was the centre of the Cana-

dian side of the Williston Basin. He

was also born and raised in Estevan.

“We’re going to try to get as

many people as possible to move here.

We’ll recruit from this area. Every-

thing below the executive level will be

in Estevan. Headquarters will be in

Calgary.

“We’re here to build a local cul-

ture. Th is is the frac home for Mille-

nium. Th is will never be a satellite.”

By the end of the year, they ex-

pect to have a staff numbering in the

low- to mid-60s.

“Th ey can’t wait to get here, in

fact. We found a lot of personnel very

eager to join our team, people who

will buy into the culture we are trying

to create. But not everybody fi ts our

culture.”

Housing is an issue, something

they are “still talking about.”

“We don’t want to rent the com-

munity. Th is is our community,” Heier

said, referring to the common prac-

tice of frac workers often being from

somewhere else, and not setting down

roots.

Smaller fracs“We’re not going to chase after

big gas. We will go after smaller, oil-

based fracs, smaller tonnage jobs that

are less controversial.”

As CEO, Heier said he’s looking

fi ve to six years into the future, several

years ahead of the team. He would

eventually like to build “10ish” frac

spreads, deployed in three areas, “as

far south as the Permian Basin or as

north as north-central Alberta.”

“We’re going to go where we’re

wanted, fi rst. Th ere’s always room for

top performers.”

Lesser performing companies are

“scraped off the edge,” he said.

While the booming North

Dakota market is tempting, working

across the border from Canada is not

an easy challenge, according to Heier.

However, Trinidad’s U.S. operations

account for 60 per cent of its rev-

enues, he pointed out.

Mike Heier, CEO and president

of Millennium Stimulation Services

and chairman of Trinidad Drilling

Ltd. has put a lot of thought into the

importance of the skills developed in

stimulation in southeast Saskatch-

ewan, and its future impact on the

world. Th e centre of excellence for

coil fracking, he said, is right here, in

Estevan.

“Th is is the centre of the world

for coil fracking, just as it was for

horizontal drilling. Some of the more

fi nesseful skill sets for coil fracking

were developed here.”

He pointed out that shale oil at

similar depths exist all over the world.

“North America has seven per

cent of the boe of global world

production, yet we consume about 75

per cent of global land-based drilling

and completion services chasing that

seven per cent.

“Th is is the centre of excellence.

Th is is the centre of expertise. What

do you think will happen when the

other 93 per cent of the global boe

want to do what we have been doing

here for the last 20 years?”

“Until someone either uses less

fuel, ha! Or fi nds some miracle new

fuel that’s not out there, we have no

choice. All these eco-terrorists who

want to shut everything down, sorry,

our global consumption keeps going

up.

Th e peak oil theory is real. We’ve

already gone over the peak. Th e peak

isn’t about one day oil shuts off . It’s

about the peak stuff is gone. It’s way

behind. We had that fundamental

shift fi ve, six years ago. Th e marginal

barrel produced right now is $65 a

barrel. Th at’s the replacement cost.

A short time ago it was 30 bucks a

barrel, and a short time before that, it

was $15.

“We’re in this hyperbolic curve

now. It’s not a linear curve anymore.

Th ose replacement numbers that

come on are very expensive. Th at’s the

kind of stuff we’re doing all around.

People want cheap oil? Just be happy

you’re going to get supply.”

“Going back to that 93 per cent

of the global boe, when they start

doing the things we started doing 20

years ago, optimizing existing oil-

fi elds, they’ve been down that path.

Now they have to start working on

the tough stuff . Th e services that do

that do not exist. Th e expertise does,

but in small quantities. If you under-

stand what we’re doing here, this is

an exercise in building for the future.

Th e kind of people train here today,

ten years from now, are going to be a

global expert.”

“Th ere’s nothing like a good ’ole

Saskatchewan farm boy somewhere

in the Middle East to get something

done. Farm kids from Saskatchewan,

Manitoba and Alberta built the in-

dustry,” he concluded.

Fracking centre of excellence

Rebuilding a pre-existing team


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Calgary – Cenovus Energy Inc.

purchased the remaining assets of

bankrupt Oilsands Quest for $10 mil-

lion with the approval of the Alberta

Court of Queen’s bench on Oct. 2.

Th e Calgary-based oilsands

explorer had been operating under the

Companies’ Creditors Arrangement

Act since November 2011 and was

actively seeking to sell off its assets in

Saskatchewan and Alberta.

Th e majority of the sale assets

are located adjacent to Cenovus’s

proposed Telephone Lake oilsands

project in northern Alberta.

“We are pleased to acquire these

assets at such a reasonable price,” said

John Brannan, Cenovus executive

vice-president and chief operating

offi cer in a news release.

“Th is is a good bolt-on acquisi-

tion that has the potential to add

value to one of Cenovus’s next big

emerging oilsands projects.”

Th e purchase and sale agreement

for the company’s assets was signed

with Ernst & Young, the court-ap-

pointed monitor overseeing Oilsands

Quest’s liquidation and closed on

Oct. 12.

Oilsands Quest fi led for creditor

protection in November 2011 after it

failed to fi nd a buyer for its Wallace

Creek property in Alberta.

Th e company had hoped to sell

its Wallace Creek property in 2011

for $40 million cash at closing and

an additional $20 million, “subject

to certain future events” and use the

proceeds to develop its Axe Lake

property in Saskatchewan toward

commercial development.

Oilsands Quest fi rst became

involved in Saskatchewan's oilsands

industry in the fall of 2004 when it

acquired oilsands exploration permits

in the northwest region of the prov-

ince.

In early 2010, Oilsands Quest

submitted an application to the

government of Saskatchewan for a

SAGD pilot project that would be-

come the fi rst stage of a 30,000 barrel

per day commercial oilsands develop-

ment at Axe Lake.

Th e company prepared detailed

plans for that pilot project, but put

the plans on hold late in 2010 while

seeking a partner or other strate-

gic alternative, given the signifi cant

capital expenditures associated with a

commercial oilsands facility.

Th e acquisition by Cenovus

includes three oilsands leases cover-

ing approximately 59,000 hectares in

Alberta and Saskatchewan that adjoin

Cenovus’s Telephone Lake property.

Cenovus submitted a joint regula-

tory application and environmental

impact assessment late last year for an

initial 90,000 barrel per day project at

Telephone Lake.

Th e company expects Telephone

Lake will become another cornerstone

project like Foster Creek or Chris-

tina Lake, Cenovus’s two producing

oilsands assets.

Th e acquisition includes a 34,000

hectare oil shale lease (Pasquia Hills)

in east-central Saskatchewan, as well

as various surface assets, such as a

work camp and assorted vehicles and

equipment.

It does not include any of Oil-

sands Quest’s corporate assets or

shares.

Cenovus buys Oilsands Quest assets for $10M

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It looks like we got a little colour blind last month. In our photo spread

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By Geoff LeePipeline News

Lloydminster – Range One Oilfi eld Services is now equipped to provide its

heavy well servicing customers with coil rod change-outs and installations.

Th e Lloydminster-based company took delivery of a new truck mounted

X-celerator in late October to diversify its core well services including comple-

tions, workovers, stimulations, recompletions and pump changes.

“We just found that it would fi t well with our service rigs,” said Gerry

Nygren, CEO and majority owner.

“Th ere are times when we can’t get our hands on one, so the rig shuts down

early or maybe has to start late the next day waiting for one.”

Th e X-celator was purchased from C-Tech Design & Manufacturing in

Edmonton and will put Range One in a more competitive position utilizing its

current fl eet of three single double mobile service rigs.

“We thought if we had one around, it would make it more available to the

rigs,” said Nygren.

“It would increase the rig utilization for us. It will cut down on downtime,

and it should stand on its own too.”

Th e decision to purchase the X-celator coincides with Range One’s plan

to house its equipment and offi ce in a new 10,000 sq.-ft. building that is under

construction in the Hill Industrial Park.

“We plan to move in the spring or summer of 2013,” said Nygren. “We

may not utilize the whole thing to begin with.”

Currently Range One has use of an offi ce at L & L Oilfi eld Construction

Ltd., which owns a minority share in the company.

“I think the new building will kick us ahead. We’re going to have to have a

place to park our X-celerator unit anyway,” said Nygren.

“Th at’s kind of a demand that we can’t get away with this time.”

Without a building, the company has been basically parking its equipment

wherever it fi nishes for the day.

Nygren started Range One 10 years ago and learned the importance of

diversifi cation and having a measured growth strategy when the demand for

well servicing dropped off in the 2008 downturn.

“It’s been a real slow climb back up. Th is year it’s okay – we’re doing good. I

wouldn’t say we are doing great, but we are doing good,” said Nygren.

Range One services heavy oil customers within a 100 mile radius of Lloy-

dminster with workovers and recompletions topping the list of well services

most in demand.

“Th ere’s also typical pump changes. We produce a lot of sand here, and

that’s hard on the pumps,” said Nygren.

“We do horizontal and vertical wells, but we are not geared toward direc-

tion or slant wells.”

Th e decision by Range One to purchase the X-celerator and construct a

new facility follows a trend for well servicing companies to position themselves

for success as one-stop shops.

“I think a lot of companies are going that way. Th e start-up companies

obviously haven’t gotten into that,” said Nygren. Page A11

Range One poised for growth


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www.kenilworth.ca

Gerry Nygren, CEO of Range One Oil eld Services, stands near his Rig 3 that is ready for service a er a maintenance checkup. The company has just purchased a new truck mounted X-celerator and plans to move into a building by the summer of 2013. Photo by Geo Lee

Page A10“We’re not that further along either yet. We’re not that large of a company,

but we are moving that way.”

Nygren got his start in the oil industry over 30 years ago as an entry level

fl oorhand on service rigs and has lots of experience working for larger compa-

nies such as BP, Encana and Talisman.

“I also did contract operating and consulting. I’ve kind of worked my way

around the industry and I’m back full circle where I started on the rigs,” he

said.

Nygren oversees a staff of 16 employees including three fi ve man crews and

a supervisor, and he thrives on the daily challenges of managing the business.

“It keeps you awake every day. Th ere’s always something new. Diversifi ca-

tion is probably one of the biggest ones for me right now – which direction do

I take?” he said.

“I look at it as a lot of opportunity. I can see several diff erent directions I

can take. It’s trying to pick which one.

“Th is year, it was getting a truck mounted X-celerator unit. Th at was the

direction for this year.

“Next year, it’s going to be the building. We’ve already taken that plan.

What else next year brings I am not sure. It’s one step at a time,” Nygren said.


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Story and photos by Geoff Lee

Lloydminster – Reliance Industrial

Products Ltd. is gaining some unex-

pected publicity for its new service

rig division with a client rig up taking

place behind their Lloydminster shop

in the Hill Industrial Park.

Reliance won the contract to rig

up the fi rst service rig made for On-

ion Lake Energy by Kobes Welding

Ltd. in Lloydminster.

“It’s really good for us because

you can see that rig from anywhere on

the truck route,” said Michelle Strass-

burger who manages the new rig divi-

sion launched locally in January.

“Th at tells everyone ‘oh my God,

look, they’ve got well servicing there

now!’”

Th e service rig division sells ev-

erything from tube and rod elevators

and power tongs to spiders, tubing

bailers and rubber products and ac-

cessories.

“Th e rig up is an opportunity to

sell all the products we supply,” said

Strassburger.

“Our safety division sold them all

the safety equipment for the rig. We

are making the hoses for them here

too.”

Page A13

Reliance adds supply lines for service rigs

Reliance service rig manager Michelle Strassburger grips a rod elevator part for a service rig. To the le is a larger tubing elevator. In the box is a silver coloured swivel joint.


Page A12

Reliance specializes in hose as-

semblies and services for all industries

including high pressure hose testing.

Th ey also sell and service a com-

plete line of Scott breathing apparatus

and related safety supplies.

Th eir niche is selling everything

from the ground up in oilfi eld sup-

plies and safety equipment, and

Reliance has become a one-stop shop

with the addition of the service rig

division throughout its Western Ca-

nadian and U.S. locations.

Th e company also started a drill-

ing division at its Nisku location a

couple of years ago to further diversify

their oilfi eld supply and safety prod-

uct off erings.

“I think they want expand a little

bit and make this a one-stop store

where you can buy everything from

rope, dope and soap to hoses and

safety equipment,” said Strassburger.

“We sell tongs, elevators and

blocks and all that kind of stuff . Ev-

erything kind of goes together.”

Th e service rig product catalogue

reads like a phone book, covering

every product for well servicing from

pipes, valves and fi ttings to blowout

prevention equipment and mud test-

ing products. Page A14

It was a snowy day when Mike Bernard posed for this photo by the site of this ongoing rig up of Onion Lake Energy’s rst service rig at the Reliance shop in Lloydminster.

Here Bernard overlooks the Reliance warehouse and shop for oil eld supply and safety products and services. The top oor serves as a storehouse for the company’s new service rig division.


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Page A13Th e Onion Lake service rig up is a sales coup for the new division that has

led to the recent hire of Mike Bernard as a full-time outside sales representa-

tive.

“It’s very exciting. I have 13 years of drilling experience and a little bit of

well servicing experience,” said Bernard who sees the rig up as a training expe-

rience.

“Working in supplies, you sell everything, but you don’t get the opportunity

all the time to see where it gets put, and how it’s used. It’s a good learning tool.

“I will be basically selling everything that’s out of this branch and work-

ing with Michelle to promote the well servicing side. Th at’s where Michelle’s

expertise is.

“I am probably going to be pushing the supply demand on the well servic-

ing side with companies around town – not really a specifi c product brand, but

push the company and the service,” he said.

Th e ongoing rig up at Reliance is a sales booster for Strassburger who came

into the job with more than 15 years of experience selling oilfi eld supplies in

the Lloydminster area.

Her industry contacts helped Reliance to outbid the competition for On-

ion Lake Energy’s fi rst single double service rig for heavy oil applications.

“We’ve got that service rig in our backyard now. It’s set up there,” said

Strassburger.

“Th ey are putting their equipment on it. Th ey are bringing their doghouse

in, and we are loading them up and giving them all of their supplies out there,

so that they can set it up and get it out to the fi eld.

“We are supplying 90 per cent of the parts. Th ey are buying everything

from rope, soap, dope and BOPs to travelling blocks, all the hoses, all the safety

supplies – everything.”

Strassburger and branch manager Ken Pacula were at the Lloydminster

Heavy Oil Show in September where they had an exhibit of products such as

cam locks, hydraulic hoses and Cavins oil well tools.

“We also carry a wide variety of fl anges, fi ttings, pipe nipples, pipe – a wide

gamut of industry specifi c products for the well servicing and drilling industry,”

said Pacula.

Th e oil show was also a great opportunity for Strassburger to let her former

clients know about her new ground fl oor opportunity with the Reliance service

rig division.

“Th e funny thing about the oil show is that it worked out well for me

because people say ‘oh there you are, what are you doing here’ – oh, the same

thing,’” said Strassburger with a smile.

Rigging up their rst service rig


One Call Will Supply It All

Cose e Green, business and industry liaison with AlbertaWorks, handed out a lot of these orange tote bags for job seekers at a Lloydminster and re-gion fall job fair on Oct. 11. More than 40 employers were on hand for the event.

Story and photos by Geoff LeeLloydminster – Oilfi eld service companies were out in force at a Lloydmin-

ster and region fall job fair that drew more than 150 job seekers in the fi rst two

hours.

More than 40 area companies including CWC Well Services, Precision

Well Services and Matrix Well

Servicing were eager to meet new

employee prospects at the Lloy-

dminster Exhibition Grounds on

Oct. 11.

Th e job fair was sponsored by

AlbertaWorks in partnership with

the Lloydminster Chamber of

Commerce. Th e event was held with

the purpose of helping a variety of

local businesses fi ll needed positions

in a tight labour market.

“We had employers with a

large employment gaps needing

to fi ll positions getting desperate,”

said Cosette Green, business and

industry liaison with AlbertaWorks

in Lloydminster.

“Typical techniques were not

working – radio ads – you name it

were going out.

“We were doing mini job fairs

in our AlbertaWorks offi ce and

employers said ‘they were successful,

let’s do a bigger one’ to draw people

from further away.

“People are willing to drive a

greater distance if they know they

can meet 50 employers rather than

fi ve.”

Th e fair was scheduled on the heels of a Statistics Canada labour report for

September showing Alberta with the lowest unemployment rate in Canada at

4.4 per cent, followed by Saskatchewan at 4.7 per cent.

“Our oil companies are feeling the need. Many are saying that they could

use 50-plus employees,” said Cosette.

“When we talk to them about

hiring needs, their biggest chal-

lenge is to be able to get away to

do the hiring.

“Hopefully, today this will help

suffi ce – they will do some hiring,

attract some people and then they

can get busy.”

Th at was the goal of Jill

Cooney, fi eld employee develop-

ment co-ordinator at Halliburton’s

oilfi eld cementing operations in

Lloydminster.

“We are recruiting for fi eld

operators for cement trucks,” said

Cooney.

“We are looking for OAs

which are operator assistants, heavy

truck drivers and mechanics and

pretty much everything to do with

the fi eld services.”

Page A16

Job fair draws 150 job seekersJob fair draws 150 job seekers


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Lloyd job fair works as intended

Page A15A Halliburton career bulletin

explained cementing is the process

of mixing and pumping cement with

high pressure pumps to bond the cas-

ing to the formation.

A fi eld operator is responsible for

mixing water and powder cement and

pumping the mixing to the rig fl oor

using a high pressure pump.

“We’ve got quite a few good

resumes – a lot of really good poten-

tials, that’s for sure,” said Cooney at

her booth.

“It’s actually turned out better

than we thought. We’ve talked to

some really good folks, and we are

quite impressed with the turnout that

we’ve had so far.”

Attending the job fair was a no-

brainer for Katherine Hemsworth,

human resources recruiter at Fore-

most Universal LP.

Th e fast-growing company

employs about 400 employees at its

nine business units in Alberta includ-

ing about 100 workers at its two tank

manufacturing facilities in Lloydmin-

ster

“Our company is looking for a

wide variety of local positions – ship-

per/receiver welders – Level 2 and 3

journeymen and B pressure. We are

also looking for a pipefi tter,” she said

during a break in the action.

“Th e reaction has been pretty

good. We’ve had quite a few resumes

come in – lots of labourers looking to

start apprenticeships.

“We are still looking for more of

the higher level guys – the journey-

men and the B pressure.”

Foremost Universal recently

opened a new offi ce at the Lloydmin-

ster shop to keep pace with increased

activity in the region.

“We’ve got that whole yard

behind Universal that we’ve been ex-

panding. We’ve got contracts that are

extending into 2015 already,” added

Hemsworth.

“We are hoping to get a lot of

guys coming out for this recruitment

fair.”

As one of the world’s largest

oilfi eld service companies, it was no

surprise Weatherford was in the mar-

ket for regional employees.

“We are looking for a variety of

diff erent positions. We have six facili-

ties within the city of Lloydminster,”

said Tanya Walker, human resources

adviser.

Page A17

The AlbertaWorks employment crew of Darius Jensen, Cose e Green and Kelly Poitras welcomed visitors to the Lloydminster and region job fair at the Lloydminster Exhibi on Grounds on Oct. 11. The event was sponsored by AlbertaWorks in partnership with the Lloydminster Chamber of Commerce.


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Walker was hoping for fi ll openings for wireline

operators, PC pump manufacturing assemblers,

pump technicians, rig assistants and shop hands at

the local divisions.

“We are looking for candidates with a positive

work ethic and someone with a positive attitude

that really wants to develop and grow with the

company,” she said.

“Th e response has been really overwhelming.

We’ve got really good candidates. It’s only about

11:30, and I have about 20 resumes sitting with me

already. It’s been really good today.”

URS Flint Energy Services, National Oilwell

Varco, Global Fusion Coating and Integrated

Production Services, and Relay Distributing also

had recruiters at the fair that was planned to allow

employers to meet candidates in person.

“It’s better that way because questions can be

asked, and you can have a face to face with people

which I think is always better,” said Pat Tenney,

executive director of the Lloydminster Chamber of

Commerce.

“We have employers and members of the

chamber in our community who are desperately

seeking employees” she said.

“When AlbertaWorks said they had some

funding we said ‘okay we will do the work and put

the job fair on’.

“We did the management and administration

and AlbertaWorks promoted it to through their

networks.”

Personnel recruiter Jennifer Miller from Precision Well Servicing in Lloydminster, pro-vided informa on to job seekers about job openings.

Jill Cooney, eld employee development co-ordinator for Halliburton’s cemen ng op-era ons in Lloydminster, answers ques ons about local job openings.


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Lloydminster – It took three diff erent carriers

to deliver the new $750,000 teaching boiler and

components for installation in the power engineer-

ing lab at Lakeland College in Lloydminster.

Th e longest and most important drive was

made by Daryl Mackai who parked his Peterbilt

truck and trailer carrying the boiler in front of the

campus the morning of Oct. 2 after a fi ve day ride

from Dallas, Texas.

Th e trip was Mackai’s fi rst visit to Canada as a

driver for STS or Specialized Transport Service in

San Antonio and Dallas, and he was eager to talk

about his experiences and itinerary upon arrival.

“I left Dallas Friday morning (Sept. 28), loaded

in Oklahoma on Friday afternoon, and got up into

Wichita, and pretty much ‘come up’ Friday after-

noon, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, and here I

am, and I believe it’s about 10 o’clock on Tuesday

morning,” he said with a smile.

“It’s just shy of 2,000 miles. I picked up the

boiler in Collinsville, Oklahoma which is pretty

much straight north of Tulsa.

“I am came up to Canada through North Portal

in North Dakota off Highway 52.”

As for his route through Saskatchewan, Mackai

said, “I came up 39 to 1 to 2, so I came up through

Moose Jaw, and then I took 2 north up to 11 to 16.

“I had to do a little detour here (Lloydminster)

coming down 40th Street to 12 Avenue and then

come back up north on 59 Ave.

“It’s very easy to not get lost out here. Th e roads

were pretty clearly marked, and it’s pretty simple.”

Among the cheerleaders was Greg Shalay who

teaches power engineering courses at the campus

and was most thrilled to see the boiler fi nally arrive.

“Today is a quite a milestone that it’s actually

here,” he said. “We will be teaching more students

to a higher standard of power engineering to fi ll the

jobs that are all around Lloyd.

Th e boiler will be installed and commissioned

in November prior to the countdown to Lakeland’s

centennial year celebrations in November 2013.

“Our department centennial project is to up-

grade the old lab and build a new lab so it’s impor-

tant to us,” said Shalay.

Th e offi cial sod-turning ceremony for Lake-

land’s new $17 million Petroleum Centre took place

at the campus on Sept. 11.

Th e new boiler was made by Victory Energy in

Oklahoma and the controls were made by Process

Combustion Systems in Calgary.

“Th ere’s going to be a couple of shipments.

Th ere’s another truck tomorrow following this

truck,” said Shalay.

“It’s coming from Oklahoma too. It’s got the

piping and the stack and the platform. Th ere are at

least three diff erent carriers.”

Mackai said he has been long hauling for STS

for nearly 12 years – since he was 21 – and never

made it across the border until he got the call to

drive to Lakeland College.

“I am originally from Wisconsin, so I’ve been

close, but never actually came across the border.

“I was kind of shocked at how many hay haul-

ers were coming south over the border. I know

we’ve got enough down by us, that’s for sure.

Page A19

Lakeland teaching boiler arrives in style

Lakeland power engineering instructor Greg Shalay is dwarfed by the new teaching boiler that was transported to the Lloydminster campus from Oklahoma and in a protec ve plas c wrap. It took three carriers to deliver all of the parts from Oklahoma and Calgary.


Page A18“I was shocked how much oil work is up here.”

As for Canadian highways Mackai said, “Th ey’re a little rough – a little

bouncy, but Texas and Oklahoma can pretty much beat you to death too.”

Mackai did take notice of the Tim Hortons outlets along the way and

although he’s a self-confessed Coke drinker, he found the Canadians he met to

be friendly and helpful without having to order a coff ee.

“I got messed up

yesterday and I made

a wrong turn and a

guy helped me out and

backed me right onto

to the road and gave me

proper directions and

everything,” he said.

“It was wonderful.

You would never get

that in the States, that’s

for sure.”

Mackai said he

drove all the way by

himself and likes it that

way.

“I always have. I’ve

never ran with any-

body.”

STS is a family-run

business that operates

specialized transporta-

tion of oversized and

overweight equipment

including oilfi eld equip-

ment in 42 states.

Th e company has

six trucks in Dallas and

three in San Antonio.

“We’re a heavy-haul specialist company. We can haul regular small equip-

ment all the way up to – we have 13-axle trailers,” said Mackai.

“We do a lot of equipment movement not specifi c to the oilfi eld, but we do

a lot of construction and everything that’s affi liated with the oilfi eld.

“Th e trailer that I have has a Murray trunnion. Down in Texas, it’s good for

60,000 (pounds) on the back. My truck is set up right now – I can do 20,000

on the steers and ‘60 on the drives’ and ‘60 on the trailer.’”

Mackai said he would probably sleep in the cab overnight in readiness for

the unloading of the boiler and components the next morning.

He added that he might pick up a load to carry back across the border

when the job was done.

“If we fi nd one – I have no clue yet – most likely, but probably not, but we

will see what happens,” he said.

Th e plan called for a Prairie Crane to unload the boiler and roll into the

power lab at the campus for assembly.

“We hope to have it running in about a month,” said Shalay.

“It’s a D-type

industrial water tube

boiler that can produce

10,000 pounds an hour

of steam. Mainly it’s a

training boiler.

“It’s brand new.

It’s the fi rst one of this

series and design in the

province. Th ere are oth-

er D-type boilers in the

province but this one is

specifi cally designed for

teaching.

“When we build

the new lab then we

will expand the capac-

ity of the boiler to heat

the college and provide

electricity for the col-

lege.”

Th e lab will be a

construction zone with

restricted access during

the installation period,

but Shalay hopes to

schedule some student

visits during breaks to

monitor the progress of the hookup.

“I am sort of co-ordinating between the college and the engineers and the

contractors that are putting it together,” he said.

“Students are quite interested in watching the process as it’s installed and

especially as it’s started up.

“Th e students will be involved in the lab once it’s hooked up and we’re go-

ing through the commissioning process.

“We are making arrangements for sneak peeks at the assembly process. We

will arrange times when the job is a little bit quieter so we don’t have welders

welding while students are in the room,” Shalay said.

The stacks for Lakeland’s new boiler were trucked by Alberta contract driver Dean Nagy (le , in ball cap) from Snowy River Transporta on Inc. on behalf of Landstar Inway Inc. from Jacksonville, Florida. Forkli driver Nolan Winder from Strathcona Mechanical Ltd. helps crewmates Jeremy Peebles, an appren ce plumber, and supervisor Chris Havenor to unload the shipment from the at deck.


Phone: 780.614.2113Phone: 780.614.2113Fax: 780.614.2115Fax: 780.614.2115

Luc Cell: 780.210.0635Luc Cell: 780.210.0635email: [email protected]: [email protected]

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Lloydminster – Enrolment gains for the current fall term at Lakeland Col-

lege are being led by increases in energy and petroleum technology and trades

and technology classes.

Lakeland’s fall enrolment has increased for the third year in a row with

2,500 full-time and part-time credit students registered in classes at the

Lloydminster and Vermilion campuses, an increase of 5.8 per cent from 2011

numbers.

Th ere are currently 834 full-time and 117 part-time students at the Ver-

milion campus, 705 full-time and 165 part-time students at the Lloydminster

campus, and 100 full-time and 579 part-time students in online and off -cam-

pus programs.

Energy and petroleum technology, trades and technology, sign language

studies, and human services have gained the most new students this fall accord-

ing to a 2012 enrolment report released on Oct. 5.

Th e report was prepared by Phil Allen, vice-president of advancement and

student services at Lakeland College who credited some of the growth to the

introduction of a new heavy oil power engineering diploma program this fall.

Energy powers enrolment at LakelandHe also noted there are increases in apprenticeship students, and a large

jump in part-time enrolment in power engineering, educational assistant and

early learning and child care courses.

Th ere are also 53 high school students taking dual credit courses at the

college.

Th is year’s class includes students from every province and territory in

Canada but for Nunavut.

Th ere are also international students from United States, Finland, Barba-

dos, Jamaica, Bahamas, Japan and Australia.

Th ese numbers are a snapshot of the college’s enrolment up to early Octo-

ber with additional intakes expected in apprenticeship technical training, fi re

and emergency services, practical nurse, university transfer, business throughout

the year.

Last year, Lakeland served 7,500 full-time and part-time students during

the academic year.

Edmonton-based Capital Power celebrated the construc on progress of its 150 mega-wa Halkirk Wind project on Sept. 19 in the village of Halkirk in east Central Alberta with a public to tour of the 10,000 hectare site. Photo submi ed

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Henk ten Wolde, trade commissioner at the Alberta Netherlands Trade O ce, Consulate of the Netherlands in Edmonton, spoke to the Lloydminster Rotary Club in September on how Alberta and the Netherlands can do business in each other’s region. The Dutch have opportu-ni es in their downstream natural gas industry and their heavy oil ac vi es near the German border.

By Geoff LeeLloydminster – Th e Lloydminster Rotary Club

enjoyed a Dutch treat at their September lunch

presentation by Henk ten Wolde, trade commis-

sioner Alberta Netherlands Trade Offi ce in the

Consulate of the Netherlands. His topic covered

opportunities for trade in both regions, and the suc-

cess to date in areas such as bioenergy, agriculture,

environment, food and infrastructure.

Ten Wolde was invited to speak at the Lloyd-

minster Exhibition Grounds by the rotary club and

the Lloydminster Economic Development Corpo-

ration.

“Th e economic development group within the

community has connections to Henk, and because

of that we invited him to speak at rotary,” said Les

Harper, rotary president following the talk and slide

presentation at the Prairie Room.

“You can tell by the things he said today, there

are a lot of connections between what they do and

potential opportunities in our community and vice

versa.”

New opportunities are opening up for Alberta

and Dutch companies in energy, soil and water

technology, education, construction and oilsands

research.

Ten Wolde said several Lloydminster oil service

companies have already jumped at the chance to

help the Netherlands unlock their heavy oil reserves

in a shared reservoir near the border with Germany.

“Th ey are bringing in products for pumps and

that kind of stuff . We hope we can pump faster

with your pumps than the Germans can on their

side of the border,” he said.

Th e Dutch have a total of 34.3 billion cubic

metres of oil reserves, he said the doors are open to

heavy oil production expertise from Lloydminster

through ANTO.

“I have friends on a regular basis go to Holland

to do service work in that oil patch,” said Harper

who owns Elliott Petroleum that manufactures

heavy duty lubricants in Maidstone.

“Some of the pumping units and some of the

continuous tubing trucks are out of this community

and being used in the oilpatch in Holland.”

Harper said his company doesn’t export to the

Netherlands right now, but he noted “we do some

things that other companies in the world don’t do,

so I think maybe that’s a chance to reciprocate.”

Th e Netherlands has one of the world’s largest

natural gas industries and it is also generating op-

portunities for Albertan companies such as Vermil-

ion Energy in Calgary.

Th e trade offi ce in Edmonton assists Dutch

companies that desire to conduct business in

Alberta by linking them to Alberta companies,

government and organizations.

For Alberta companies that want to conduct

business in the Netherlands, ANTO will act as liai-

son between the Alberta companies and the Neth-

erlands Foreign Investment Agency (NFIA).

“We can help especially when you look at niche

markets. In niche markets, we have raw commodi-

ties,” said ten Wolde.

“For instance, it’s really strange and nobody

knows, but the Netherlands is exporting kerosene

out of the Port of Rotterdam to Canada for air-

planes.

Page A23

Dutch seek business pipeline to Alberta


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Les Harper, president of the Lloydminster Rotary Club, thanks Henk ten Wolde, trade commissioner at the Consulate of the Netherlands in Edmonton, for speaking to a mixed business audience at the Prairie Room in the Lloydminster Exhibi on Grounds on Sept. 24.

Page A22“Th at’s something we are specialize in – downstream we are strong – we

are looking more to the market – where is the market – maybe we can be of

good assistance there.”

Th e country boasts two huge LNG facilities in Rotterdam with the capac-

ity to store nine billion cubic metres and pipelines that connect to Europe’s

hinterland.

Th e Netherlands also has enough gas reserves for 25-50 years at current

consumption levels.

Th e Netherlands supports a substantial oil and gas infrastructure industry

and there are 37 companies in the Association of Dutch Suppliers in the oil

and gas industry.

Th e Port of Rotterdam is the world’s second biggest importer and exporter

of refi ned oil products and is the primary gateway to the European market.

“We are the biggest trading partner in Europe from Alberta and it’s very

unique,” said ten Wolde.

“Everybody thinks it’s Germany or France or the United Kingdom, but no,

it’s the Netherlands because of our port in Rotterdam.

“Out of Alberta through the port of Montreal go thousands and thousands

of tons of goods every year to the Netherlands, and we distribute them all over

Europe. We have a market for 500 million consumers.

“When you have a product here and you want to distribute to Europe, we

are the country to work with.”

Ten Wolde listed several new opportunities to stimulate more trade be-

tween the two regions in areas such as water, energy, food, environment, educa-

tion, construction and oilsands technology.

Dutch food companies for instance, are particularly interested in importing

more Alberta beef while Alberta is keen to tap into Dutch expertise on value

added products, logistics and food processing.

Th e Netherlands is the second largest food exporter in the world. Th e

country also has the expertise to share in related areas of bio-energy, converting

manure to energy, and biomass fuel technology.

Dutch oil and gas companies are also looking for help from some Alberta

companies to help their own downstream facilities to lower the cost of mainte-

nance to prevent shutdowns especially with refi neries, and heat exchangers.

“It’s very specialized stuff they bring in, but they do a good business in

Houston, Texas, so I think there will be some business opportunities here too,”

said ten Wolde.

“What I would like to see is a good partner in Alberta with a company

from the Netherlands to team up, and there you go.

“Th e company in Alberta knows the market; the technique is coming from

the Netherlands, and there you have a winning couple.”

Some of the major companies working in Alberta include Royal Dutch

Shell with a $2 billion investment in the oilsands, Mammoet, Van Leeuwen

Pipe and Tube Group and Damen.

Dutch researchers are also working in the lab on new technology to sepa-

rate bitumen from sand, applied water purifi cation and treatment technology

and soil remediation.

Ten Wolde said his presentation in Lloydminster is in keeping with

ANTO’s mission to increase awareness in both the Netherlands and Alberta

on how to do business in each other’s regions.

“It’s networking to see if people are interested in something,” he said.

“When they have some interest in some issues, maybe I can help them.

Th at’s what I am always interested in. Th e fi rst thing I always bring is the lack

of awareness.

“What you saw in the video about the Netherlands, you never knew before.

Th at’s the fi rst thing I have to do because everyone thinks we live in windmills

behind a dike, walk on wooden shoes and eat tulips and that’s not true any-

more.

“We are a very knowledgeable, research-oriented country at this moment,”

ten Wolde said in conclusion.


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Lloydminster – Frontier Power Products Ltd.,

based in Delta, British Columbia, hopes to make

hay with a new service rig application for its 13.5

litre John Deere diesel engine used in farming and

industrial equipment.

Power Frontier is a Western Canada distributor

of John Deere and Kubota engines and other makes

and machinery. Th e company has branch locations

in Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg.

Th e Edmonton shop brought a 13.5 litre engine

to the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show Sept. 12-13

to generate interest among service rig manufactur-

ers.

“Th e reason the engine is in the show is that

we want to talk about service rig applications,” said

Rob Crosbie, territory manager for equipment sales.

“We’ve developed a wet back end for an Allison

5000/6000 series transmission.

“So we will move into the service rig business

fi rst, and after that, we want to go after other ap-

plications in the oilfi eld.”

Th e engine is well suited as a service rig engine

with an output from 350 to 600 h.p. and compli-

ance with existing Tier 3 emission standards for

diesel engines.

“If people want to go to IT4 (interim Tier

4) we can move in that direction for them,” said

Crosbie.

John Deere has designed and manufactured

more than 7 million off -highway diesel engines

since 1949, including some 13.5 litre engines built

in Nisku for farm, industrial and service rig applica-

tions.

Th e iconic U.S. based company is continuously

developing innovative technology solutions that

meet the needs of off -highway applications and

tough engine emission standards.

“It’s just a natural progression of the product

line for us, and the well servicing industry,” said

Crosbie.

“Th ere is a lot of familiarity and similarity with

farm engines, and it does make people sit back and

take a look, especially when they see the size of this

particular unit.

Th e engine is used on some farm and industrial

John Deere equipment. We are all familiar with off

road hydraulic excavators.

“We are all familiar with combines, so this is

an engine that is used with similarities in all three

product lines.”

“Th e 13.5 has been around for a whole bunch

of years and it’s moved in some very interesting

directions for applications. We’re going one step

further now.” Page A27

John Deere engine to

power service rigs

Fron er Power Products, Edmonton equipment sales manager, Rob Crosbie pictured here at the company’s ex-hibit at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show Sept. 12-13.

Photo by Geo Lee


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Calgary – Th e countdown to fi nal hearings to

review the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway

pipeline will begin following the conclusion of

hearings in Prince George British Columbia from

Oct. 29 to Nov. 9.

Enbridge is seeking approval from the Na-

tional Energy Board to build a 36-inch diameter,

1,777-kilometre pipeline to transport bitumen

from facilities near Edmonton, Alta. to Kitimat,

B.C.

Th e Joint Review Panel conducting the project

hearings began to wind down the public review

with two sets of hearings in Prince George.

Th e fi rst set ran from Oct. 9 to 19 with the

second sessions running from Oct. 29 to Nov. 9.

An additional set of fi nal hearings for ques-

tioning will also be held in Prince Rupert, BC from

Nov. 22 to 30 and from Dec. 10 to 18.

Th e panel previously held hearings on the pipe-

line project in Edmonton

Th e issues subject to questioning include the

environmental and socio-economic eff ects of the

proposed pipelines and the potential impacts on

landowners and land use of the pipelines.

Discussions will also focus on routing, de-

sign and construction of the pipelines and marine

terminal along with operations, safety, accident pre-

vention and emergency preparedness and response

related to the pipelines.

Th e panel anticipates the fi nal argument to

take place from March to April 2013.

Northern Gateway to face nal questions

Page A25Frontier Power is also motivated to break into

the service rig sector with some experience service

rig employees on the payroll including Crosbie.

“I’ve have been around with them quite a bit

with a previous employer,” said Crosbie.

“Th at was part of the reason we wanted to go

forward with this engine is to capitalize on the

experience of the individuals that are with our fi rm.

“We have a good potential to do that with

manufacturers and with customers.”

Th e 13.5 litre service rig engine will include the

Allison transmission that was not available for the

Lloydminster show which aff ected early sales.

“It’s a little bit slower than we’d like now. Un-

fortunately, we are still waiting for fi nal pricing on

the back end of the Allison application pieces,” said

Crosbie.

“We were at the Global Petroleum Show (Cal-

gary) and again, this is another good venue for us to

come to this particular show.

“Th e only diff erence this time is we did have an

Allison transmission on the back end in Calgary.

Unfortunately, we had to give that back to another

gentleman so he could put it there.

“But, Lloydminster and the manufacturers of

service rigs and in this community – there’s a ton

of service rigs and people who are buying product

that is manufactured throughout North America,

specifi cally Nisku.

“We’ve been in contact with some of the fi rms

in the Edmonton and Nisku area and they are will-

ing to move forward with this product line.

“We just need to give them pricing so they can

replace competitive engines with ours,” Crosbie

said.

Entering service rig business


Main Offi ce:

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Lloydminster – It can be a dirty, dusty and grimy world out there in the

oilfi eld for you and your cellphone.

A Defender series protective case made by OtterBox can protect you phone

from hellish conditions and damage on the job, and save you hundreds of dol-

lars in replacement costs.

Northwind Radio Ltd. in Lloydminster sells a ton of them and hears a lot

of feedback and stories from customers pushing the protective limits of their

Defender products.

“It’s really, really successful. We’ve had customers test them I guess you

could say for up to three storeys of a drop,” said sales representative J Barr at

Northwind’s exhibit at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show in September.

“It’s pretty much made for the oilpatch. Anyone who is working with their

phone and using it in a work environment where you know it’s going to be

dusty or dirty or grimy – this case is going to protect your phone.

“It’s a very popular product with a lot of guys. I’ve have gentlemen who

come in from the oilpatch all the time and swear by it.

“I’ve had guys that have run their phones over. Th eir phone survived – the

cases not so much, but they went and bought another case, because a $50 in-

vestment over a $650 phone investment – it was well worth it.”

Th e Defender cases come in large variety of styles and are designed to fi t

just about any make of phone on the market.

OtterBox cases are “dedicated to all the klutzy, spontaneous, chaotic, grace-

less individuals who have broken a device” according to the manufacturer’s web

site.

Th e Defender is billed as providing robust three layer protection that with-

stands drops, bumps and shocks.

“It’s a hard plastic inner shell with a rubber outer shell so the rubber

absorbs a lot of the impact and the plastic absorbs anything harder,” explained

Barr.

Page A29

Northwind turns 25 with hip products

Don’t try this at home. Brianna Kuntz generated a lot of ‘gee whiz’ reac ons from her demonstra on of the waterproof abili es of LifeProof cases to protect iPhones and iPads from water damage even a er being submerged for hours in this tank of water.


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J Barr from Northwind Radio Ltd. in Lloydmin-ster holds a couple of cellphones clad in protec- ve Defender cases by Ot-

terBox at the company’s booth at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show in Septem-ber. Northwind is celebrat-ing its 25th anniversary in 2012.

Page A28“It’s got raised edges so it protects your screen. It’s got covers for all the

ports, so you don’t you don’t get dust or anything like that in the mike ports or

the charge ports.

“If you are out talking in the rain, you are not going to have to worry about

the rain getting in and ‘bothering’ your phone.”

Th e Northwind booth also drew a lot of traffi c to a demonstration of the

waterproof characteristics LifeProof cases for iPhone and iPads that were

dropped into a tank of water.

Th e demonstration helped to prove LifeProof ’s claim that their cases for

iOS (Apple operating system) devices are waterproof, dirt proof, snow proof

and shockproof.

“Th ose ones are designed more for the casual people – out at the hot tub

and playing around with their phone and ‘plunk – there it goes’ – but the

LifeProof case will defi nitely defend against that,” said Barr.

“LifeProof also has accessories you can add to it that allow it to fl oat. If you

happen to be out boating and you drop your phone in you don’t have to swim

all the way to the bottom to fi nd it again.”

Northwind is celebrating their 25th anniversary in 2012 dating back to its

launch in1987 as Lloydminster’s original Telus Mobility authorized dealer.

Today, the company specializes in sales and service of personal communi-

cation services or PCS and mike phones, as well as two-way radios and asset

tracking systems.

“We install all of those. We do a large variety of installations,” said Barr.

Northwind also sell boosters by Wilson Electronics that enhance PCS

voice and data coverage in areas with spotty or weak signals in rural markets

and remote areas through wireless Telus Mobility.

Northwind provides a wide choice of communications products and ser-

vices listed in detail on the web site.

“Absolutely, 100 per cent anything in communications we’ve got going on

for you need we can supply it for you,” said Barr.


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Lloydminster – Northern Mat & Bridge LP could be one of the few com-

panies in Western Canada to consider the need for a sunny day fund when

business is slower than expected.

Rain or soggy ground is better for sales and rentals of their temporary ac-

cess mats and bridges that have a variety of resource and construction applica-

tions including oil and gas and pipeline operations.

Th e company has a manufacturing facility in Rycroft, just north of their

head offi ce in Grande Prairie, where they sell up to 20,000 access mats a year

and up to 60,000 rental units to access wet, muddy terrain, muskeg or environ-

mentally sensitive areas.

“Th e last few years with all the rain have been very good for our side of

the business,” said company sales representative Chad Holonics at the 2012

Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show in September. Page A31

This was the rst foray at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show for Northern Mat & Bridge LP from Grande Prairie, Alberta. Sales rep Chad Holonics was keen on expanding their oak and r mats and bridges into the regional heavy oil market in Alberta and Saskatch-ewan. Photo by Geo Lee

Northern Mat lays a path to Lloyd


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Page A30“Too wet – that obviously hampers us because nobody can move, nor can

we with road bans and stuff like that – the weather certainly helps us in that

regard.”

Northern Mat manufactures sells and rents a variety of access mats includ-

ing traditional 8x14’ premium oak swamp mats.

Th e company’s feature product is an 8x14’ oak and fi r hybrid access mat

called Fir-LITE. Th ey also have an assortment of rig mats, camp mats, crane

mats, pipeline mats and ATV mats in all sizes.

“We also manufacture standard 8x40’ and 8x20’ steel frame rig mats,” said

Holonics.

“Mats are mainly used for lease sites, access roads and multiple operations

in environmentally sensitive areas or any place that you need temporary access

to.”

Holonics said their niche is being the largest in terms of “geographic dis-

persion” which makes the company a supplier of choice for many of the large

oil and gas operator based on volumes.

Th e company off ers 24/7 service supported by a staff of 20 to 30 employ-

ees in Grande Prairie and another 50 factory or fi eld workers serving a huge

geographic area.

“We’ve sold mats as far north as Alaska and as far south as Colorado,” said

Holonics.

“We’ve got full install services, so we’ve got operations from Fort Nelson to

Virden, Manitoba and basically every place in between.

“We have full service with trucking and matting equipment – a one stop

shop for all.”

Northern Mat provides complete mat delivery, installation and removal

service utilizing a fl eet of mat installation equipment, including wheel loaders,

excavators and trucks.

Th e 2012 heavy oil show was new for Northern Mats which decided to

skip the Fort McMurray show in September for an opportunity to make in-

roads in the Lloydminster area.

“We’ve done the Fort McMurray show for years, and we just decided to

come to Lloyd and show a presence here,” said Holonics.

“We do some work north of here in Conklin and Fort McMurray and east

of here to Saskatoon and ‘Kindersley type of thing’ and then south.

“Around Lloyd is kind of a little empty area for us for the most part. We

want to expand our market to this area.”

Th e show was the perfect opportunity to sow the seeds for winter manu-

facturing orders and to promote their line of bridges for small and large creeks

or river crossings and other applications for temporary access in the heavy

oilfi elds.

Northern Mat has a large inventory of L-100 engineered and certifi ed

portable bridges, low profi le bridges, ATV bridges, pedestrian bridges and low

profi le Allsteel brand portables with a suite of sales, rental and leasing options

for all of their products.

Th e company sources most of its oak as precut lumber from the southern

United States which is shipped to Rycroft by rail.

“Th e fi r all comes from the B.C. interior, but we do get some from Idaho

and Washington because it’s something they can’t harvest in the wintertime up

here,” said Holonics.

“When we go a little further south, it expands our timeframe in which we

can purchase the lumber. Th e oak is a hardwood and it’s a much stronger wood,

but much more expensive.

“Th e longevity of the mat life is the diff erence with oak.”


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Lloydminster – Techmation Electric & Controls Ltd. based in Airdrie, Al-

berta came to the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show to fl y the fl ag and shake a few

hands in a public relations blitz Sept. 12-13.

Th e mission was accomplished early on with the company’s draw prize bin

fi lling up quickly with client business cards in the running to win a Taylor Hall

Edmonton Oilers’ hockey sweater.

“We are just basically in town to support the community. We’ve got a local

branch in Lloydminster,” said Victor Witzke, vice-president of business devel-

opment who is based in Airdrie.

“We just wanted to get some brand recognition in town. We just wanted to

basically thank the community for having us here, and to make people aware

that we are in town providing electrical instrumentation services.”

Techmation is a privately-owned Canadian company providing a complete

range of electrical and instrumentation services to all facets of the commercial

and heavy industrial sectors.

“We provide construction and maintenance services to the oil and gas

industry,” said Witzke, who came to Lloydminster with a business development

team.

“Our company has over 1,000 employees and we have 23 locations, and in

Lloydminster, we have 50 people working locally.

“We build gas plants, oil batteries and then we like to support the facilities

we build.”

Th eir construction services range from initial plant construction to com-

missioning and start-up.

On the maintenance side, Techmation provides

everything from 24 hour on-call servicing, plant

turnarounds and troubleshooting facilities, well

sites and pumpjacks to servicing pneumatic and

electronic controls.

Witzke said the Lloydminster market is a very

healthy one, adding that with the whole company is

currently in a growth mode due to the strength of

the energy sector in Western Canada.

“Th e oil industry is focusing on oil and liquids

rich products and there is a lot of oil in Lloydmin-

ster. A lot of our clients are actively drilling and

building facilities,” he said.

“Currently, heavy oil it’s very important. With

the state of natural gas, it’s very important for us to

focus on the producers that are actively construct-

ing facilities.

“We honestly believe that the future is very

bright in Western Canada and we are not foresee-

ing any downturns in the economy at all,” Witzke

said.

Techmation is well known for developing and/

or adapting to existing preventative maintenance

programs that help reduce costs and improve oper-

ating effi ciencies for clients.

“Th e advantage of our company is that we have

size and strength to support most of our clients,

and we have the manpower in place to execute the

projects,” said Witzke.

“We are one of the safest contractors in the

industry, and we provide a very top level of service

to our clients.

“We get a lot of repeat business because of the

quality of service we provide.”

Techmation executes PR blitz in Lloyd

The Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show is an important venue for Techma on Electric & Con-trols Ltd. at which to meet clients who require their construc on and maintenance services for oil and gas facili es and ba eries. The company is based in Airdrie, Alberta, and has more than 1,000 employees in 23 loca ons including a busy branch in Lloyd-minster.


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Lloydminster – Borets-Weatherford generated its fair share of attention at

the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show with an exhibit of a multi-stage horizontal

pumping system (HPS) for heavy oil applications.

Th e HPS unit was trucked to the show held Sept. 12-13 from the com-

pany’s sales and service centre in Nisku. Th e unit was presented as a solution to

positive displacement pumps for a wide range of high pressure applications.

“We brought the multi-stage surface pumps for water injection, water

disposal, pipeline boosters, waterfl oods and all those surface applications,” said

Jerry Evans, HPS sales and service manager.

Th e HPS units made in Nisku can also be used for boiler feed water, mine

dewatering and for salt dome leaching.

“Th ere’s lot of diff erent applications for them,” said Evans, who added they

can also be used for condensate pumping.

“Th ey actually have condensate pumps where you run the condensate down

to the main header for the heavy oil. With the condensate mixed, our pumps

will move it up the pipeline, back to the facility.”

One of the advantages of a horizontal pumping system, said Evans, is that

it limits the pulsation concerns of a positive displacement pump.

“Th ey have constant fl ow, constant pressure; they are operator friendly and

the maintenance level is zero,” he added.

HPS units by Borets-Weatherford feature rigid skid construction, closer

pump clamps and the industry’s largest thrust bearings that increase system run

time and seal support.

“Th e beauty of the system is the maintenance. Th e installation is easy and

the maintenance is minimal,” said Evans on the fi rst day of the show.

“We have a huge presence here. We have a lot of

units sold out here. We work on these every day. We

have our service and maintenance agreements with

most companies where we come out and actually do

all the maintenance there is.

“We do laser alignments for all these units and

we do vibration analysis or trending.” Page A35

Borets pumped for heavy oil apps

Dennis Thompson, a horizontal pumping system sales rep from Borets-Weath-erford in Nisku, stands by a 100 h.p. electric driven HPS unit used for water injec on, water transfer or water oods by heavy oil companies in the Lloyd-minster area. The unit was part of the company’s display at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show in September


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Mindy Harrison, an HPS supervisor, and Jerry Evans, an HPS sales and service manager for Borets-Weatherford, brought this low pro mine HPS (horizontal pumping system) to the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show.

Page A34

Borets-Weatherford is also making gains in the heavy oil market in Cold

Lake and Bonnyville where horizontal pumping systems are mainly used for

water injection.

“We are starting to get into a few condensate jobs, and we are starting to

get into a little bit of the SAGD world for the boiler feed water pumps,” said

Evans.

“We have a few applications at Devon’s SAGD project at Jackfi sh and

Suncor’s in-situ operations at Firebag.”

Th e Borets-Weatherford HPS units in the Lloydminster area are mainly

used for water injection, water transfer and waterfl oods, and they come in

various drive options including electric motor, gas or diesel engine or steam

turbine.

Th e main HPS unit on display was powered by a 100 h.p. 460-volt electric

motor. Th e units come with a standard front pullout or an optional back pull-

out thrust chamber to suit specifi c client needs.

“It depends on how much pressure you have to cut out to determine how

many stages the pump will have,” said Evans.

“Each stage is designed for a certain volume and it will give you so much

pressure. It depends on the pressure of the reservoir or the well for how far you

are pushing the fl uid to determine how many stages it will require.

“We manufacture these from 15 to 1,500 h.p. We have done 120 cubes a

day all the way up to 6,000 cubes a day on single units.”

Borets-Weatherford is a subsidiary of Borets, a Russian company based in

Moscow and a global provider of downhole electric submersible pumps (ESPs)

and horizontal multi-stage centrifugal surface pumps.

Th e same multi-stage stage pump is used in ESP and HPS applications.

Borets-Weatherford also operates service centres in Medicine Hat and

Estevan with a regional offi ce in Calgary.

Each centre is fully equipped with a complete stock of motors, pumps, mo-

tor seals, cable and surface equipment, as well as component parts for special-

ized manufacturing, repair and equipment maintenance.

Evans said the Lloydminster oil show was the perfect opportunity for sales

and service staff to meet new contacts and existing clients.

“Some of the engineering companies are coming here to meet us to get a

better understanding and get a hands-on experience,” said Evans.

“We deal with a lot of engineering groups out of Lloydminster. Th ere

are going to bring their young guys down here and we are going to do a little

training session with them.”


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Lloydminster – Like

father, like sons.

Th at’s the way it is

for Shane and Lonny

Baehl who have es-

sentially taken over the

role of managing Mike’s

Oilfi eld Services Ltd.

under the mentorship

of their dad, Mike, who

founded the com-

pany in Lloydminster in

1979 with one pressure

truck.

“We started to take

over a couple of years

ago on a fi ve to seven

year plan and continue

the family business

that’s been going for

34 years,” said Shane

during a truck-side chat

at the Lloydminster

Heavy Oil Show in

September.

“Mike is a slowly

retiring a little bit more

each year. We don’t

think he’ll ever be 100

per cent out of it, but

he’s slowly winding

down and letting the

boys take over.

“I am in charge of a

little bit of management

and sales and a little bit

of dispatch roles and

duties. It changes every

day.

“Whatever arises,

that’s what we do right

from being in the units

myself to being in

meetings in the of-

fi ce. Whatever the day

consists of and however

how busy it is, we do

whatever it takes.

“Lonny’s been dis-

patching for eight years

– between dispatch and

managing over the last

10 years with manag-

ing the last two years.

As Dad has been slowly

wiggling out, he’s been

experiencing more in

that role.”

Th e succession plan

has the company plan-

ning to build a bigger

shop next to its location

in the Glenn E. Nielson

Industrial in order to

house its growing fl eet

of pressure trucks, water

trucks, tank trucks and

air and foam equipment.

“We are probably

growing at a rate of two

trucks a year right now.

Th at’s just supply and

demand,” said Shane.

Mike’s Oilfi eld

needs more room too,

for its busy chemical di-

vision and delivery fl eet

for de-icing fl uid to the

oil and gas industry.

“We are building a

bigger shop to put new-

er trucks in. Th at’s what

we’re working on right

now. We are buying

more land right beside

our shop and expanding

that,” said Lonny.

“Every year, we say

we are not going to

expand because of man-

power, but we always

seem to fi nd a way.

“We’ve been for-

tunate enough to have

long-term employees

where we don’t have a

big turnaround at our

place.

“It seems like once

we get them, they usu-

ally stay, so that helps us

out quite a bit.”

Mike’s Oilfi eld usu-

ally has a staff of about

35 to 40 employees at

any given time with all

hands on deck since

July when the demand

for their services spiked

after a wet spring.

“It’s fl at out. It was

a slow start this spring

due to the weather con-

ditions, but we’ve been

trying to keep up since

the second week in July,

and it’s been fl at out,”

said Shane.

Mike’s Oilfi eld

covers an area on both

sides of the Alberta and

Saskatchewan border as

far north as Bonnyville

and Elk Point, west to

Vermilion, south to the

Wainwright, Provost,

Macklin and Unity

areas and east to the

Battlefords.

Page A38

Brothers (l-r) Lonny and Shane Baehl have essen ally taken over the role of running Mike’s Oil eld Services from their dad, Mike who founded the business in 1979. The company is a major supporter of hockey and recrea on at all levels in Lloydminster. Photo by Geo Lee

Mike’s Oil eld on a 34-year roll


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Mike’s Oil eld Services Ltd. brought this new 2012 tri-drive pressure truck to the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show in September. The local family-owned busi-ness plans to expand its exis ng shop in the Glenn E. Neilson Industrial Park. Photo by Geo Lee

Page A37“We’ve done busi-

ness as far south as Es-

tevan and as far east to

Winnipeg and up in the

northern B.C. region

and Fort McMurray –

have trucks, will travel,”

said Shane.

Coming to the oil

show during a busy

fi eld season was espe-

cially important for

Lonny who continues

to quarterback the all

important dispatch role

at the shop.

“I am in the offi ce

every day answering the

phones with customers.

It’s just great to actually

meet the people face to

face,” he said.

“Some people I

have known for fi ve

to 10 years, and I talk

to them maybe once a

week and to fi nally to

actually get to shake

a hand and give them

some Mike’s Oilfi eld

shirts and stuff like that

is good.”

Th e new 2012 pres-

sure truck on display

was also a good oppor-

tunity for Lonny to give

visitors a quick profi le

of their oilfi eld services

that include air pressure

and hydro testing.

“We don’t have

vacuum trucks. We’re

mostly fresh water,” said

Lonny.

“We do a lot of

pipeline testing when

new pipelines go in the

ground – air compres-

sors to test pipelines

and also fresh water

and, of course, our

stable foam which

brings sand out of the

wells for better infl ow

for oil companies.”

With the company’s

succession in full swing

and the heavy oil indus-

try demanding more of

their services, Lonny

said it’s an exciting

business to be in.

“Absolutely. It got

more exciting once I

fi nally got to hire my

brother on and work

side by side. It made

everything feel kind of

more complete.

“It’s full circle and

now we’re very busy.”

Shane added that

it’s not very common

nowadays to have a

family business that is

growing after 34 years

and he off ered to share

their formula for success

with our readers.

“Do whatever it

takes, work hard and

have good equipment

and have good people

– the people make the

diff erence that are out

in the fi eld for you every

day,” he said.

Mike’s Oilfi eld is

also a major hockey

sponsor of the Lloyd-

minster Bobcats, Border

Kings and Mike’s

Oilfi eld Oilers and a

supporter of numerous

recreation events.

As a fi nancial spon-

ser, the company earned

the right to put their

name on one of the fi eld

houses at the Servus

Sports Centre.

“We do everything

we can for the size of

us. We do absolutely

what we can, especially

hockey and stuff like

that that our family

is interested in,” said

Lonny.

“We try to do a

little bit for every team

and whenever the com-

munity needs us to step

up, we are defi nitely

right up there doing

that.”

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NEWSPIPELINE SECTION B

November 2012

Story and photos by Geoff Lee

Lloydminster – Matrix Well

Servicing is turning heads in the

Lloydminster heavy oil market for a

number of good reasons as its marks

its fi rst year of operations based in the

Glenn E. Nielson Industrial Park.

Th e new local company is a

wholly-owned subsidiary of Western

Energy Services Corp. It began op-

erating last November with just one

internally guyed mobile single service

rig and expects to have 10 of them by

the end of 2012.

In fact, crews were in Edmon-

ton commissioning Rig 6 on Oct.

15 when operations manager Kevin

Winters was asked to explain the

company’s phenomenal growth.

“We’ve got Western behind us

– we’ve got a lot of backing. Th at’s

the only reason we can do it and why

we’ve got 10 rigs,” he said.

“Th is is a new company. Th ey

want to be aggressive.”

Calgary-based Western Energy

also owns and operates Horizon

Drilling Inc. in Western Canada and

Stoneham Drilling Corporation in

the United States.

“Th ey want to grow, but we need

to get a good foothold in Lloyd, and

then we can branch off and expand

and see what we can build from

there,” said Winters.

“We do everything from comple-

tions and workovers to production

work. We are busiest right now with

production work – maintenance is

what it basically comes down to –

pump changes.

“Getting 10 rigs for Lloyd has

taken a little longer than we thought.

It’s hard to fi nd people. Th at’s the

biggest challenge – getting experi-

enced people to come over and work.

“We started last November, and I

came on in March. It’s a tight market

here. It’s local and that’s the biggest

challenge is getting local people.

“You can bring outside people in,

but you have to pay the subsistence

and put them up. Th e rig rates don’t

allow it up here. It’s very competi-

tive.”

Th e Matrix advantage lies in the

technological advancements on their

light weight service rigs that are de-

signed and manufactured by Court-

ney Berg Industries in Linden, Alta.

to work in all four transport periods.

“We’ve come out with all this

new equipment,” said Winters.

“With the lightweight design of

the rigs, we carry more of our equip-

ment on the rig. It makes it easier

and quicker for rig up and more

organized. We have less equipment

moving around on location.

“Our rigs are truck-mounted

service rigs, which is new. People see

one, and they fi gure it’s a fl ushby unit.

Th at’s been our biggest battle.

“We’ve got the new technology –

the X-celerator mounted right on the

derrick.

“Th at’s one of the big selling

features. We can pull continuous or

conventional rod,” said Winters.

“Th ese are rigging up much

quicker with the X-celerator in the

derrick versus the truck mounted

units. It makes us more effi cient and

safer.”

Th e rig engine has an automatic

transmission and is also quieter com-

pared to a conventional rig engine

and it meets new Tier 4 emission

standards.

Th e two man rig or truck cab also

allows Matrix to provide new drivers

with safer work conditions.

“Having that rig cab or that truck

cab there makes it better for driver

training with the new hours of service

laws that we have to abide by,” said

Winters.

Matrix also has plans to build a

new slant rig in 2013 in response to

customer demand.

“We are putting it in the budget,”

said Winters. “All the customers are

asking when are we building a slant

rig?

“CNRL is one of our main clients

– the big one with the slants. Th ey’ve

allotted about 9,000 wells in the next

10 years – that’s 900 wells per year.

“We’ve talked with them. Th ey

fi gure they will add three to four slant

rigs to their fl eet per year to keep up

with their completions, their work-

overs and their abandonments.

Page B2

Matrix Well Servicing opera ons manager Kevin Winters expects his company will have 10 of these new mobile single service rigs by the end of the year. The lightweight rigs can work in all four transport periods and are built on a truck chassis with a two person cab. Each rig is equipped with a truck mounted C-Tech X-celerator on the derrick which eliminates wait mes and third party costs. The unit can pull or run conven onal rod or con nuous rod with no outside source needed.

Matrix off to a phenomenal start

B2 PIPELINE NEWS November 2012

Page B1“A lot of that work is in Bonnyville for the slant

work – between here and Bonnyville. Right now, we

are focusing on Lloyd. We’re going to branch out –

Bonnyville for sure.

“Right now, I’ve got one rig at Mannville work-

ing for Perpetual Energy and those are all horizon-

tal wells.

“We’ve gone as far as Provost and as far as

Mannville. It’s a pretty big area we’ve got here.

“We are trying to get into Husky. We got under

their procurement group, so hopefully, with equip-

ment, we can get in the door there. Th at would

really help us.”

Winters said Western Energy chose Lloyd-

minster to launch Matrix Well Servicing knowing

heavy oil is the future for the service rig industry,

especially in Alberta.

“Th e gas market there really isn’t much of a

market for service rigs anymore,” said Winters.

“It’s all gone to specialized services, either

standalone snubbing or coil tubing or wireline. Th ey

can do it without a service rig.

“Heavy oil always needs maintenance with the

sand and the oil. Th ere is always pump changes. Th e

tubing wears out, the pumps wear out.

“It’s where the future is for service rigs. We’ve

got so many reserves for heavy oil. Th at’s what is

pushing that SAGD stuff with the low gas prices.

“Th e lift costs are so much higher in heavy oil

– maintenance is so much higher. Th at’s why it’s so

competitive with rig rates in town. Everyone wants

the best deal they can get.”

Having truck-mounted X-celerators on all of

their service rigs jumps Matrix near the head of the

pack for cost-conscious oil companies looking to

get the best return from their oil.

“It cuts down a producer’s cost having to wait,

because it’s hard to get a truck mounted unit,” said

Winters.

“Most of the companies do have them, but

they are on separate units. It’s another unit that

they have to have a driver bring out. It’s just much

harder to move.

“With ours, we are set up good with our rigs

and our support truck. We don’t have to tow a

trailer. With our crew truck – we have three units

that we drive instead of having four or fi ve units. It

helps.

“It makes a big diff erence. It’s cost savings.”

Winters spends a lot of his time on the phone

answering customer questions, recruiting new

employees and working in the fi eld himself when

needed.

“I’ve been out pushing the rigs and drilling and

doing it all – roughnecking. We’ve got to do what

we’ve got to do to get her going.

“Th e biggest thing I fi nd in Lloydminster is

that it is such a busy area. Th e competition – I think

there are 17 or 18 diff erent rig companies here –

200 plus rigs.

“Th ere is such a turnaround in hands.”

Winters said Matrix has a health, safety and

environment (HSE) program that emphasizes com-

munication, training and competency.

“With our HSE, we do our own in-house

confi ned space training, and we send them out for

anything they require. We do the best to educate

them the best we can,” he said.

Matrix had four full rig crews on the payroll

in mid-October with new hires in the works to the

crew the new rigs.

“Th e busier it gets, it’s going to attract more

people,” said Winters.

“We are paying top wages and benefi ts are sec-

ond to none. We’re growing. Th ere’s a great future

here with Matrix. We are career based.

“We want people to know that are here to stay.

Th ere’s lot of room for movement to grow with the

company and move up.”

Opera ons manager Kevin Winters removes the cover from the hydraulic controls on this new service rig. Hy-draulic controls also work the C-Tech X-celerator mount-ed on the mast. The Matrix rigs feature the latest tech-nological advancements designed and manufactured by Courtney Berg Industries in Linden, Alberta.

Three units instead of ve

PIPELINE NEWS November 2012 B3

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Story and photos by Brian ZinchukRedvers – You would think that building pipelines on the Saskatchewan

prairie would be easy. Th ere’s no Canadian Shield that requires blasting. Ex-

cavators don’t have to be tied onto dozers to dig on mountains one can barely

walk up. Th e terrain is fl at and generally soft enough to dig on, but not liquid

enough to swallow men and equipment whole like muskeg.

Despite all that, the senior management of Surerus Pipeline Inc. feel the

Enbridge Bakken expansion project for which they are the general contractor

is the most challenging job in Canada right now, particularly when it comes to

environmental concerns.

In early October, the 124-kilometre project was about two-thirds complete.

Th e job is expected to be done in mid-November. Work started Aug. 1, with

the project being run out of Redvers.

Th is is the fi rst foray on a major project this far east for the Fort St. John,

B.C.-based business.

“My father owns it so I was born into it,” said Sean Surerus, vice-president.

He was in Redvers visiting the project when Pipeline News returned for a sec-

ond visit on Oct. 4.

“I started working in it since I was 20. I’ve been full-time since 2001,”

Surerus said.

Prior to that he obtained a commerce degree from Simon Fraser Univer-

sity and an economics degree from Carleton University. In his downtime from

school, he worked with the family business. “I was in the fi eld on the bending/

engineering crew, then I moved into more offi ce positions on the project man-

agement side,” he said.

Asked if it was a training regimen, he said, “It turned into that. It was the

very best opportunity for me.”

“I ran a hoe for a summer, poorly, in our yard in Fort St. John. I moved into

project management right away. I was in camp for a few years.”

Sean Surerus worked in northwest Alberta and northeast British Colum-

bia, north of High Level at a place called Indian Cabins, and in the Tumbler

Ridge area. Page B5

Wrens, American coots and barn swallowschallenge pipeliners

Sean Surerus is vice-president of Surerus Pipeline Inc., a 42-year-old rm that was started by his father, Brian Surerus, with just one dump truck. Now it can tackle up to four spreads at a me, and is currently working on 42-inch pipeline projects. Surerus Pipeline Inc. is the general contractor on the Bakken expansion project for Enbridge.


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Page B3“We’ve done gas, oil and hydrogen,” he said. “We’ve installed HDPE. We’ve

installed some Fiberspar, but it’s 99 per cent steel, up to 42 inch.

Th e company currently has a spread working on a 25-kilometre project of

42-inch pipe at Hudson’s Hope, B.C. for Spectra Energy, and another 30 kilome-

tres planned this winter for TransCanada north of Fort Nelson, B.C.

“Currently we have three spreads going right now. We can handle two large

and two small spreads at one time. Th is year we’re towards 700 people,” Surerus

said.

Heading up the Redvers spread is Telford Advent, superintendent for the

project.

On Oct. 4, they had 338 people working, plus about 40 subcontractors. An-

other 80 or so people were working directly for Enbridge.

“We’re at peak. We had a general safety meeting in the rink yesterday. It

looked like 500 people,” Surerus said.

Th e company has monthly safety meetings where everyone is called in to

attend. In this case, their numbers were equivalent of roughly half the census

population of the town of Redvers.

“We’re at over three million man-hours without a lost-time accident,” Sure-

rus said, something he attributes in part to their “I Walk Th e Line” leadership

challenge.

Asked how a company two provinces over was able to secure the job, beating

out much closer competition, Surerus said, “It’s not just on price. It’s a number

of factors. We would consider ourselves the best for capacity, price, safety and

personnel."

Th is is the fi rst venture for the company outside of British Columbia and

Alberta, despite being in business for 42 years. Th e company was started by Brian

Surerus. “He’s built it from a single dump truck to a contractor that can do sig-

nifi cant projects for Canada’s largest energy producers,” Sean Surerus said.

In the case of the Saskatchewan job, he noted, “It had to be the right fi t. Th e

economic expansion supported more out-of-province competition.”

With a larger job, the move-in costs are more spread out, meaning contrac-

tors from further afar are more competitive.

“Th e size of the project becomes more appealing,” Surerus said.

Most challengingAdvent said, “I think it’s a challenge with the terrain. Th is is the most chal-

lenging job in Canada right now.”

This is the most stringent environmental

consideration we’vebeen a part of.

-Sean Surerus, vice-president,Surerus Pipeline Inc.

Surerus Pipeline Inc. lls a rink for a safety meeting

”He noted there were 195 wetlands to cross, with 186 to 190 bores, another

150 foreign crossings.

“Th is is stop and go,” he said.

Surerus added, “It’s the environmental consideration and the commitments.”

“Th ere was much more water when we got here,” Advent said. “You don’t

even make a mark in a wetland. A track can’t touch water here.”

Indeed, when travelling along the right-of-way, wetlands you can walk across

without getting your boots wet are being bored.

“It’s very stringent, Enbridge’s commitment,” Surerus said in reference to

Enbridge’s commitments to the National Energy Board when the pipeline se-

cured its permits for the project.

For instance, before work can progress in an area, it has to be swept for

migratory birds. A sweep opened a seven day window. If there’s a bird on the nest

on the right-of-way, they have to move around it.

“We had 27 on this job,” Advent said. “We had buff er zones on a wren,

American Coots, a barnswallow, American golden fi nch, a dove, a grebe...”

Th e Amercian coots required a 55 day window, as an example.

“One (bird) just refused to leave,” Advent said. A barn swallow was off the

right-of-way, but within 100 metres of it.

Page B6


Page B5Asked how much going around all these birds cost, Surerus smiled. “Price-

less,” he said.

In some cases they had to build shoefl ies (temporary access roads) around.

In other cases, mats would do.

“Th is aff ected us mostly on the right-of-way (crew),” Advent said.

If birds weren’t enough, there were also concerns around northern leopard

frogs.

Will this be the norm? Surerus said for wetlands, this sort of thing is now

par for the course.

“Th is is the most stringent environmental consideration we’ve been a part

of,” Surerus said.

Accommodations

An accommodations strategy was important for Surerus Pipeline. Between

their RV park, local rentals, rooms and hotels, the town of just under 1,000 was

able to handle the massive infl ux.

“We built a 98-unit RV park,” said Sean Surerus. “It’s temporary. We’re

able to pull it out and move all the utilities.”

“It’s really worked out well,” said Advent. “It’s so quiet at night, it’s amaz-

ing.

“We put in a laundry. Th is piece of property had the right slope. We didn’t

have to do much digging.”

Th e temporary RV park had 30 and 50 amp electrical service and full

hookups. A large water tank could be seen in the centre of it.

“Th e RM of Antler was really helpful. You can’t say enough about this

community. It’s been an amazing welcome,” Surerus said.

Th ere were approximately 40 local First Nations people from Saskatch-

ewan and Manitoba working on the project. However, they noted there was

not a lot of success in recruiting local people to work with them. Th e reason?

Th ey’re already working.

“We weren’t anticipating the economy being so hot here,” said Surerus.

“Locals who passed requirements were generally hired.”

Th ere simply weren’t that many available.

Telford Advent may be the superintendent for a crew large enough to

fi ll a hockey rink, but he got his start in pipelining as a labourer back in

1966. He was soon an operator.

“I ran dozer, hoe, boom, just about anything that has tracks or wheels

on it,” he said in the Surerus Pipeline Inc. main offi ce shack in Redvers. “

“I’ve done some huge projects. Th e majority of the work I did was for

TransCanada, Union Gas and Nova."

He fi rst became a foreman in 1981, looking after ditch crew. “I’ve

done lots of cleanup and river crossings,” Advent added.

By 1984 he was an assistant superintendent. Two years later he be-

came a superintendent.

Pipelining is often a family business, and Advent’s wife Peggy is offi ce

manager for the project. “A lot of people have family members on the

same project,” he noted.

“Th e interesting part of this business is the coating crew always comes

from the East Coast,” he said.

Th ere are small centres of excellence all over. Drillers often come from

Roblin, Manitoba. Ditcher operators frequently orginate from Wapella,

Saskatchewan, he said.

Advent personally hails from Stratton, Ontario.

Advent worked as an inspector in Libya for a short time. “It really

makes you happy to be a Canadian,” he said.

Working in Libya makes you happy to be Canadian

Telford Advent has been pipelining since 1966, and has been a superintendent since 1986. Here he makes a brief stop in the warehouse, where semi-trailers full of supplies keep the opera on in mo on.

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Redvers – Few women are found working in the fi eld in the oilpatch, fewer

still as qualifi ed tradespeople.

Pipelining, however, has more women working in the fi eld than drill-

ing rigs. Out on a wind-swept prairie east of Redvers, one could fi nd Jennifer

Bailas working for Surerus Pipeline.

Bailas is a journeyman B-pressure welder who lives on an acreage near

Calder, east of Yorkton near the Manitoba border. She went to SIAST in 2001,

and worked in shops at fi rst. Her past experience includes working on rail cars

at Moose Jaw and with agricultural equipment manufacturer Dutch Industries

in Regina.

She rigged up in 2007, and has been a pipeline welder ever since.

“I’ve had my truck for fi ve years,” she said during a coff ee break.

Bailas is a rare breed indeed. “I have yet to meet a woman welder with a

truck,” she said.

Her company is known as Bullzeye Welding. Her e-mail handle is fi tting:

welderchick83.

Her fi ancé, Riley Stacey, is an excavator operator who was working on one

of the boring crews.

With a six-days-on, one-day-off work week, they’re close enough to home

to make it there each Sunday.

Bailas has had a few challenges. For instance, she’s a lot smaller than your

typical welder, making it tough to fi nd work clothes.

“Usually I have to order stuff in,” she said.

“I like being out here. I wouldn’t want to do anything else,” she said as the

coff ee break ended and she got back to welding.

Glancing at her business card, one fi nds an ap-

propriate tagline for a welder. At the bottom of the

card she has printed, “Stick ’em up.”

Jennifer Bailas of Calder, Sk has been run-ning her own welding truck for ve years now. She was seen here working with Sure-rus Pipeline Inc. on the Enbridge Bakken expansion project.

Stick ’em up!


By Brian ZinchukBengough – Working out of Bengough, Ar-

nett & Burgess Pipeliners is working on the most

eastern spread of the Vantage Pipeline project.

Th e company, in business for 55 years, has been

expanding its operations in Saskatchewan. Th is is

a major project for them in this province, with 99

kilometres and approximately 149 employees on

site, not counting subcontractors.

Th e Vantage Pipeline is a greenfi eld project.

Th e 10-inch line is meant to carry liquid ethane

from Hess Corporation’s natural gas process-

ing plant near Tioga, North Dakota through

Saskatchewan to interconnect with the Alberta

Ethane Gathering System (AEGS) near Empress,

Alberta. Empress is right on the Saskatchewan/

Alberta border, where the South Saskatchewan

River crosses into Saskatchewan. Th e pipeline is

700 kilometres in length, with a total distance in

Canada of 578 kilometres.

Arnett & Burgess Pipeliners (A&B Pipe-

liners) has the easternmost spread, with M&N

Construction doing the middle spread and Kidd

Construction handling the westernmost spread.

Work started in mid-August for A&B with

the setting up of their yard on the south side of

Bengough. Dirt started turning on Sept. 10. Pipe-line News visited the spread on Oct. 11, just as the

ditch and lowering in crews were kicking off . Th ey

will have up to 200 people, depending on the day.

David Schwab is a senior construction man-

ager for A&B, but he won’t be the only Schwab

you’ll see on the job. His brother Ken Schwab is

the project superintendent. He mostly handles

offi ce work, while Ray Fontaine is the fi eld super-

intendent. Th ey split the role of superintendent,

which is more commonly a one-person job.

“I look after most of the major projects,” Da-

vid said while inspecting the line in his truck. He

was down for a visit from their Bashaw, Alta., fi eld

offi ce.

Arnett & Burgess Pipeliners tackles Vantage Pipeline project

Wetlands like this are typically bored now, whereas 10 years ago, they would have almost certainly been open cut.

“By mid-November, we should be wrapped

up,” he said.

Th e project very closely follows existing

construction – roads and pipelines. Whereas some

pipelines will cut across fi elds at an angle, this

right-of-way has many 90 degree turns as it hugs

the roadways. Th e ditch centreline is often within

throwing distance of the roads.

“Pretty much all the wetlands are bored,” said

David. “Open cut wetlands doesn’t happen any-

more.”

Th e environmental rules that came with

getting the National Energy Board permit have

evolved over time. Dealing with wetlands is much

more stringent than in the past.

“Everybody’s become a lot more environmen-

tally conscious,” he said. “Th ere’s been a realization

over the last ten years that diff erent wetlands heal

diff erently.

“We have the rules, and have to follow them,”

David said. “When they get the permit, that is

law.”

Bengough is roughly the halfway point of the

project, with the right-of-way passing just a few

miles to the south, heading in a west-by-northwest

direction.

Th e community opened up vacant lots for

use by pipeliners as mini-RV parks. As you drive

through town, here and there one comes across a

handful of 5th wheel trailers, the preferred accom-

modations of most career pipeliners.

“Th ese local people have been awesome,” Ken

said. He noted how the power has been upgraded

for the facility they are renting, the home for the

town’s spring festival. Th ey used the money from

the rent to upgrade the facility, meaning genera-

tors will no longer be needed during the festival.

High school students even fi lled sandbags for

the company as a fundraiser for next-year’s gradu-

ation.

Page B9


Page B8“Bengough has been great. Th ey welcomed

the crews with open arms,” David said. “Th ey’ve

adjusted store hours. We’ve hired local guys, too.”

People have come from across Canada to work

on this job. Asked about attracting staff , David said.

“It’s tough all over. It’s a challenge. It’s tough to

attract good people. We try to hire good supervision

that has good connections and know people.”

Th at could be evidenced on crews like the main

gang, the principle welding crew, where the weld-

ing foreman brought together his welders, and will

be taking many of them on his next job, in British

Columbia.

A&B in recent years has set up shop in Regina.

Th ey were renting, now they have bought a location.

“We’re putting down roots,” David said.

Th e current Vantage Pipeline project is the

company’s largest in Saskatchewan since it tied in

600 wells in the Fox Valley and Richmond area.

Th ey also have done extensive integrity work for

TransCanada.

Like much of the industry, they have seen a

shift from gas to oil. David said, “We’re working

where we get work. Pipelines aren’t any diff erent

from gas to oil. We’re hardly doing any HDPE

(plastic) for shallow gas. We had done lots of it. In

the last two years, it was pretty much nil.”

David and Ken Schwab, senior managers with A&B Pipeliners, come from a large family. Half of the 11 children ended up as pipeliners at one point or another. Five are still pipelining – Ellen, Wayne, David, Ken and Michael.

“My sister Ellen got started in 1972,” Ken said. “She is inspecting for TransCanada now. She’s been a

labourer, she ran a wrap machine for a while. I used to, too. Somebody came out with yellowjacket

(coating) and put me out of work, so I went to sideboom.”

David, Michael and Ken Schwab started with A&B during the 1985-86

season. Michael is now doing pipe-line consulting.

Wayne Schwab is a consul-tant. Doug Schwab pipelined a

little, while Marilyn did it for one year.

“And it’s all been pipe-lining, not rigs,” Ken said.

Ken and David were both born in Estevan. Th e family ended up in Assini-boia and then Camrose by the time Ken was 10.

“David’s been steady. I left for consulting for fi ve years and then kind of fell back into it,” Ken said.

The pipelining Schwabs

David Schwab is a senior construc on manager with A&B Pipeliners.

Bengough opens up lots for pipeliners and their RVs


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By Brian ZinchukBengough – After 20 years working with XL

Foods, Tim Anderson found himself a boring job.

Literally.

Anderson is a boring operator working with

Big Bore Directional drilling, a subcontractor for

Arnett & Burgess Pipeliners on the Vantage Pipe-

line project near Bengough.

“I was a maintenance foreman in the slaughter

industry – XL Foods, but not the one in Brooks,

the one in Calgary.”

Anderson calls Didsbury, Alta., home.

He wanted a change, so he has spent the last

three years as a driller.

“I enjoy it. I don’t mind being away. I was home

for 20 years,” he said.

“I’m a plumber/outfi tter by trade. I used to do

residential and commercial plumbing and gas.”

Tim Anderson went from working as a maintenance foreman at a meat packing plant to opera ng a direc onal boring machine on pipelines. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Working at a boring job for three years


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Bengough – It’s pretty common to run into

family members on a pipeline. For the Van Dorps,

they’re even working on the same crew.

Henry Van Dorp could be found marking

centrelines on joints of pipe, part of the measur-

ing crew. His son, Jordan was running a bending

machine just a few miles behind.

Each joint is roughly 19.75 metres long, but not

all.

“You have to watch,” said Henry.

In recent years he’s worked in Cold Lake,

Whitecourt and Fort Nelson. Prior to that, home

was Ontario, where frankly, there wasn’t a lot of

work.

“I was in Ontario, doing nothing. My son Jor-

dan got me the job,” he said.

Henry worked on farms, and did maintenance

work. “I started out as an autobody mechanic. I did

maintenance on farm implements,” he said.

He took a heavy equipment course in Ontario

as well.

“It was a depression out there, not a recession,”

Henry said.

“It’s good. It’s fresh air. Th e air in Ontario is

polluted, especially in summer.”

At the bending machine, Jordan said “Th ere’s a

lot of hills. It’s nice for bending – it’s not so boring.”

At 25 years old, Jordan has been pipelining for

fi ve years. Prior to that, he played hockey at Col-

borne, Ont.

Bending machine operator Jordan Van Dorp bends the pipe to match the contours of the land. He follows marks in-dicated by the bending engineer.

Father and son on the same crew

Henry Van Dorp, le , Ma Foley and Sherri Nesvold mea-sure the pipe and place stakes indica ng where it should be placed along the centreline of the ditch. The right of way stretches o to the horizon.

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Weyburn – Since coming to

the area in 2007, Weyburn-based

Rearden Well Servicing has grown

steadily and added its fourth rig in

June 2011, and built an offi ce and

shop this year.

Rearden is privately held by a

small group of local investors.

Curtis Neiszner is vice-president

of operations. He started working

rigs at 22 years of age and has worked

his way up the ladder to his current

role. He’s been working on the rigs

for 17 years, all on service rigs.

His wife, Sherri Neiszner, joined

the company in 2010 as the corpo-

rate administrator. Service rigs have

always been a part of her life.

“My dad has a rig – Apex Well

Servicing in Midale. Th at was my

whole life.”

As for her own experience Sherri

said, “I worked at Newalta for 16

years in the offi ce.”

Curtis was born and raised in

Weyburn. Th e two have been married

15 years.

Describing Curtis’ initial involve-

ment with Rearden, Sherri stated,

“Curtis worked with some of the

shareholders and they approached

him. Th ey wanted somebody here to

look after things.”

Page B13

Cur s Neiszner is the vice president of opera ons of Rearden Well Servicing. Yes, that is a whitetail deer European mount on the front of the rig, courtesy of toolpush Ma Halkyard.

Steady growth for Rearden Well Servicing

The crew of Rearden Rig 1 prepare to run pipe down a well near Stoughton.


Page B12Th e company has been run out of the Neiszner home until this year, when

the company’s growth required expansion to a purpose-built offi ce and shop in

the Weyburn Industrial Park.

All four of their rigs are free-standing double-triples which allows them to

service the deepest wells throughout southeast Saskatchewan.

“We’ve been steady. Last year was quite slow due to the wet weather,”

Sherri said.

“Our rigs follow certain companies.”

Two work for one of the larger companies in the area, the third works for

another larger producer, and the fourth splits its time between two smaller

junior producers.

A total of 23 people work for Rearden, of which nearly all are local. “We

did have some imports from Quebec, but they’ve moved on,” she said.

“We have a few employees that have been here since the beginning,” Sherri

added.

One of the advantages of being in Weyburn is the high number of service

rigs. Th at means there is a mobile workforce from which to draw employees.

“Attracting good people is harder now than fi ve years ago,” she said. “Th at’s

true in all business. We do a lot of promotions from within and build on it. Of

the fi rst fi ve guys who started with the company, four are still here.”

All those four are now toolpushes or drillers.

In a move that’s getting pretty common for southeast Saskatchewan

oilfi eld service companies, the company has gotten into the accommodations

game. “We have three suites we rent out to our guys.”

Indeed, the upstairs of the shop was designed to be used as living quarters

if necessary.

“I believe what sets us apart from other service rig companies in the area is

we’re very family-oriented,” Sherri said. Each year the company takes everyone

– husbands, wives, kids, and they go skiing in the mountains for on Family Day

weekend in February.

“We believe we need to get back to our families,” she concluded.

Ma Halkyard is a toolpush on Rearden Rig 1.

Chad Gri on releases the elevators on a sub.


Redvers – If there’s one thing constant on the Saskatchewan prairie, it’s

wind. Th e welders working for Surerus Pipeline on Enbridge’s Bakken expan-

sion project have had more than their fair share this fall.

Jeff Trout of Saskatoon is the pipe gang foreman on the job. Th e pipe gang,

also called “main gang” is the crew of welders, welders’ helpers, spacers, side-

boom operators, labourers and other workers that turn the individual joints of

pipe into a pipeline line. On this job, there were 40 on Trout’s crew, with 11

welders including the repair welder.

Th e welders move along in their trucks from joint to joint. Th ese trucks

typically have custom-built service bodies or truck bed inserts to house their

welding machines, grinders, acetylene torches and other tools.

In factories, parts move past welders on the assembly line. On pipelines,

the welders move past the parts, in essence forming a rolling assembly line.

Page B15

Combatting the wind

To block the wind, these welders are surrounded by plywood wind boards.


Page B14Th is job is too small

to use mechanized

welders, sometimes

referred to as “bugs,”

according to Trout. As a

result, it’s a stick weld-

ing job.

“We’re using in-

ternal clamps, though,”

Trout said.

Internal clamps are

like a robot that travels

inside the pipe. When it

reaches the end, it locks

the two joints into place

so that the welders can

establish a bead. Th e

welding in this case was

done externally.

Much of September

was spent coping with

the strong winds. “We

got winded out yester-

day. We can’t shut down

every day,” Trout said.

“It’s not just breezes, but

50-60-70 kilometre per

hour winds.”

How do they com-

bat it?

“Lots of lumber –

wind boards, doughnut

boards, umbrellas. It

seems to be working,”

was Trout’s response.

His crew was a mix-

ture of Saskatchewan

and Alberta hands, all

name-hired.

“Th ey’re paying

well. A lot of guys want-

ed to be on this job,” he

said. At 124 kilometres

long, it’s considered a

good job, he noted.

Trout grew up in

Estevan. He started

working for Prairie

Pipelines at the age of

18.

He has been work-

ing on the pipe gang

since 1986, starting as a

helper, then a labourer,

operator, spacer and

strawboss.

“I’ve been a foreman

for fi ve or six years,” he

said.

He smiled and

added, “Sometimes

I’d like to go back and

run boom. Th ere’s less

headaches.”

“I made my bread

and butter for 20 years

in Alberta. Now Sas-

katchewan is booming.

Until three years ago, I

can’t remember when I

last worked in Alberta,”

Trout concluded before

getting back into his

truck and catching up

with his crew.

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This sec on of right-of-way shows some of the di erent stripping techniques used to minimize environmental damage. At the top of the hill, bucket width stripping has taken place, with the topsoil preserved on plas c tarps at the edge of the right of way. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Finding places to put the dirtBengough – Th ere’s something you soon learn as a pipeliner: no matter how much space you are

given to put your dirt, somebody will eventually fi nd a reason to want more.

Th at’s one of the challenges Jeff Nowlan gets to deal with each day.

Nowlan is one of two assistant superintendents for Arnett & Burgess Pipeliners, one of the con-

tractors on the Vantage Pipeline project. Earl MacEachern is the other. Nowlan takes care of the front

end of the job, while MacEachern handles the back end.

If anyone knows about where to put dirt, Nowlan is probably one of them. He’s going on 19 years

of pipelining, most of it spent doing dirt work.

“I run hoe. I ran wheel ditcher until three years ago. I have my own wheel trencher, a 9200 Buck-

eye. Th ere’s about six in Canada. It’s parked in the Hat,” he said in reference to Medicine Hat, where

he’s based.

His personal company is called Jbers Trenching Enterprises Ltd. However, on this job, he’s

working in a management capacity, not in a dirtmover capacity.

Wheel ditchers are the queen of the ditch crew. In good straight going with few rocks, they can

fl y past excavators. But a lot of rock results in picking up the wheel and walking it down the line.

“Th e fi rst 20 kilometres are mostly rocks and hills,” Nowlan said. “From (road) 214 west, it’s

not bad,” he said.

One feature of this job is the numerous changes in stripping, from full width to minimal

disturbance. In some areas, they have triple lifts, meaning multiple layers of topsoil and sub-

soil must be stripped and kept separate by one metre, always a challenge given the amount

of workspace available.

Nowlan pulled out a map showing the variety of stripping techniques used in the

fi rst stretch. It’s a lot.

Th e fi rst few kilometres have many changes in terrain that would be consid-

ered quite hilly for southern Saskatchewan, and with plenty of rock. Where

the ditch crew was working on Oct. 11, near the project kickoff , there was

enough rock that the pipe had to be wrapped in yellow rock shield. It’s

a rubber matting to protect it from being damaged by rocks when the

trench is backfi lled.

Nowlan has been in Medicine Hat since 1999. He grew up in

Miramichi, N.B. Upon completing high school, he moved to

Calgary and started pipelining.

He’s been married for 17 years and has two kids, eight

and 15 years old.

Assistant superintendent Je Nowlan shows the variety of stripping techniques required on the rst part of the job which turned out to be hilly,

rocky terrain.


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A keen eye for the lay of the land

Sheila Klym, holds a stake for Ed Fornal to line up on with his eye level.

Bengough – You might think Saskatchewan is

pretty fl at. It’s not. For every slight rise or fall in

the land, large pipelines need to be bent according-

ly using a large bending machine. But before that

can be done, the bending engineer, with his keen

eye for subtle changes in the land, goes to work.

Ed Fornal is the bending engineer on Van-

tage Pipeline’s Arnett & Burgess spread, near

Bengough.

“We’re making the pipe fi t the contour of the

land,” he said.

“For roads, or bores, you go deeper."

Th e sags and overbends and sidebends of the

pipe have to match the land exactly, otherwise it

will create a stress point that could eventually lead

to a failure, something no pipeline operator wants.

A sag is a dip in the land, an overbend is a crest. A

sidebend is a lateral curve, where the right-of-way

curves to the left or right.

And to throw something of a curveball into the

equation, sometimes there will be a sag or overbend

right at a sidebend. Th e result is a combination

bend.

It’s with this in mind Fornal pulls out his trusty

eyelevel. It’s akin to a surveyors transit, but is hand-

held and fi ts in your pocket. As you look through

it you line up the built-in spirit level’s bubble. A

gauge then gives you the degrees up or down.

From Bruce, Alta., Fornal’s been pipelining

since 1971, starting at the age of 20.

“We just came off a 42-inch job at Hudson

Hope, B.C. with Surerus. We’re going back to Fort

Nelson for more 42-inch.

Th e current Vantage project has plenty of bores

and native prairie to deal with “Excessively more,”

Fornal said. “It does slow everything down.”

Compared to working in B.C., he said, “It’s

short and choppy instead of long and high.”

Page B18


get Hitched

Bending engineer Ed Fornal uses he eyelevel to measure exactly how much the pipe must be bent to match the landscape.

Page B17

Th e progress was slow at fi rst, with lots of short

hills, but by Oct. 11 he said, “We got 6 clicks (kilo-

metres) under our belt yesterday, and six today. We

were lucky to get two in that bad stuff .”

Indeed, there were two bending machines

following him, as opposed to the usual one. “We

geared up so we can get footage,” Fornall said.

He had two helpers with him. Samantha Mohr

is from the Quebec side of the Ottawa valley. Sheila

Klym is from Lafl eche, Sask. For both it was their

fi rst pipeline job.

“He’s a good boss. He trains you, puts you

under his wing,” said Klym, whose prior job as a

nursing assistant.

“It’s great outdoors. You get lots of exercise, and

it keeps you in shape, let me tell you.”

Mohr said, “I just fi nished school, four years of

business college.”

She’s not sure what she wants to do yet, notng

she majored in marketing, but started in accounting.

Her boyfriend is running a sideboom on the

same crew, a few miles back.

Every rise and fall in the landscape is matched by the pipe


Crude Oil & Saltwater Transfers

Hot Fresh Water

Access To Fresh Water Available

Freshwater Hauling

Service Work

Estevan – Sun Country Well Servicing Rig 8 could be found working very

close to the U.S. border. Th e site was a fl urry of activity as it was prepared for a

frac. A toolhand from a downhole tool company was on the job, as was a power

tong hand. On the far side of the lease, trucks buzzed around, bringing in and

then spotting 400-bbl. tanks.

And in the middle of all this was rig manager Brad Markham, a 28-year-

old who grew up in Yorkton, but for the last seven years he called Estevan

home.

He has been a rig manager, also known as toolpush, for a year now.

Markham has been with Sun Country for three years.

“I started drilling in 2008 with Precision Well Servicing,” he said. He hired

on with Sun Country’s Rig 4 and was drilling full time. He started pushing

with Rig 8 in September 2011.

“We’re picking up four-and-a-half inch casing and running a tie-back

string, latching onto a liner,” he explained as the hands started running pipe.

Sun Country Well Servicing Rig 8 manager Brad Markham records pipe measurements before his crew begins running pipe down the well.

A busy place, this service rig

PIPELINE NEWS November 2012 B21B20 PIPELINE NEWS November 2012

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Story and photos by Brian ZinchukBengough – Looking for a diff erent life, Den-

nis Lavallee found himself coming out west, where

he is now a pipeline tie-in foreman with Arnett &

Burnett Pipeliners. Th e current job is the Vantage

Pipeline project.

Lavallee is originally from a little town called St.

Charles, Ont., about an hour east of Sudbury and a

little south. Calgary is now his home.

Lavallee has spent roughly a decade pipelining.

Prior to that he had a rather unique job in the fam-

ily business.

“I worked for my dad doing erection and demo-

lition of large factory equipment,” Lavallee said. “We

once moved a large carpet dye cooker that was 500

feet long, 40 feet wide and 30 feet tall.

“We did Uniroyal’s boiler room when I was

young.”

Lavallee is just turning 30.

He’s worked on pipeline projects varying from

one-inch to 52-inches in diameter. Most of his ex-

perience has been in big-inch projects. However, he

decided he wanted to work for smaller companies.

Lavallee was looking after a road bore crew in

early October until his tie-in crew fi red up. Th ere’s

plenty of work for both, with about 190 crossings,

and “way more tie-ins,” he said.

“Th e right of way goes like this,” he said, waving

his hands up and down.

Th e project is a 10-inch line. Th e larger the pipe,

the longer it takes to weld. Th is size is comparatively

small compared to a 16, 24 or 36-inch line.

“If everything goes good, you can do a tie-in in

an hour. If it doesn’t go good, you can get one or two

in a day,” Lavallee said. “It can be tricky on some

jobs.”

Tie-ins can be Tie-ins can be quick, or not quick, or not so quickso quick

Foreman Dennis Lavallee, in the green hard hat, takes a look at the drag sec on in the ditch. Once the drag sec- on is in place and the mainline pipe is in posi on, e-in

welders will join the two roughly were Lavallee is stand-ing.

Once in posi on in the bell hole, the pipe will be dragged by the direc onal boring machine directly under the posi- on of the camera, under the road un l it comes into the

bellhole on the other side.

The excavator operator lowers the drag sec on into the large bell hole. A bell hole is an excava on designed to be safe for workers to enter. This is done by providing ad-equate slope to the sides and by digging stair cases along the side of the trench.

Using tag lines, workers are careful to ensure the drag sec on does not damage the pipe that will go into the ground a er the drag sec on.

The drag sec on, the piece of pipe that will be pulled under the road by the boring machine, is li ed over the welded pipe.

Dennis Lavallee is a e-in foreman for A&B Pipeliners


3D3D MAINTENANCEMAINTENANCECell numbers: Cell numbers: 483-8024, 483-7024, 483-8148483-8024, 483-7024, 483-8148

Home number: 486-2143 • Fax: 486-4855Home number: 486-2143 • Fax: 486-4855Box 12 Frobisher, SK. S0C 0Y0Box 12 Frobisher, SK. S0C 0Y0

[email protected][email protected]

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Saskatoon, SaskatchewanDecember 4, 2012

2– 2011 JOHN DEERE 9630T

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One Woman’s Perspective on Life, Liberty and the

Pursuit of Land Locations By Nadine Elson

Shifting Shifting GearsGears

It was a glorious

day, the fi rst day of the

fall season, and I was

on top of the world.

Literally on top of the

world! I was standing

on the rig fl oor of En-

sign’s ADR rig Big Sky

650 located at that time

near Pierson, Man.

Th e sun shone

brightly and warmly

after the cool night,

and the wind was

nearly non-existent,

only slight breezes

moving my hair peek-

ing out from beneath

my hard hat. I looked

out beyond the railing

and could see for miles

in all directions, the

land stretching out fl at

before me. Harvest was

well underway, and the

landscape was golden

colored.

I couldn’t believe

my luck. Th e week

before I had been on

Panther Drilling’s new

Rig 4, and now here

I was on an ADR rig.

Along with members

and guests of our local

Desk and Derrick Club,

I was on a tour of this

rig owned by Ensign

Drilling.

I had never even

heard of an ADR rig

prior to the spring

when Desk and Derrick

member Denise Tay-

lor of Ensign Drilling

began making arrange-

ments for the tour.

ADR stands for Auto-

mated Drilling Rig. It

is a new technology. A

mechanical pipe arm

takes the place of two

human roughneck posi-

tions on the drilling rig.

Denise retired from

her Human Resources

position with Ensign

in July but is still active

with the club. Members

met in Estevan on that

Saturday morning and

drove out to Pierson

in a convoy of vehicles,

picking up members

along the way in Bi-

enfait and Oxbow. We

arrived at the Big Sky

ADR rig mid-day, and

outfi tted in hard hats

and safety boots, we

completed the sign-in

procedures and safety

orientation.

Denise introduced

us to Curtis Hilstrom,

rig manager, who would

guide us around the rig.

I wondered about his

lineage briefl y, but not

for long. Denise told us

he was from Estevan,

the son of Merv and

Isla Hilstrom, whom I

knew. I had curled with

Isla for a few years in

the Estevan ladies’ curl-

ing league, as had my

mother, and had played

badminton against

Merv in a badminton

club.

Our Desk and

Derrick membership

spent several hours

very enjoyably explor-

ing the rig. Curtis was

a knowledgeable tour

guide and I know that

I was not the only one

who enjoyed the tour

and the chance to see

up-close and personal

the workings of the

rig. Although my job

often entails deliver-

ies to drilling rigs, I

do not often have any

contact with anyone

other than the loader

operator assigned to

unload my truck and

trailer, and of course,

the drilling company

representative who

signs the ticket. I have

only occasionally been

allowed on a drilling

rig, so I relished this

opportunity to ask

questions.

Page B23

The key to business success

The Desk and Derrick Club visited Ensign 650 recently.


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Page B22

Our Desk and Derrick membership spent several hours very enjoyably

exploring the rig. Curtis was a knowledgeable tour guide and I know that

I was not the only one who enjoyed the tour and the chance to see up-

close and personal the workings of the rig. Although my job often entails

deliveries to drilling rigs, I do not often have any contact with anyone

other than the loader operator assigned to unload my truck and trailer,

and of course, the drilling company representative who signs the ticket.

I have only occasionally been allowed on a drilling rig, so I relished this

opportunity to ask questions.

Curtis may have been surprised by the number of questions that we

all asked, but he was very patient with us, and unfailingly polite. His

mother would have been proud. I know Denise was very proud of her HR

work with Curtis.

As I drove home from Pierson, I reflected on the last several hours. A

phrase that Curtis had used popped into my head. At the time of intro-

ductions, Denise had indicated that Curtis, although relatively young, was

well-qualified for the position of rig manager. One of our members had

asked him how he progressed so quickly into the position of rig manager,

and he had answered, “Never say no!”

“Never say no!” That seemed simple enough. But simple concepts are

often complex. At the core of that statement, was a man willing to say no

to himself in order not to say no to the company. I have no doubt that his

ability to delay gratification, the saying no to himself, was the real key

to his success in being promoted to rig manager. I am not surprised. He

most likely learned that as a child at the knee of his hard-working, farm-

ing parents.

“The ability to delay gratification in the short term in order to enjoy

greater reward in the long term is the indispensable prerequisite for suc-

cess.” Brian Tracy - Entrepreneur, business coach and author.

So you want to achieve business success? It ’s simple to say. Not so

easy to do, though. Be a yes man or woman. Never say no!

Nadine lives in Estevan with her husband and family, and shifted gears a few years ago, becoming a hot shot driver for the oilpatch. Her people skills are put to good use in the patch as she delivers the goods quickly and eff iciently. Contact her at [email protected] with comments or questions.

Tack weldWelders with Arne & Burgess Pipeliners make the ini al tack weld while the spacer, in orange, watches. Photo by Brian Zinchuk


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Phone: (306) 634-3616

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Bengough – It’s hard to fi nd people, so it’s best to keep your crew together.

Th at’s how Ross Fraser feels. Fraser is the welding foreman for both the

main gang and poor boy crews working on the Vantage Pipeline project with

Arnett & Burgess Pipeliners.

He’s got 10 welders with those two crews, another handling repairs, and

one more doing tie-ins.

Th e welders can be seen towing trailers behind their trucks with tents con-

structed over them. Th ey have been used to combat wind, which can play havoc

with your welds. “In ’91 we used them. If you’re going to weld in Saskatchewan,

it’s a good idea,” he said.

Th is is Fraser’s fi rst job with A&B. “We just came from Hudson Hope,

B.C. Th is is pretty fl at,” he said. Page B25

Tents towed on trailers and hung over the pipe are one way to combat the strong winds on the Saskatchewan prairie. Wind and welding generally don’t mix well.

Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Keep your crew together


Page B24 Th e project is using standard grade mild steel pipe. In other

words, nothing out of the ordinary.

Fraser has been pipelining for 35 years, primarily in Western Canada.

“I’ve been to Russia in ’96 for a year. It was the most fun in my life,” he

noted.

Big-inch, small-inch, he’s done it all. Fraser’s taking his crew on a 42-inch

job for their next project.

“I like to keep my crew together, keep key guys working. It’s hard to fi nd

guys. It’s hard to fi nd experienced pipeliners, and it’s only going to get worse,”

he concluded.

The tack rig crew makes the ini al weld, joining or “stabbing on” a joint of pipe to the pipeline. Photos by Brian Zinchuk

Internal clamps, seen here coming out of the end of the pipe, are used to secure the fresh joint of pipe to the pipeline.


Lloydminster – It’s a no-brainer decision for

Calgary-based Flexpipe Systems who plan on

opening a new solutions centre in Lloydminster

early in 2013.

Flexpipe Systems has already established a

growing market in the region for its line of high

pressure, corrosion-resistant spooled continuous

pipe for heavy oil and gas applications.

“We’ve been selling pipe in Western Canada

for 11 years,” said Steven Gouthro, sales manager

Canada, at the company’s product booth at the

Lloydminster Heavy Show in September.

“Our fi rst installation was with Husky in Car-

lyle, Saskatchewan in 2001.

“Lloydminster is a great customer base for us.

It’s getting busier and busier everyday from Lloyd

itself through to Provost and into the Macklin/

Cactus Lake area and through to Kindersley and

Kerrobert.

“All those areas – it’s hopping for us for sure.”

Th e company’s fl agship products are FlexPipe

line pipe, FlexPipe HT or high temperature line

pipe and FlexCord line pipe all designed, tested and

manufactured in Calgary.

Flexpipe Systems is a division of ShawCor

Ltd., a global energy services company specializing

in technology-based products and services for the

pipeline and petrochemical sectors and other indus-

trial markets.

Th e company was awarded its largest Australian

contract to date in July with the sale of 175 kilome-

tres of combined Flex pipeline pipe and FlexPipe

HT line pipe.

Similar success is anticipated in the Lloydmin-

ster area following the growth of solution centres

in Estevan and Grande Prairie where staff provide

fi eld installation and operational support for pipe-

line projects.

“We are targeting early 2013 for Lloydminster,”

said Gouthro.

“Lloydminster is a big part of our customer

base. We do great business with companies like

Northern Blizzard, Husky, PennWest, Apache,

CNRL, and we just need to be closer than Calgary

to service these guys properly.”

Flexpipe Systems’ products are used for oil and

gas gathering, including projects with hydrogen sul-

phide/carbon dioxide content, water transfer lines,

salt water disposal systems, CBM (or CSG) appli-

cations and other applications in which a corrosion

resistant pipeline is required.

“Our line pipes are designed to handle the ugly

stuff . Our customers like us for that,” said Gouthro.

Page B27

Flexpipe Systems’ sales representa ves Jason Mapleto , le , and Steven Gouthro, pictured on the second day of the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show, said the company has established a big presence in the regional heavy oil market with their high pressure, corrosion-resistant line pipe products.

Flexpipe to open Lloyd service shop


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Swift Current, SK306-773-5626

Page B26Flexpipe Systems’ pipeline prod-

ucts are supplied on long-length con-

tinuous reels up to 2,100 metres and

can be installed by plowing, trenching

and slip lining through existing failed

pipelines.

Th e pipeline products are an

alternative to steel with their patented

three-layer composite design and spe-

cifi c corrosion-resistant high pressure

properties.

FlexPipe and FlexPipe HT

come with a high density polyeth-

ylene (HDP) inner liner or blad-

der wrapped in a continuous high

strength fi bre and protected in a

HDP jacket.

“One of the main benefi ts is that

the HDP bladder is non-corrosive,”

said Gouthro.

“Th at’s defi nitely one of the big

selling features over your standard

steel lined pipe.”

FlexPipe is available in two, three

and four inch inner diameter pipe

with pressure rating choices of 300,

750 and 1,500 psi and temperature

ratings up to 60 degrees Celsius.

“We’ve got a high temp version

of that with similar sizes and pressure

ratings able to operate up to 82 C and

up to 90 C for hot oiling – anything

that’s going to hammer on the pipes –

it’s very durable,” said Gouthro.

Th at’s the FlexPipe HT line pipe

that can withstand harsh chemical

environments.

Jason Mapletoft, a fi eld sales and

services representative at the oil show,

explained the FlexCord line pipe was

ideal for handling high pressure fl ows

and is capable of handling severe

pressure cycles generated by piston

pumps such as triplex and diaphragm

pumps.

“It’s the exact same as FlexPipe,

but it’s got a braided steel liner over

top of the bladder and that gives it

more strength,” he said.

“It’s a pretty awesome product.”

Mapletoft and Gouthro took

turns pitching product features and

benefi ts to a steady stream of visitors

at the oil show and meeting new cli-

ents in the countdown to the launch

of the Lloydminster shop.

“Our goal here is just to get our

product out there and make more

people aware of what we have and

in some cases maybe introduce it

to another new oil company,” said

Mapletoft.

“I think it’s a phenomenal prod-

uct and I’d sure love to get everybody

using it.”

Jason Mapleto , eld sales and service rep with Flexpipe Systems, holds samples of the company’s patented FlexCord, le , and FlexPipe high temperature line pipe products at the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show. The Calgary-based company, with U.S. headquarters in Houston, Texas is opening a new loca on in Lloydminster in early 2013.

Photo by Geo Lee


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Lloydminster – Marksmen Vegetation Management continues to grow as

quickly as the weeds and vegetation they have been controlling for the oil and

gas industry in Western Canada for the past 20 years.

Th e company is owned and operated by Lyle Froehlich in Lloydminster

and has a growing fl eet of approximately 25 trucks, 10 ATVs and a new mulch-

ing unit. Th ey also have seasonal operations in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and

Alberta.

Field operations usually wind down by September, giving the company the

time to staff a booth at this year’s Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show where Alberta

fi eld manager Daryl Wright held the fort Sept. 12-13.

“We do comprehensive weed spraying, total vegetation management, weed

spraying on leases, oilfi eld pipelines, hydro seeding and mulching,” said Wright,

who joined the company in January after moving from Estevan to Lloydmin-

ster.

“We’re growing. We’re defi nitely increasing in size. I am just new to the team

here. Th ere are three other managers across Western Canada in Saskatchewan

and Alberta. We are planning on continuing to grow.”

Th e company recently introduced a new mulching service to provide low en-

vironmental impact lease maintenance and construction, reclamation, fi reguard,

and roadside and fence line clearing work.

Marksmen is best known for providing comprehensive vegetation manage-

ment control programs with herbicides and pesticide treatments for annual pro-

grams, contact programs and broadleaf control programs.

Th e yearly programs can be combined with additional services such as in-

tegrated pest management reports, weed inspection and identifi cation, noxious

weed selective programs and brush clearing and roadway spraying.

“Th e main application is the oil and gas industry. We’ll do some gas sites, oil

leases and oil batteries,” said Wright.

“Usually noxious weed control is a requirement of the landowner – farmers

and stuff like that because they don’t want seeds going off in their crops.

“It’s also a government regulation depending on where you are to control

noxious weeds. Th ere is the Alberta Weed Control Act that we fall under. You

are required to control certain weeds on lease sites.

“Th ere is also safety behind it too. Sometimes there is pipe and stuff sticking

out of the ground.

“We like to do a bare ground program so that you can see obstacles when

you drive onto the site.

“Our competitors would be weed whipping and mowing. Th e biggest con-

cern with that is there is an ignition source close to the oil well, so that’s where

weed spraying makes sense.”

Marksmen is a member of the Industrial Vegetation Management Associa-

tion (IVMAA) of Alberta and the IVMA for Manitoba/Saskatchewan.

Th e company has several active members serving in IVMA presidential and

board positions.

Wright said the chemical spraying is environmentally friendly “in that the

spread of noxious weeds would defi nitely be worse for the environment” without

the treatment.

“We use chemicals that are on site. Th ey are not long-term residual chemi-

cals, so they have a microbial breakdown,” he said.

Marksmen has a full-time health, safety and environment (HSE) manager,

extensive employee training programs, and dedicated staff to follow safety trends

and keep records.

Marksmen serves multiple clients in a huge area from Fort McMurray to

Red Deer in Alberta, all parts of Saskatchewan including Estevan and Regina,

and clients south of Winnipeg, Manitoba for seasonal spray programs.

Page B29

Growing as quick as the weeds they control


Alberta eld manager Daryl Wright from Marksmen Vegeta on Management handed out a ton of business cards and yers about Marksmen’s menu of vegeta on control services to the oil and gas industry in Western Canada during the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show in September. Photo by Geo Lee

Page B28“We hire summer students from colleges around Western Canada. We

get started by April and we usually wrap everything up by September,” said

Wright.

“We are a seasonal company. We do a little bit of snow removal in the

winter.

“In fall and winter, we generate sales, and in the spring, we work on our

recruitment hiring and conduct recruitment shows.”

Wright graduated from the University of Regina and came on-board after

taking an applicator’s course at SIAST.

He currently holds an Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba industrial ap-

plicator licence.

“You can also take it from Lakeland College in town here. We provide that

for all our employees but it’s actually a growing course at Lakeland College,”

said Wright.

“It’s an enjoyable job. Every day is diff erent. Th ere are always problems that

occur that are never straightforward to fi x. It’s defi nitely fun. You get out in the

outdoors every day.”

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Bengough – With

all the media focus on

pipeline failures, quality

control is a key focus

for all new pipelines.

Vladimir Mairena

is a quality control

inspector working on

the Vantage Pipeline.

His job is to ensure the

welds on the pipe are

done within the proper

specifi cations.

Mairena is one of

two inspectors doing

the weld QC work.

Th ey stagger their

hours so that there’s

someone covering the

early morning meetings

as well as staying with

the job until later in the

day.

Th ree per cent

of the daily wells are

randomly tested. An

induction ampmeter

can be seen hanging

from Mairena’s chest.

Th at’s used for measur-

ing amperage during

the welding, one of the

parameters the qual-

ity control inspectors

monitor. Other param-

eters include bead pass

speed and voltage.

“We calculate the

heat input. If it’s too

high, the customer can

say, ‘Cut it out,’” he

explained.

Th e requirement

to be a quality control

inspector is having

three years experience

welding.

“I’m going back

to school. I’ll have my

journeyman in the

spring,” he said. He will

be seeking his pressure

‘B’ certifi cation as well

while at NAIT.

He put off his last

stint of technical train-

ing to work on this job.

Pipelining is a hard

job when you have kids.

Mairena has three with

his wife of 10 years.

He hails from

Camrose, where he

moved as a child in

1988.

“I started weld-

ing at the pipe mill

in Camrose. Th at was

only seasonal. I moved

to mechanic work. I

worked at Midas and

stuff like that,” he said.

“My brother got me

into welding.

“I did the odd jobs.

I used to work for a

GM dealer in Edmon-

ton. Th at was fun. We

had a good crew. I was

in sales. I was assistant

manager my last two

years, taking care of

the leasing portfolio.

I got out of it before

the market crashed,”

Mairena said.

“I started weld-

ing for GLM tanks

in Camrose until they

shut the doors.”

More recently he

has been working as a

pipeliner.

Vladimir Mairena is a quality control inspector working on the Vantage Pipeline Arne & Burgess Pipeliners spread. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

Quality control ensures welds meet spec


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Calgary – Southern

Pacifi c’s production

numbers are headed

upward as a result of

operational improve-

ments at its STP-Mc-

Kay and STP-Senlac

thermal projects in

Alberta and Saskatch-

ewan.

Th e Calgary-based

company released an

upbeat operational

update on Oct. 11

highlighted by the fi rst

production of bitumen

at McKay from the

fi rst of 12 well pairs

being converted from

steam circulation to

production.

Th e company

reported that ad-

ditional well pairs

will be converted to

the production phase

over the next several

weeks at the steam as-

sisted gravity drainage

(SAGD) site north of

Fort McMurray.

Plans call for the

SAGD well pairs to be

gradually ramped up in

both volume of steam

injected and volume of

produced fl uids recov-

ered to surface.

Each well pair is

expected to take 12 to

18 months to reach

peak rates.

Southern Pacifi c

also reported that its

central process facility

at McKay continues to

run at “an impressive

pace,” delivering steam

to the well pairs at a 99

per cent on-time load

factor.

Bitumen returns

during the warm-up

phase have been suc-

cessfully separated

from the produced

water.

Th e produced

water is being cleaned,

treated and recycled

into steam to feed back

into the SAGD well

pairs.

All processes

within the project

have been successfully

commissioned and the

company expects the

plant to continue run-

ning smoothly through

the winter season.

Th e fi rst of six

horizontal wells was

being drilled in mid-

October at the STP-

Senlac thermal project

near Unity, Saskatch-

ewan as part of Phase

K that consists of three

SAGD well pairs.

Southern Pacifi c

anticipates produc-

tion will “increase

materially” as Phase K

is brought on stream

from volumes of ap-

proximately 3,000 bar-

rels per day in August

and September.

Production from

this pad is expected

towards the end of

February 2013 after

the wells are drilled,

completed, equipped

and warmed up with

steam.

Th e company began

to ship about one-third

of its bitumen produc-

tion from Senlac by rail

in September utilizing

a newly constructed

rail loading terminal

located at Unity.

Th ey are consider-

ing moving additional

volumes by the rail.

Th e greater use of

rail follows a market-

ing arrangement the

company announced in

June to ship bitumen

produced from STP-

McKay by rail to the

U.S. Gulf Coast.

Th is arrangement

includes dedicated

loading and offl oading

capacity at two new

rail terminals, located

in Lynton, Alberta and

Natchez, Mississippi.

Both terminals, as

well as approximately

500 rail cars, are under

construction, which is

either on or ahead of

schedule.

Southern Pacifi c

has been working with

several U.S. Gulf Coast

refi neries to arrange

the end markets for its

production.

Th e company has

also identifi ed sources

in the U.S. Gulf Coast

to purchase diluent

that will be used in the

McKay plant process.

Th is product will

be transported back

to McKay utilizing its

rail cars on the return

trip from the U.S. Gulf

Coast.

Th e company said

the economics for ship-

ping bitumen via rail

continue to be favour-

able in the current

pricing environment,

bolstered by the wide

Brent/WTI diff eren-

tial, lower Gulf Coast

diluent costs, and the

requirement for less

diluent versus shipping

bitumen by pipeline.

Volumes of bitu-

men produced prior to

Jan.1, 2013 will be de-

livered to intra-Alberta

markets.

Southern Paci c steams on two fronts


Lloydminster – "If it’s plastics, it’s Hobblestone. "

Th at’s the motto of Hobblestone Enterprises Inc. that brought a tip-of-

the-iceberg display of its growing line of plastics products to the Lloydminster

Heavy Oil Show in September.

Th e assortment of plastic trays, liners and geotextiles, tanks and containers

on exhibit helped to steer manager Th omas Hobbs into a conversation about

the applications for the products starting with the oil and gas industry.

“We make plastic liners and containment products,” said Hobbs, who over-

sees the manufacturing at the company’s shop in Blackfoot Alberta, just west of

Lloydminster on Highway 16.

“We make 40 mil poly liners and we have a few in textiles (geotextiles) and

all sorts of guards, tanks and trays. It’s all heavy duty and ready to go.

“Our most popular products are our 100 gallon, double wall tank and the

containment trays for them and line trays.

“Th e rig line trays are for 3-inch hammer unions and that kind of stuff on

the oil rigs.

“Large line pipe trays are usually for some of the rig stuff – when they have

their connections between the pipe they need to keep it contained and that

pretty much is what it does. It keeps it off the ground as well,” added Hobbs.

Hobblestone also manufactures catch trays from small one gallon capacity

to 12-foot length trays that can hold 1,100 gallons of fl uid.

Th e company is the exclusive manufacturer of an all-in-one containment

system with the tank, stand and containment in one unit designed to store

chemicals and a pump in a weather-proof plastic shelter.

Th e Hobblestone product catalogue includes a vast assortment of loaf

tanks, horizontal round tanks, tank stands, rig prod-

ucts and specialty products.

Some of their molded oilfi eld accessories such

as a valve jacket and plastic polish rod were part of

the oil show exhibit.

“Polish rod guards are to help the guys so they

don’t get hurt when they are working around the

wellhead,” said Hobbs, who handed out a catalogue

with competitive pricing of plastics. Page B33

Hobblestone Enterprises Inc. manufactures a diverse variety of plas c molded products including this cold weather valve jacket for oil and gas applica ons. Photo by Geo Lee

Hobblestone molds to the market


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Manager Thomas Hobbs was all smiles holding up this popular plas c polish rod safety guard made by Hobblestone Enterprises Inc. in Blackfoot, Alberta, just west of Lloydminster. Hobbs brought an assortment of molded products for a variety of applica ons to the Lloydminster Heavy Oil Show in September.

Page B32“Th e advantage of plastic is that the price is right. It’s easy to fi x if it gets

wrecked,” he said.

Th e company has repair shops in Lloydminster and Cold Lake and can in-

stall, repair or prefabricate most types of liners including geo-membranes used

by oil and gas companies for containment.

Hobblestone also caters to the home and garden market with plastic prod-

ucts such as rain barrels and fl ower pots and the recreational fi eld with dock

fl oats, quad boxes and quad trailers.

On display was a yellow plastic quad trailer with a weight capacity of 1,200

lbs.

“It’s got good high speed tires and that kind of stuff for doing work for

anybody from surveying to just on the farm,” said Hobbs.

Hobblestone also makes products that comply with federal environmental

farm plans in additional to custom made manufacturing on site to suit client

needs.

Th e company’s main and strongest line of products is made by rotational

molding – a process for creating hollow items, such as anti-freeze reservoirs

and stairs.

“Th e majority of products are made in Hobblestone. I do have a couple of

things I bring in, but that’s only because the price is right, and it’s like reinvent-

ing the wheel,” said Hobbs.

“I have to make a mold for everything for that type of item and they

already have it. If I can get if from them at the right price, and give it to you at

the right price, why not?”

Hobblestone is well known for its extensive television advertising as it

continues on a growth mode and product diversifi cation for a variety of appli-

cations.

“Right now it’s been pretty good. We have an established business,” said

Hobbs.

“Everyone knows how we set up and knows the ideas – so we threw in the

quad trailer and other stuff like that to give them some idea of some of the

other stuff we handle.”

His goal at the oil show he said was “to let everyone know that we stand

behind on our products and we have good products. We are here to give you

what you need.”

The price is right for plastics


FAX: 306-453-4476BOX 40, CARLYLE, SASK. S0C 0R0

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Regina – Th e Swift Current area received no bids in the October sale of

Crown petroleum and natural gas with most of the action focused on Viking

Sand lease parcels in west-central Saskatchewan.

Th at was the story of the October sale that generated $15.2 million in

revenue for the province, bringing total land sale revenues for 2012 to date to

$94.2 million.

No bids were received on the fi ve parcels off ered in the Swift Current area.

Th is compares to approximately $6 million or an average of $653.52 per hect-

are at the last sale in August.

Since 2009, horizontal drilling in the Viking Sand has seen a signifi cant

increase in production from 1,250 barrels per day to 17,500 barrels per day

with stronger interest in land sales.

“Th ese numbers refl ect the expanded use of the technology that originally

unlocked the Bakken formation,” said Minister responsible for Energy and

Resources Tim McMillan.

“Th e benefi t of this technology is helping drive production and land acqui-

sition across the province.”

October’s sale included 125 lease parcels that brought in $11.8 million in

bonus bids and nine petroleum and natural gas exploration licences that sold

for $3.4 million.

Not surprisingly, the Kindersley-Kerrobert area where the Viking play is

prevalent received the most bids with sales of $8.5 million.

Th e Weyburn-Estevan area was next at $3.4 million, followed by the Lloy-

dminster area at $3.3 million.

Th e highest price for a single parcel was $1.6 million. Scott Land & Lease

Ltd. acquired this 1,295-hectare exploration licence southwest of Kindersley.

Th e highest price on a per-hectare basis was $8,532. Scott Land & Lease

Ltd. bid $552,447 for a 64-hectare lease parcel north of Kisbey.

Th e next and fi nal land sale of the year will be held on Dec. 3.

Kindersley-Kerrobert area (numbers rounded off )

Th e total bonus received in the area was $8.4 million, an average of $349/

hectare. Th is compares to $1.7 million, an average of $159/hectare at the last

sale.

Th e top purchaser of acreage in this area was Bristol Land & Leasing Ltd.

who spent $3.4 million to acquire four lease parcels.

Th e top price paid for a single lease was $1.3 million by Bristol Land &

Leasing Ltd. for a 249.29 hectare parcel situated within the Coleville-Smiley

Gas Pool, 20 kilometres northwest of Kindersley.

Th is was the highest dollar per hectare in this area at $5,262/hectare.

Th e top price paid for a single licence was $1.6 million, by Scott Land &

Lease Ltd. for a 1,294 hectare block located fi ve kilometres northeast of the

Bayhurst West Viking Gas Pool, 40 kilometres southwest of Kindersley.

Weyburn-Estevan areaTh e total bonus received in the area was $3.4 million an average of

$463.81/hectare. Th is compares to $10 million, an average of $622/hectare at

the last sale.

Th e top purchaser of acreage in this area was Scott Land & Lease Ltd.,

spending $1.1 million to acquire nine lease parcels.

Th e top price paid for a single lease in this area was $552,447 by Scott

Land & Lease Ltd. for a 64.75 hectare parcel situated within the Viewfi eld

Bakken Sand and Star Valley Frobisher-Alida Beds Oil Pools, eight kilometres

northeast of Kisbey.

Th is was the highest dollar per hectare in this area at $8,532/hectare. Th e

top price paid for a single licence in this area was $510,611, paid by Silver

Hawk Resources Ltd. for a 1,100 hectare block situated 10 kilometres east

of the Red Jacket South Red Jacket Sand Pool, three kilometres south of

Moosomin.

Lloydminster areaTh e total bonus received in the area was $3,317,689.73, an average of

$691/hectare. Th is compares to $5.5 million, an average of $529.66/hectare at

the last sale.

Th e top purchaser of acreage in this area was Scott Land & Lease Ltd.,

that spent $965,962 to acquire fi ve lease parcels.

Th e top price for a single lease in this area was $314,760, paid by Wind-

fall Resources Ltd. for a 113.31 hectare parcel situated within the Tanglefl ags

North G.P. and Lloyd-CummingsSands Oil Pools, 27 kilometres northeast of

Lloydminster.

Th e highest dollar per hectare in this area was received from Prairie Land

& Investment Services Ltd., that paid $8,041/hectare for a 4.80 hectare parcel

located within the Silverdale Mannville Sands Oil Pools, seven kilometres

south of Lloydminster.

Swift Current areaNo bids were received on the fi ve parcels off ered in the Swift Current area.

Th is compares to $6 million or an average of $653/hectare at the last sale.

Swift Current lays a land sale goose egg


Calgary – PetroBakken Energy Ltd. executed an aggressive drilling pro-

gram in the third quarter with 82 net wells drilled, representing a 17 per cent

increase over the same period last year.

Drilling activity focused primarily on the company’s Bakken and Cardium

business units, where 40 and 32 net wells were drilled, respectively, with an ad-

ditional 10 net wells drilled in its Saskatchewan conventional business unit.

PetroBakken was also busy completing wells with 46 net wells completed

during the quarter, including 30 net wells in the Bakken business unit and

eight net wells in each of the Cardium and Saskatchewan conventional busi-

ness units.

After bringing 52 net wells on production in the third quarter, the com-

pany had 43 net wells (23 in the Cardium, 17 in the Bakken) either waiting on

completion or completed and waiting to be brought on production.

Th e second half of the year is always very active for PetroBakken, and the

company expects its rate of drilling and bringing wells on production in the

fourth quarter of 2012 to outpace the activity levels achieved last year.

PetroBakken is forecasting that it will drill 82 net wells in the fourth quar-

ter of this year, a 28 well increase from 54 wells during the same period last

year. Th e company plans on having 105 net wells on production by the end of

the fourth quarter compared to 85 the year prior.

As of Oct. 12, the company had 20 drilling rigs operating, with nine drill-

ing in the Cardium fairway of Alberta, eight in the Bakken fairway in south-

east Saskatchewan, two on conventional prospects in southeast Saskatchewan

and one in its new resource play area in central Alberta.

Th e company plans to drill 25 net wells in the Cardium, 36 net wells in the

Bakken and 21 net wells in its other areas in the fourth quarter, achieving the

company’s current plan of 220 total net wells drilled in 2012.

A delayed start in PetroBakken’s second half capital program has resulted

in third quarter production levels being fl at compared to the second quarter

of this year. However, the company noted that reduced industry activity has

provided increased access to services that allows it to catch up on the planned

program, positioning PetroBakken to achieve its exit rate production guidance

of 52,000 to 56,000 bbl. of oil equivalent per day.

Th e company’s third quarter average production was 38,400 boepd (84

per cent light oil and natural gas liquids), based on fi eld estimates, comprised

of over 15,800 boepd from the Bakken business unit, 14,700 boepd from the

Cardium business unit, and the remainder from the Saskatchewan convention-

al and Alberta/B.C. business units.

Th is production level is relatively fl at to the third quarter of 2011, primarily

resulting from the disposition of producing assets in the fi rst half of 2012 and

the delayed start to the company’s second half 2012 capital program.

Production for September 2012 was 39,200 boepd based on fi eld estimates,

a slight increase over second quarter 2012. Currently, as a result of routine

maintenance of individual wells and facilities as well as restricted production,

PetroBakken estimates that it has approximately 1,500 boepd of additional

productive capacity that is expected to be brought on production in the fourth

quarter.

PetroBakken keeping the drill bit busy in the second half of 2012

In an operational

update on Oct. 15 on

recent drilling activity in

western Saskatchewan,

Hawk Exploration Ltd.

says it has completed

and equipped its hori-

zontal well at 09-10-

46-23W3 at Carruthers,

west of Cut Knife.

Placed on produc-

tion in mid-September,

the well has produced

heavy oil at an average

rate of 60 bpd with a 20

per cent water cut.

Th e company

recently submitted

applications to drill an

additional two horizon-

tal wells in the north

half of Section 10 at

Carruthers, which are

expected to be drilled

in either late 2012 or

early in 2013. Hawk has

a 100 per cent working

interest in the north half

of Section 10.

Hawk recently

drilled a vertical well

testing the Basal Man-

nville formation at

Dankin, Sask. However,

the well did not encoun-

ter enough pay thickness

to warrant drilling of

a horizontal well in its

current location.

Th e company is

reassessing its 3D seis-

mic data to determine

a better horizontal well

path and expects to

drill a horizontal well at

Dankin in late 2012 or

early 2013. Hawk has

a 100 per cent working

interest at Dankin.

At Seagram Lake,

Sask., Hawk recently

began drilling a 50-per-

cent working-interest

horizontal well targeting

the Leduc (Duperow)

formation. In an ef-

fort to minimize water

encroachment in this

horizontal well, the

company expects to ini-

tially complete the well

without acid stimula-

tion.

Hawk's 2012 third-

quarter production,

based on fi eld estimates,

was approximately 520

boepd, weighted 95 per

cent to heavy oil.

For the fourth quar-

ter, the company plans

to conduct two separate

2D seismic programs in

western Saskatchewan

and one 3D seismic

program at Silverdale, in

the same region, to de-

lineate future vertical oil

drilling opportunities.

Hawk expects to

drill one (one net) verti-

cal well targeting oil in

the Sparky formation of

western Saskatchewan

in its fourth quarter. Th e

company also expects to

drill one (one net) hori-

zontal well late in the

fourth quarter at either

Carruthers or Dankin.

Hawk drilling at Carruthers


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Measuring pipe

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ESTEVANESTEVAN

Cold Lake, Alta. – Baytex Energy

Corp. said Oct. 2 it has agreed to

acquire a 100 per cent working in-

terest in 46 sections of undeveloped

oilsands leases in the Cold Lake area

of northeast Alberta.

Th e $120-million purchase

(before closing adjustments and

costs) will be funded from Baytex's

revolving credit facility. Th e acquisi-

tion was expected to close in early

October.

Baytex said the leases are near

core heavy oil assets at Cold Lake

and are prospective for both thermal

and cold development.

Regulatory approval has been

received for the construction and

operation of a SAGD project. Baytex

anticipates moving forward with a

SAGD pilot in 2013.

If the pilot is successful, con-

struction of a commercial 5,000 bpd

SAGD project would start in 2014

with initial production in 2016. Be-

sides the currently approved SAGD

project, Baytex has identifi ed addi-

tional areas that are prospective for

thermal development.

Th e acquisition adds an ap-

proved SAGD project to Baytex's

asset portfolio, which currently

includes thermal recovery projects

at Seal in the Peace River oilsands

region of Alberta and at Kerrobert

in southwest Saskatchewan.

Once developed, thermal recov-

ery projects provide a source of long-

life, low-decline production. Baytex

said developing these projects will

reduce its corporate decline rate and

enhance its ability to continue to ex-

ecute its growth and income model

over the long term.

Reserves associated with the

identifi ed SAGD project total about

43.7 million bbl. of bitumen on a

proved plus probable basis, eff ec-

tive Aug. 31, 2012, as evaluated by

Sproule Associates Limited. Baytex

estimates the fi nding, development

and acquisition costs will be about

$12.50 a bbl. over the life of the

project.

“Th e acquisition of these oil-

sands leases is consistent with

Baytex's strategy to build upon our

existing heavy oil and thermal exper-

tise. Th ese leases are adjacent to our

existing Cold lake operations, and

the SAGD project complements our

existing thermal operations at Seal

and Kerrobert. Beyond the thermal

potential, we have also identifi ed

opportunities for cold horizontal

development on the acquired lands,”

Baytex president James Bowzer said

in a press release.

Baxtex Energy Corp. added to its extensive holdings in northwest Saskatchewan and northeast Alberta by scooping up oilsands leases near Cold Lake, Alta.

Baytex buying oilsands leases for $120 million


FIND OUT MOREEnbridge.com/InYourCommunity

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Our Safe Community program provides firefighters, police departments and other first responders with funding for everything

from equipment to training. The program gives the men and women who protect us the support they need to ensure the safety

and wellbeing of our communities, now and into the future.

Enbridge delivers more than the energy you count on. We deliver on our promise to help make communities better places to live.

It’s part of the reason we were named one of the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World.

WHERE ENERGY MEETS SAFETY

Fort McMurray – Enbridge Inc. is expanding its

regional oil sands system with a new pipeline and

terminal facilities to connect eight producing oil

sands projects in the Fort McMurray area by 2014.

Enbridge Pipelines (Woodland) Inc., an affi li-

ate of Enbridge, received approval from the Alberta

Energy Resources Conservation Board on Sept.

27 to construct the Woodland pipeline extension

project that expected to cost up to $1.4 billion.

Th e project will involve construction of a 36-

inch diameter line approximately 385 km from

Enbridge’s Cheecham regional oil sands terminal to

its mainline hub terminal at Edmonton.

Th e Woodland pipeline will have an initial

capacity of 400,000 barrels per day expandable to

800,000 bpd and will eff ectively twin Enbridge’s

existing Waupisoo pipeline.

Th e new line will accommodate anticipated

growth in bitumen production from Imperial Oil’s

Kearl oil sands project, and increasing volumes

from other projects already connected to Enbridge’s

regional oil sands system, or expected to be con-

nected.

Enbridge has not yet received fi nal commercial

approval to initiate fi eld construction from ship-

pers, but anticipates it will do so in time to achieve

a 2015 in-service date.

Th e pre-construction development costs are be-

ing supported by shippers pending fi nal commercial

approval.

Enbridge has also entered into an agreement

with Suncor Energy Oil Sands Limited Partner-

ship to complete a $150 million expansion of the

existing infrastructure at the Enbridge Athabasca

Terminal.

Construction actually began in July 2011 to

meet Suncor’s in-service target date by the second

quarter of 2013.

Th e expansion agreement formally announced

on Sept. 27 is needed to accommodate the incre-

mental bitumen volumes from Suncor’s Firebag 3

and 4 developments.

Enbridge will construct a new 350,000 barrel

tank as well as additional infrastructure including

new booster pumps, meters and modifi cations to

existing piping and manifolds.

Suncor has agreed to backstop Enbridge’s

investment in these facilities through a long-term

services agreement, during which Enbridge will

recoup all of its operating costs, a return on equity,

and all of its invested capital.

Th e new projects will maintain Enbridge’s

position as the leading pipeline operator in the Fort

McMurray to Edmonton/Hardisty corridor and

well positioned to tie-in new oil sand developments

to mainline pipelines and increase capacity for cur-

rent customers.

Enbridge’s regional oilsands infrastructure in-

cludes the existing Athabasca and Waupisoo pipe-

line systems, which currently connect six producing

oil sands projects.

Th e existing 540 kilometre Athabasca pipeline

has an annual capacity to transport up to 570,000

barrels per day of crude oil from the Athabasca and

Cold Lake regions of Alberta, south to Hardisty,

Alberta.

Th e company through its Athabasca Pipeline

affi liate is currently twinning the Athabasca pipe-

line that will transport increased oil production in

the Kirby Lake area of the oilsands.

Th e existing Waupisoo pipeline has an annual

capacity to move up to 600,000 bpd of crude oil

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NEWSPIPELINE SECTION C

November 2012

Cur s Kemp, in the white hard hat on the catwalk, inter-cepts a joint of pipe as it is raised. Behind him are, from le , driller Dus n Lafrentz, derrickhand Tom Steengaard and Mathew Warburton, a tonghand with Gilliss Power Tongs. It was lightly raining as the crew worked near the U.S. border.

Story and photos by Brian ZinchukEstevan – In 1942, when the United States

sought to bomb Tokyo in response to the attack at

Pearl Harbor, they had a problem. Th ey were using

heavy, land-based bombers from aircraft carriers

that were never designed for such planes. As a re-

sult, they had to substantially reduce the weight of

the bombers while still maintaining their operat-

ing ability, otherwise they would never get in the

air.

Th e result was the Doolittle Raid, which was

portrayed at the end of the Hollywood blockbust-

er Pearl Harbor.

When Estevan-based Sun Country Well Ser-

vicing went about designing its service rig fl eet,

they went through a similar exercise. Th ey had to

get the weight of their rigs under some very specifi c

numbers, otherwise they, too, would be grounded

at times – particularly during spring breakup.

Th e man heading up Sun Country’s eff orts on

the ground is Brad Bennett, vice-president of op-

erations. Phil Amosah is the company’s fi eld su-

pervisor, while Blake Mile is the equipment man-

ager.

Bennett is one of three partners who started

and operate the business, the others being Tony

Hodges, president, and Rob Wasylyniuk, vice-

president of fi nance.

“We’ve got some investors as well,” he added.

Th e company has an offi ce in Cochrane, Alta.,

where Connie Nastiuk is responsible for invoicing

and payables, among other tasks. Janice Christan-

son is responsible for payroll and benefi ts (human

resources).

“We started in October of 2009,” said Ben-

nett. “I’ve been around since the ’70s.”

Th e outfi t started with three rigs right away, the

fi rst in October, the second in November and the

third in December of that year.

Th ey had six by November 2010 and then added

one each spring and fall in 2011 and 2012.

Th at has grown to 10 rigs now. “Rig 10 just rolled

in in September,” Bennett said.

In building those rigs, they kept weight as a

prime consideration. It factored in the choice of steel

used. It means fi bre grating (a plastic-aluminum

composite) walkways instead of steel or aluminum.

Th e engine choice was selected in part due to its

weight factor.

Page C2

Make ’em light, so they can work

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Page C1“Th is derrick is much more like an aircraft or a

ship,” Mile said, standing near one of the units.

Th e load beam assembly is hydraulically driven.

It’s light and “fast fast fast,” he described.

“We have very light rigs,” Mile said.

Th e steel chosen was QT100, a “very high tech

steel,” he said. “Typical steel is 70,000 psi tensile

strength. Th is is 100,000 psi tensile strength.”

Th e greatest weight savings is in the derrick,

but it applies to the whole chassis.

“We’re also running all Cummins motors,

which is lighter than Detroits or Cats.

“We run a nine-litre engine,” Mile said. It has

the same power as other engines, but is lighter and

easier on fuel.

“Th at makes our front axle weight 16,000 kilo-

grams, which is light for a service rig.”

Bennett pointed out, “We don’t need bridge

clearance for them. Th e real axles are less than

25,000 kilograms.”

“Th ose are magic numbers,” Mile said.

Th e result is much fewer headaches getting

permits.

All 10 rigs are freestanding units with 105-foot

derricks, allowing for double tubing and triple rods.

All are rated to 200,000 pounds.

“All our rigs are Courtney Berg Industries

of Linden, Alberta. Th ey are designed by Sparta

Engineering,” Bennett said. “All our rigs are the

same so switching people around makes it easier to

do. Doghouses are built by Demby Trailers out of

Weyburn.”

“After we fi rst started, I brought our rig manag-

ers in and asked them what changes they wanted.”

Some ergonomics have evolved over time, mak-

ing them more user-friendly.

“We can rig up in 20 minutes,” Mile said.

Not all in one basketSun Country doesn’t go into Manitoba much.

“We prefer to stay in Saskatchewan if it works out,”

Bennett said.

Th eir service area is from Bengough in the west

to the Manitoba border in the east, and from the

U.S. border in the south to Rocanville in the north.

“Our guys are home every night. Th at’s one of

the great things of the Saskatchewan service rig

lifestyle – being home every night,” Mile said.

“Most of our rigs are working for certain com-

panies. We have one rig that’s a fl oater.”

Th ey work with approximately seven regulars.

“We don’t put all our eggs in one basket,” Amo-

sah said.

Mile picked up on that, noting that having a

diverse clientele means at road ban time, they can

look for dry land to work on.

Independent operation“Independents seems to do better than the

larger companies,” Bennett said.

“Especially for employee retention,” Mile

added. “We have an excellent benefi ts program with

matching RRSPs.”

“You’re not a number,” Bennett said.

Amosah said, “It means a lot when Brad knows

your name, and your family.”

Being independent also means being nimble,

with Bennett noting in larger operations one loses

all control.

“We make decisions in fi ve minutes,” Mile

noted.

Backgrounds“I started on drilling rigs in ’70’s and went to

service rigs in ’76,” Bennett said.

He grew up on a farm near Gainsborough,

eight miles from both the Manitoba and U.S.

borders. At the age of 20, he started working on the

rigs.

“I worked for Flint, then went over to Cenalta

in ’91. I was in Waskada in the ’80s, from ’81 to ’86.

I got into the management side with Flint in Mani-

toba,” Bennett said. He worked as a fi eld supervisor,

and lived on an acreage near Melita, Man.

Amosah lived in Weyburn for seven years, then

he moved to Raymore, where he played six-man

football.

He lives in Oxbow, where he met his wife and

they have raised their children.

Amosah worked on service rigs based in Ox-

bow for Cenalta Well Servicing.

“Th ey were bought out by Precision in 2001,”

he said. He remained with that company until

2010, when he came over to Sun Country. His fi nal

two years at Precision Drilling were as a fi eld super-

visor, the same position he holds today.

Staff “We’re fairly fortunate to have the core of guys

that we do. Th e fi rst three rig managers, we worked

on the same rig together out of Oxbow,” Amosah

said.

Corey Widenmaier trained him as a fl oorhand,

derrickhand and driller, Amosah noted. Jared Ma-

ff enbeier and Les Logue also worked with him.

“When I came here, I wanted a diff erent de-

meanor,” said Amosah. “Th ese guys are my friends.

Th ey are my family. All 10 rig managers, I consider

my personal friends.”

“We try to promote all our personnel from

within.”

Bennett noted, “You don’t want to weaken a rig

to start another. Sometimes you have to go outside

to bring someone in.”

“Training remains on the job. Rig managers are

best for that,” said Mile.

“All our rig managers are good at training new

guys,” Bennett said. “Th ey take their time, show

them the dangerous spots, where not to stick your

fi ngers.

“It’s all about people. If you don’t have people,

the right people, you don’t have anything. If they’re

not doing the job that’s expected, customers aren’t

going to call back.”

You’re not a number with an independent

Cur s Kemp de ly snags a joint of tubing as it is being raised.

PIPELINE NEWS November 2012 C3

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Bromhead – A toot

of the train’s whistle,

and Long Creek Rail-

road is on track, literally.

Th e province’s new-

est short line – its thir-

teenth – held a grand

opening and barbecue

at its Southall loading

facility, approximately

two miles northwest of

Bromhead, Sask., on

Oct. 2

Th e site is roughly

40 miles west of Este-

van.

Th e railroad was

initially planned to take

care of local farmers’

grain shipment needs.

However, the meteoric

rise of crude oil ship-

ments by rail in the

region have come as a

welcome development.

Indeed, by the time its

grand opening was held,

it had only shipped

crude, not canola.

Approximately

70 people came out

to the grand opening,

with several dignitar-

ies involved in the deal

making short speeches.

Tours were provided of

the engine and crude oil

transloading equipment.

For many present, a

good number of whom

are investors in the ven-

ture, it was a relief. Th e

launch of this railroad

was seven years in the

making.

Wayne Carten

negotiated the purchase

of the line on behalf of

Canadian Pacifi c Rail-

way. He noted “Short-

lines work well. Th ey

have a lower cost base

and level off effi ciency.”

Crude-by-rail has

grown sharply in promi-

nence over the last two

years. Carten noted CP

will do 17,000 carloads

of oil out of North

Dakota this year. Much

of that is heading either

to Albany, New York, or

the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Carten told those

gathered, “It’s been a

long time coming,” and

that CP looks forward

to working with the

short line.

“Th ey’re off to a ter-

rifi c start,” he said.

He acknowledged

the province’s role in

supporting the short

line.

“Th ere hasn’t been

a revenue movement on

these rails since 2002,”

Carten said. At that

time, 27 cars used the

railroad. By the time

this newspaper goes to

press, that number will

have been long exceeded

by the new operation.

After the formal

ceremonies, Carten

noted, “It’s amazing it

wasn’t ripped up.”

Th e line went

through the usual three-

year discontinuance

plan, which under fed-

eral legislation requires

rail lines to be off ered to

various levels of govern-

ment before being either

sold off or abandoned

and scrapped.

“If people want to

save the line, you have

to get the interest,” he

said.

Th ere was a diff er-

ence in valuation of the

line between CP and

the new branch line,

but that was eventu-

ally resolved, resulting

in the successful sale.

Th e net salvage value

of the line was approxi-

mately $2.26 million. It

changed hands March

31, 2012.

“Shortlines have

fl exibility and bring it to

us,” Carten said. “Every-

body wins.”

Saskatchewan

Minister of Highways

and Infrastructure Don

McMorris pointed out

the province has put

$2.2 billion into high-

ways over the last fi ve

years, over $500 million

a year.

“Every ounce, or

barrel, or whatever

measure you use, is not

on our highways,” he

said regarding shifting

freight from roads to

rail. Using rail gets traf-

fi c off the roads.

Page C4

Long Creek Railroad holds grand opening

Minister of Highways and Infrastructure Don McMorris, in the orange vest, poses with the board members of Long Creek Railroad.


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Page C3 “What a great way to get the

tracks back into use.”

Th e province provided a 34 per cent loan guar-

antee of $800,000 to the short line.

Glenn Pederson, president of Long Creek Rail-

road, noted the Estevan to Neptune line was started

in 1909, and its fi rst train ran 99 years ago, in 1913.

Th e steel, at 85 pounds per yard, is stamped with

“1905” and came from Algoma Steel. Th e original

steel was lighter, but this steel was brought in when

the line was rehabilitated in the 1980s.

Communities fl ourished with the rail, he noted.

Even the circus came by train.

In 1926, Southall was built. Th e Southall

to Minton line was abandoned in 2000, yet the

distance to oceans hasn’t changed, he pointed out.

Th ere is still a need to ship grain, and oil.

“Today is a pretty exciting day,” Pederson said

after the ceremonies. “Th e last seven years of meet-

ings and planning have come to fruition.

“We’ve guaranteed them weekly train service. If

we get enough cars, it will be twice a week,” he said

of their deal with Torq Transloading, the company

that is putting the crude on the rail cars.

He farms with his father, Dallas, who is the

reeve of the Rural Municipality of Souris Val-

ley, and had acted as master of ceremonies for the

event. Th ey farm 7,500 acres.

“Our fi rst grain cars have been ordered,” Glenn

said. “As a rail line, I hope weekly. As a farmer, I

hope once a month to load a car.”

Th e Pedersons, themselves, intended on load-

ing 14 cars with grain, with Tribune as the loading

point.

Dean Weinkauf is one of four partners in Torq

Capital Partners, the parent company of Torq

Transloading, which is loading the tanker rail cars

with crude oil from trucks. His other role is presi-

dent and CEO of Goulet Trucking of Shaunavon,

which is providing the trucking.

“Last month (September) there were four cars.

Th is month (October) there will be close to 100.

It should double every month for a while,” he said.

“We can do up to 350 cars a month before we do

Phase 2. Phase 2 can take us to approximately 30

cars per day. We could go up to 80 cars per day with

investment in infrastructure.”

Th at would involve building more road and us-

ing more track, but no tanks on site. “We don’t use

tanks at all. We can load a car as quickly as topload-

ing without the investment for tanks,” he said.

Page C5

More crude than canola shipping on this line

Glenn Pederson, president of Long Creek Railroad, ex-plained the history of the line.

Minister of Highways and Infrastructure Don McMorris talked about keeping tra c o roads.


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Page C4Torq is a straight

fee-for-service operator,

and not a marketer.

As of the grand

opening, they had three

people working at

Southall. “We’re look-

ing for more. We need

four or fi ve more. We’re

fi nding manpower is an

issue,” he said.

Th e work is very

similar to battery opera-

tor work, he noted.

Th e railroad is

working with Johnston’s

Grain Marketing in

Welwyn, Sask. as a grain

broker.

CWB farm busi-

ness representative

Patrick Weatherald was

on hand for the event.

He said, “Th e Cana-

dian Grain Act gives

the famer the right to

ship his own grain by

producer car.”

Up to fi ve farm-

ers can use one car, but

generally they load their

own. Farmers apply for

a producer car by mak-

ing an application to the

Canadian Grain Com-

mission. Th ey then elect

an administrator, such as

West Central Road and

Rail, or the CWB.

“Th e CWB’s role in

all this is to be a pro-

moter of producer cars

and to off er farmers the

ability to sell their grain

to the CWB through

its two pools, the early

delivery pool, or the

harvest pol.

Under the old

system, producer cars

ensured competitive

rates for freight, eleva-

tion and cleaning, he

noted.

“If you load a

producer car on a track

here, you will not pay

elevation and cleaning,

which is generally $15

to $20 per tonne.”

Th ose are major cost

savings, but also involve

more risk, he noted. It

also drives competition

for the elevators. Ap-

proximately 10 per cent

of wheat and durum has

gone by producer cars.

“It’s good for the

community, communi-

ties, I should say,” said

Hartley Halvorson just

prior to the commence-

ment of the ceremonies.

His farm is south of

Torquay, but it is now

rented out.

“We were in on this

a few years ago. We had

a train out and loaded

about 20 cars, but it

died off ,” he said, refer-

ring to producer cars

farmers fi ll with grain.

Th at was about 10 years

ago.

“Traffi c is good.

Th at’s what will make it

sustainable,” said Don

Hurren, who farms

about 2,700 acres in the

Torquay and Tribune

area. Hurren is also

a shareholder in the

railroad.

He got involved

because he wanted to

reduce freight rates and

elevation charges, or, as

he put it, “To put more

money in the pocket.”

Hurren noted he

should be able to deliver

grain to the railroad

without having to wait

for space at elevators. It

also takes grain-hauling

traffi c off the roads

Doug Tallon is

chairman of the board

of Great Western Rail,

and was present as a

representative of the

Saskatchewan Short

Line Association. “It

proves the viability of

short lines. We have

more coming on stream

every years,” he said.

Th e Ministry of

Highways has recog-

nized its signifi cance,

providing the short-

line association with

$700,000 each year.

Th at’s not a lot, espe-

cially divided among the

now 13 short lines, but

it’s better than nothing,

and they appreciate it.

Great Western,

based in Shaunavon, was

purchased in 2004 from

a B.C. salvage company.

Now it, too, is hauling

oil. Great Western also

provides locomotive

power for the Fife Lake

Railway and Red Coat

Road and Rail.

Tallon off ered con-

gratulations to the new

short line.

Darwin Daae farms

about 3,500 acres near

Torquay. He’s vice-pres-

ident of Long Creek.

Last winter he drove

for a hot shot outfi t in

Estevan, in part because

last year’s fl ooding

meant he had almost

no crop. Crop insurance

and a government pay-

out helped, he noted.

“It goes right past

my yard, about three-

quarters of a mile away”

he said. He would like

to load rail cars that

close, but the more

likely place will be

Torquay, three miles to

the east. Th at’s an awful

lot closer than the 50

miles to Weyburn.

Daae got involved

right from the start of

the initiative, which

took seven years. “It’s

almost a sigh of relieve

to know it’s been since

’05.

“Th e intent was for

grain. Th is oil is just a

bonus,” he said. “When

we bought this track, it

was strictly grain. Th e

idea was to break even

and get a benefi t on

reduced costs.”

Crude-by-rail will

be a potential money

maker, he said.

Isaac Unger, right and Crystal Daae take a turn at driving spikes during Long Creek Railroad's grand opening.


Now Open

By Brian ZinchukWeyburn – It’s pretty

rare for a company to

last 40 years in the

oilpatch, especially under

the same ownership.

But John Kmita Ltd.,

a service rig company

based at Weyburn, has

persevered.

And persever-

ance is defi nitely the

proper term. When

founder John Kmita was

honoured at the 2009

Saskatchewan Oil and

Gas Show as one of two

Southeast Saskatchewan

Oilmen of the Year, it

was noted that each time

he added a new rig to

the fl eet, the industry

collapsed. In accepting

the honour, he cracked,

“I built a new shop last

year, and oil plummeted

$100 a barrel.”

In recounting his ex-

periences, John laughed

as he explained how

an oil company man

phoned him in the 1980s

and asked how it’s going.

Th e phone call came in

the summertime.

“Terrible. Th e kids

got frostbite from star-

ing in an empty fridge,”

Kmita told him.

John, himself, has

largely stepped back as

his two sons, Jonathan

and Tyler, have assumed

the reigns.

Beginnings“I started in 1960

working for Addison

Leyen,” John said. “I was

19 years old. I was origi-

nally from Regina.”

“A friend was

building the fi rst Dairy

Queen. Th ere was an

old house there. I tore

it down. Th en I started

working on the rigs.”

While many rig

hands have at some

point worked drilling

rigs and service rigs, for

John it has always been

service rigs.

Th ey needed men to

work south of Weyburn.

“Th ere wasn’t a whole lot

of wells out there then,”

he noted. “We worked

for Central Del Rio,

Mobil Oil, Canadian

Superior.”

Central Del Rio

Oils drilled the discov-

ery well that got the

Weyburn fi eld going. It

was the forerunner to

PanCanadian, EnCana

and then Cenovus, the

current operator of the

fi eld around Goodwater.

He wasn’t a rough-

neck for long. “I wasn’t

scared of heights,” John

said. “Th e rig I worked

on, nobody else wanted

to work on the derrick.”

Norm Mondor, now

of Aldon Oils, was the

driller at the time.

John spent a couple

of years on the derrick.

“I got set up as toolpush,

then I went and worked

in Alberta for a year.

Th en I came back and

started my own com-

pany.”

John Kmita Ltd. was

established in 1972.

“I bought a used rig

in Natchez, Mississippi.

Th at’s where we found a

single. We’ve still got it.

We’re still running it.

“We redo it every

four years. We just got it

recertifi ed this spring,”

Indeed, that rig

could be found working

in the Cenovus fi eld near

Goodwater, gleaming

with a bright new coat of

paint.

Asked how many

engines Rig 1 has gone

through, he said, “A

couple. You look after

them, they’ll look after

you.”

Rig 1 came in by

rail car. “It cost $1,000

more to unload it in

Weyburn than Portal. So

we unloaded it there. Th e

air lines were all frozen,”

John said, noting it was

a challenge to get it of-

fl oaded. Page C7

40 years for John Kmita Ltd.

Damon Co ey, le and Clayton Carter run pipe in.


CLIFF NANKIVELLTRUCKING LTD.

Kalvin NankivellPresident

Claudia MullisVice-President

Of ce: (306) 462-2130Fax: (306) 462-2188

Box 123Kisbey, SK S0C 1L0

[email protected]

John Kmita, centre, is presented with his plaque for Southeast Oilman of the Year in 2009. On the le is then - Minister of Energy and Resources Bill Boyd. File photo

Page C6Th e company started with Mel Kitzul and Russ

Sedger as initial partners.

“Th ey held the mortgage on the fi rst rig and

the company paid them back,” John said. Th at took

about fi ve or six years.

Long serviceWhen he started out, there were just three

people working on the rig, with John being one of

them. Garry Myers and Glen Nimegeers were the

other two. Myers started in 1972 and still works

with the Kmitas. He’s is John’s brother-in-law.

“He does a lot of our farming now,” John said.

He also fi lls the role of fi eld supervisor

Nimegeers went overseas and is now a consul-

tant.

Clarence Guider, a cousin, worked part time

from 1972 to 1978, then full-time for 32 years. He

passed away this past summer.

“You always had some farm guy who you would

call in when someone needed a day off ,” John said.

Guider was often that man.

Two of their toolpushes have been with the

company since 1993-94.

Darryl Mutrie pushes Rig 1, Troy Bell has Rig

2, Trent Latham takes care of Rig 3, and Mike

Church handles Rig 4.

BackboneFarm boys have been the backbone of the in-

dustry for years, but there aren’t many farm boys left

these days. “Th e younger guys, if they’re good, they

stay on the farm. Before, you hired 10 farm boys,

and nine were good.”

Being mechanically inclined was a key point

with those farm boys. Th ese days, a boy out of

school “can’t change a tire,” John said.

Whereas a crew typically has fi ve men now,

back then it was just three – one on the brake, one

on the stick, and one roughneck.

“If you had good men, you could do it,” John

said. “It evolved to four and then fi ve. Now you get

four and then fi ve, then someone counting noses on

the edge of the lease.”

Buy a rig, industry collapsesTh e period when John started the company also

turned out to be one of the most diffi cult for the

Saskatchewan oilpatch, when the NDP government

under Allan Blakeney brought in the infamous Bill

42. Th at legislation brought the industry to a crawl.

“Th e government started paying for repairs and

replacement. Th ere was still some work, but it was

not as lucrative,” he said.

Th e company added a second rig in 1980. “We

started it, and then it went like that,” John said,

making a downward motion with his hands in

reference to the oil business. “You just had to live

through it. You tried to keep your men around.

When you run your company yourself, you get by

with less.

“In the 1980s, Trudeau brought in the National

Energy Program, and guys were taking their rigs to

the States to work. We never went.”

“In 1985 oil went to $9 a barrel, just after we

bought Rig 3.” Page C8


Page C7“It’s all my fault,” John joked.

“You make do with less. It gets nicely going, and then you’re down to noth-

ing again.”

With Rig 3, they went to a double-triple layout.

When it came time to add Rig 4 in 2010, Jonathan noted, “We waited this

time for the crash to happen, then we bought the rig.”

“Rig 4 was in the yard and I said, ‘Well boys, there’s your inheritance. All

you have to do is pay for it,’” John said.

Family aff airJohn married Roseann, also known as “Sandy,” in 1966. She did all the ac-

counting and books until three years ago. She passed away in January 2010.

Th ey had four children. Th e two sons are still involved. Shannon and Mi-

chelle helped with the books when they were home. Both are now in Alberta.

Michelle and her husband have an endless tubing company in Medicine Hat,

and Shannon is in Airdrie. Her husband is an engineer.

“In later years we got some farmland. We started with 40 acres where the

house is. I liked horses and wanted a place out of town.”

Th ose 40 acres were purchased from Sandy’s father.

Th at love of horses has been passed down, as he pointed to his sons and

said “It turns out these guys are rodeo cowboys, ropin’ and ridin.’

Th eir current events are bareback riding and team roping for Jonathan, and

team roping and calf roping for Tyler. Both have earned a large collection of

buckles and saddles.

“Th e three (saddles) I won are in my house as decoration,” Jonathan, 42,

said.

Tyler, 37, said, “Th ree are in my house, and I ride fi ve.”

Both of the boys have been with the company their whole lives. Jonathan

said, “I started when I was 15. If anybody asked, I had to lie and say I was 16.”

Tyler added, “I was a little later. I didn’t start until I was 19. I fi lled in in

every position and did most of the farm work and ranching.”

Th ey now have 2,700 acres of land, 180 head of cattle and 40 horses.

Jonathan has shares in Rafter Anchor Rodeo, an amateur rodeo outfi t, and

Outlaw Buckers, a pro rodeo company. “I have horses at the Canadian Finals

Rodeo in Edmonton and the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas.

Other rodeos include Estevan, Elbow and Wood Mountain. Th ere were 10

horses at the Calgary Stampede and a number of bulls. One horse named Call-

ing Card was in the fi nal four of the $100,000 round of saddle bronc.

To run a service rig company and still take part in all these rodeos calls for

a lot of balancing and sharing duties, as well as a lot of planning.

Page C9

Working the same eld for four decades

A joint of tubing is li ed o the cat walk on John Kmita Ltd. Rig 1.


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“Terrible. “Terrible. The kids got The kids got

frostbite from frostbite from staring in an staring in an

empty fridge.”empty fridge.”- John Kmita’s response to an oil company man when

asked how things were going in the mid-’80s.

Page C8Good clients, safe workers

In driving through the Cenovus Weyburn

fi eld, one fi nds several Kmita rig signs along the

road. Working for decades for PanCanadian, then

Encana and Cenovus has its benefi ts. Regular work

meant a lot of it has been fi ve days a week, with

weekends off . Th at has allowed the Kmitas and

their staff to do things with their families.

“It was nice. It was a diff erent kind of oilpatch,”

Jonathan said.

Currently two of their rigs regularly work with

Crescent Point, the other two with Cenovus.

Th eir rotations have typically been 12 and

two, or fi ve and two, except for when big jobs are

underway.

“To keep long-term employees and guys want

to make it a career, you have to make it so they can

have times with their family,” Jonathan said. “You

need to keep guys from burning out. We usually

work 10 hour days. Th e cost of incidents is very

high.”

“Our accident record is second to none.”

Rig 1 has had 1,700 days without a lost-time

accident. Rig 2 is at 1,300, and Rig 3 is in excess of

2,000.

“If you’re careful and train properly, you don’t

get too many (accidents),” John said. “You get a lot

more done at a nice, even pace.

“We’ve worked for a lot of nice people who are

good to work for. Your company name speaks for

itself because you’ve been there so long.

He joked that someone almost has to die for a

toolpush position to open up.

John Kmita Ltd. has 25 to 27 staff on any given

day.

Jonathan said, “A lot of it is the personal ser-

vice. If you have an issue, you’re talking to one of us.

We have a more vested interest.”

Asked if they have had off ers to buy the busi-

ness, the response was quite a few. John said, “Th e

boys want to be in the business, so we’ll leave them

the company. Instead of selling it to them, I’ll give

it to them when I die. Th ey’re taking over now.”

Page C10

John, Jonathan and Tyler Kmita head up John Kmita Ltd.


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For Darryl Mutrie,

work these days isn’t all

that far from where he

grew up. Not far at all,

in fact.

When Pipeline News paid a visit to

John Kmita Ltd. Rig 1,

the unit for which he is

rig manager, it was just a

few miles from the farm

he grew up on, located

between Goodwater and

Weyburn.

“I’ve been here

pretty much all my life,”

he said.

He started as a

roughneck, and pro-

gressed up to driller,

which he did for six

or seven years. Th e last

seven years have been

spent as a rig man-

ager, also referred to as a

toolpush.

Mutrie, 36, has been

steady with John Kmita

Ltd. for 19 years now.

“I’ve been with these

guys the whole time,” he

said. “Rig 3 push Trent

Latham has been just as

long as me. We worked

together for I can’t re-

member how long.”

Prior to pushing on

Rig 1, Mutrie’s prior

experience was spent on

Rig 2.

“When I fi rst

started, It was fi ve days

a week and weekends

off . It’s still pretty much

fi ve and two.”

Mutrie noted he’s

been working close to

home, and that Ceno-

vus, their client, has

been good to them. It

also means he can have

a life.

“We drive 20 min-

utes to go to work,” he

said.

Th e easiest part of

his job is having expe-

rienced workers. Th at

makes your job a lot

easier, he explained.

Th e hardest part is

making sure everyone

is up on their safety

program. “But we have

a good safety program,”

he added.

Close to home is easier

Page C9Generally speaking, the company

doesn’t lay off staff at springtime. Th at

means shop work during breakup, but

it also means keeping your staff . “We

invest in them, so they invest in us,”

Jonathan said.

Tyler started looking after the

company’s safety program in 2010.

Th ey fi rst obtained their Certifi cate of

Recognition (COR) in 2007.

“It’s not as bad now that we’ve

done it a couple of times. Once it’s all

in place, it’s not as bad as fi rst getting

it into place.

Jonathan handles the manage-

ment role, but that doesn’t preclude

either of them from putting on the

coveralls and fi lling in as needed. “I

think I spend more time on the rig

than in here (the offi ce),” Jonathan

said. “Th is summer I was out there

roughnecking.”

Th at surprises some of the

younger guys, he noted, but it goes a

long way to gain their respect.

John still handles the invoicing

and similar work, as well as baling

on the farm. “I’m the hired hand, the

lowest guy on the totem pole,” he

smiled.

At 72 years old, he’s spent 52

years in the oilfi eld.

Asked about challenges, Tyler

said housing is one. “We’ve got guys

driving from Regina every day.”

Some of the hands who have

worked from Zama to Brooks in

Alberta are not used to being able to

be home every day. But having that

ability means a closer-knit oilpatch,

Jonathan said.

Most of their work is in the

Goodwater fi eld, or between Carlyle

and Weyburn.

“For the longest time, we were the

edge of the oilfi eld. Now it’s moved

more west and south,” Jonathan said.

John had knee replacement earlier

this year that has prevented him from

riding. But like any cowboy, if you fall

off , you get back in the saddle.

“I’ve got some fat old horses wait-

ing for me to ride,” he concluded.

Ridin,’ ropin,’ and roughneckin’Driller Tyler

Collins seen at the controls of John Kmita Ltd. Rig 1.


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Estevan –When you hear the background of people working with service

rigs, usually you’ll hear they were farm boys, or worked in this industry or

that. Rarely will you hear Blake Mile’s response. He’s a marine engineer. More

specifi cally, he’s a marine engineer who now works on the Prairies. But in some

ways, it’s a return to home.

Now Mile looks after the fl eet of 10 service rigs with Sun Country Well

Servicing in Estevan. He joined the fi rm in February 2011.

“I started as a journeyman welder 25 years ago,” he said. As a kid he grew

up in the Kipling area, and went to high school in Regina.

“About 15 years ago I became a licensed heavy duty mechanic. I went to

Alberta in 1987. I worked in the Calgary area and then Fort McMurray. Origi-

nally I worked in fabrication of natural gas compression equipment.”

Following that, Mile spent a great deal of time working with Cummins

in the oilsands mines. Komatsu, he pointed out, uses Cummins engines, as do

Hitachi and O & K.

“I was the oil and gas fi eld engineer for Cummins for Western Canada

when I met Brad,” he said, referring to Brad Bennett, vice-president of opera-

tions for Sun Country Well Servicing. Th ey met over “mechanical issues,” sort-

ing out third party issues.

“I spent seven or eight days straightening out issues with Brad and other

customers.”

As for what attracted Mile to Sun Country, he noted, “Brad’s rigs were

some of the fi rst service rigs that stuck their neck out.”

Th e original engines were spec’d as fi re truck engines, but approved for

warranty in use on service rigs. Now they are using the same engine, but with

more of a bulldozer confi guration. Page C12

Keeping down time to a minimum

Equipment manager Blake Mile probes every fault code generated by the computerized systems of Sun Country Well Servicing’s rigs as part of their maintenance programs.


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Page C11In 2002, Mile fi nished his training with the British Columbia Institute of

Technology and got his marine engineer designation from Transport Canada.

A marine engineer handles everything from welding, mechanics and machin-

ing to thermodynamics and boilers. He took the training on leaves of absence

between work stints with Cummins. He would do a semester, taking classes

day and night from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

“After my term was done, I went back to Cummins.”

Th ere was a certain motivation behind that training. He explained, “I got it

to do humanitarian aid work.”

“I was in South and Central America on a hospital ship doing work in

Th ird World countries.”

Th e ship was known as the Caribbean Mercy. Both he and his wife worked

aboard for several years as full-time volunteers.

“I held the position of fi rst mechanic/fourth engineer. I was able to do

many off -ship things like orphanage construction, this was the most rewarding

work of my life.

Th e ship was 54-years-old and expensive to keep operating – Mercy Ships

decided to remove it and the 53-year-old Anastasis from service to better focus

on the relative youngster 27-year-old 16,572 ton Africa Mercy – still at work.”

“I was working in Fort McMurray and burned out and looking for sun-

shine.” Page C13

Marine engineer on the Prairies

Blake Mile served as a marine engineer on the hospital ship Carib-bean Mercy for several years. The Caribbean Mercy o ered an eye surgery unit, cargo capacity, conference and seminar facili es for a variety of programs. Her fuel and water tanks provided a cruising

range of 12 days, or 3600 miles. Photo submi ed


#6 - 461 King St. • Estevan, SK

637-3460 www.petrobakken.com

Strength In Our Resources

Page C12

Eventually that ship was retired,

and Mile returned to Canada, and

Cummins. A few years later, he found

work with Sun Country.

“It’s important to have someone

like Blake who can troubleshoot,”

Bennett said.

“Th e idea is to get the right re-

sources engaged, either their own (the

rig’s crew) or third party,” according

to Mile.

“Our downtime is virtually nil

due to our maintenance program,”

said Bennett.

Th at means mining every com-

puter for fault codes on every rig, and

watching items like fuel consumption.

“It’s usually a week of follow-up,”

Mile said when they go over a rig.

Field supervisor Phil Amosah

handles the rig inspections. Together

they tear down and build up a rig,

looking for issues. Most of the main-

tenance is handled by the fi eld crews.

Th ey also call upon two private

mechanics, Shane Kits of CMT Me-

chanical, and Dennis Sabourin of LRJ

Mechanical. Both are out of Oxbow.

“If we have equipment in the

yard, you’re not making money.”

Indeed, it’s a rare occasion when

you will see one of their rigs in the

yard. Usually the location, on the

Shand Road, is empty except for the

shop and a few vehicles.

Kelly Schnell of Kelly Hydraulics

of Frobisher is a key support person,

they added.

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Field supervisor Phil Amosah, le , confers with Rig 8 manager Brad Markham on a site near the U.S. border.


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Estevan – Shan-

non Leibel gets some

pretty high praise from

the senior management

at Sun Country Well

Servicing. As the per-

sonnel co-ordinator for

a company in a highly

competitive market for

workers, it’s a key posi-

tion.

“She’s pretty spec-

tacular. I could never

do her job. She has a

memory you wouldn’t

believe,” said Brad

Bennett, vice-president

of operations for Sun

Country.

“We’ve got roughly

56 people on the rigs,”

said Bennett. Some rigs

are running with six

men, but the normal is

fi ve. Having additional

people allows for train-

ing and some fl exibility

in staffi ng.

“We’ve got three

out of Oxbow. Th e rest

are out of Estevan,”

Bennett said. “Th at’s

where our rig managers

are, and crews as well.”

Leibel started in

August 2011, after a

three year stint with

Precision Drilling and

eight years with Ensign

Rockwell.

“I do all the crew

co-ordination. Guys

need time off ,” Leibel

said. Family functions

like weddings are just

one example.

“For any time off

for any reason, I will

re-crew their spot on

that rig so they can take

it off .

Th e hours the work-

ers put in depend on

where they are work-

ing. “I’ve had guys work

a three-hour day or a

13-hour day. Usually it’s

between eight and 12,

seven days a week.

Th ey don’t have a

fi xed rotation, but when

they have six people on

a rig, it makes it easier

or someone to take time

off .

Th ey do follow

hours of service require-

ments, however.

As for where they

fi nd people, she said, “I

advertise through the

human resources centre

and local papers. I get

a lot of referrals from

employees. I have a

gentleman today from

an employee on Rig 5.”

“We’ve got quite a

few from Ontario, about

10,” Bennett said. “We

also have two trailers at

the trailer park and have

short-term accommoda-

tion room for up to six

people.”

Housing, Ben-

nett said, is a big issue.

“It’s very expensive,” he

noted.

Page C15

Keeping the rigs manned

An Excel spreadsheet is key for Shannon Leibel in keeping track of all of Sun Country’s safety quali ca ons for their sta .


Gibson Welding Ltd.Oilfield Trucking & Rentals

John 861-1280Fax 842-1707

[email protected]. BOX 926, WEYBURN, SK S4H 2L2

• 35, 30 & 23 Ton Pickers• Bed Truck• Pipe Custodian• Pipe Racks• Rig Matts• Flarestack Sales & Rentals• Tubing Trailers• 400 BBL Test Tank Sales & Rental• Wellhead Sales & Installation• Backhoe & Skid Steer• Steamer• Crew Truck• Test Separators• Work Strings• Light Towers• COR Certified

Jason 861-2567

• 45, 35, 28 & 23 Ton Pickers• Bed Truck• Pipe Custodians• Pipe Racks• Rig Matts• Flarestack Sales & Rentals• 400 BBL Test Tank Sales & Rental• Wellhead Sales & Installation• Backhoe & Skid Steer• Steamer• Test Separators• Work Strings• Light Towers• COR Certi ed

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Offi ce: 306 482 3925

Brett:306 482 7590

Shannon Leibel, right, confers with o ce administrator Jae Friess. Leibel handles the human resources func on for Sun Country Well Servicing

Page C14

Is it hard to fi nd people?

“Yes, it’s a big challenge,” Leibel responded.

Earlier in her career, there were only a few

service rig companies around, she said. “Now

there are many companies competing for the same

people.”

“Dean Sawyer from Sawyer Safety refers a lot

of people from Ontario. Word must be getting

back there,” Leibel said. “Five young gentlemen

from Ontario went to Sawyer for training. He

referred our name. We hired three of the fi ve.

“It’s a total blessing. I appreciate him sending

them.”

Very few women apply, however. Only one has

applied in the past year, but she didn’t get hired

because she didn’t have a driver’s licence. Since

each crew of fi ve takes out fi ve vehicles, no licence

equates no job.

In addition to fi nding staff for 10 rigs, Leibel

also tracks all the training and certifi cates for the

roughly 60 employees including management.

“I have an Excel spreadsheet I track all the

tickets in,” Liebel said.

Leibel is originally from Fisk, between Rose-

town and Kindersley. She and her ex-husband

moved to Estevan in 1997. “I was here before the

boom hit. Th ere were lots of places to live, and no

work,” she said. “It’s totally opposite nowadays.”

Governments in Canada have raised a total of

$1.07 billion in land sale revenue to the end of Sep-

tember, well off the pace set in 2011 thanks largely to

a steep drop in Alberta.

Over the fi rst nine months of 2011, Canadian

governments raised $3.41 billion from land sales,

up from $3.04 billion in 2010, and the third highest

tally in the last 10 years. A total of $4.12 billion was

raised over the same period in 2008, with $3.71 bil-

lion spent in 2006.

Average land prices over the fi rst three quar-

ters of 2012 plunged to $295.78 per hectare, down

from $846.79 over the same stretch a year ago. Th e

amount of Crown land sold totalled 3.61 million

hectares, down from 4.02 million over the fi rst nine

months of 2011.

Alberta led the way in bonus bid revenue in the

fi rst three quarters of 2012, but is well back of last

year’s torrid record-setting pace. Th e province col-

lected a total of $872.66 million in bonus bids from

January to September on 2.43 million hectares at an

average of $357.98.

At the same point in 2011, $3.06 billion in

bonus bids had rolled into provincial coff ers for 3.46

million hectares at an average of $884.50. Th e prov-

ince ended up with a total of $3.64 billion in auction

revenue for the full year of 2011, an-all time record.

Th e huge bonus haul and high per-hectare averages

paid last year were in large part due to heavy produc-

er spending to tie up land in the Duvernay shale play.

Despite the drop in 2012, overall relatively

strong spending at land sales in Alberta demon-

strates that the Western Canadian Sedimentary

Basin still has considerable unconventional prospec-

tivity where explorers are willing to step out and

apply modern drilling and completions technology

to deeper and more remote areas, analysts say.

Over in British Columbia – a mainly natural

gas producing jurisdiction – the province brought in

$97.39 million over the nine months ending Sept. 30

on 92,173 hectares at an average of $1,056.61. To the

same point of 2011, a total of $123.19 million had

rolled into provincial coff ers for 121,165 hectares at

an average of $1,016.71.

Saskatchewan also saw fewer land sale dollars

come in over the fi rst nine months of 2012. Bonus

bids fell to $78.93 million on 146,073 hectares at an

average of $540.38. Over the same period of 2011,

industry spent $214.88 million acquiring 420,747

hectares of Crown land at an average of $510.70.

On the other side of the coin, in Manitoba,

land sale bonus revenue over the fi rst nine months

climbed to $11.13 million as 17,049 hectares ex-

changed hands at an average of $652.73. Over the

same period last year, the province had collected

$10.1 million on 17,798 hectares at an average of

$567.60. Th e oil-prone province reached a record

$13.14 million for all of 2011. Manitoba has one

more sale left this year, scheduled on Nov. 14, to

break last year’s watermark.

In addition to this, producers acquired a further

1.58 million hectares in work commitment bids over

the fi rst nine months of the year. Total work com-

mitment bids totalled $1.06 billion, mostly from

Royal Dutch Shell plc.’s $970 million for work bids

in Nova Scotia, announced in January, on a total of

1.38 million hectares.

Land sale bonus bids down over rst nine months of 2012


Calgary – Based on continued exceptional well results and strong produc-

tion volumes, the board of Raging River Exploration Inc. has approved a $15

million increase in its 2012 capital budget to $82 million from $67 million.

According to its website, Raging River Exploration Inc. is a junior oil and

gas producer currently focused in the Kindersley area of Saskatchewan.

Th e management of RRX has had a successful track record of building four

previously successful oil and gas production companies including Wild Stream

Exploration and Wild River Resources which were both sold to Crescent Point

Energy Corp.

Th e company will add 10 to 12 net horizontal wells to its program for a

total of 41 to 43 net wells. Th e revised capital budget also contemplates pre-

drilling a number of 2013 locations assuming that operating conditions remain

favourable.

Th e revised capital budget provides $44 million for drilling and comple-

tions, $4 million for land, seismic and facilities, and $34 million for acquisi-

tions.

Based upon fi eld estimates, third quarter production exceeded expecta-

tions with average production of 2,100 boepd (97 per cent oil). Average daily

production for the period from April through December 2012 is expected

to be 2,150 boepd (97 per cent oil), a further 10 per cent increase from prior

guidance of 1,950 boepd. Th e increased forecast, the third this year, represents

a 26 per cent increase from initial guidance of 1,700 boepd without increased

capital expenditures.

Th e 10 to 12 incremental net wells are expected to have a material impact

on exit production, which is now expected to be 2,800 to 2,900 boepd (97 per

cent oil). Th is third increase in exit guidance represents a 30 per cent increase

from initial guidance of 2,200 boepd without increased capital expenditures.

Weather conditions improved during the quarter, which allowed for an

aggressive drilling program. Th e company drilled a total of 37 (28.8 net) wells

during the third quarter including 36 horizontal Viking oil wells at a 100 per

cent success rate and one vertical stratigraphic test well. A total of 17 (16 net)

wells were placed on production in the third quarter and 19 (11.8 net) wells

were waiting to be brought on stream in October.

Th e optimized drilling and completion techniques continue to provide

consistent improved production results. Average 45-day production rates for

the 17 new wells placed on stream during the third quarter have exceeded 50

bpd of oil. Th is is consistent with the results of the fi rst 13 wells drilled with

this technique earlier this year.

Drilling and completion costs have continued to trend lower. Th e aver-

age D&C cost in the third quarter was $800,000, leading to total per well on

stream costs of $925,000.

Raging River’s rapidly increasing production and cash fl ow will allow the

company’s balance sheet to remain “exceptionally strong,” according to the

company. Th ey forecast that net debt at year-end 2012 will be approximately

$35 million, 55 per cent drawn on its $65 million credit facility, representing

less than 0.7 times debt to trailing fourth quarter cash fl ow.

Raging River Increases 2012 capital budget to $82 million

Regina – Building permits in

Saskatchewan kept pace with hot

summer temperatures.

Th e province led the country

in new building permits for August

2012, according to a report issued by

Statistics Canada on Oct. 5.

Saskatchewan’s building permits

rose 47.9 per cent over last August,

the highest percentage increase among

the provinces and more than double

the national average of 22 per cent.

“Th e construction industry is an

important part of Saskatchewan's

economy and these numbers highlight

the high demand in the province for

construction services,” said Economy

Minister Bill Boyd.

“Th ese are stellar numbers, and

clearly show Saskatchewan's economy

continues outperforming other prov-

inces.”

Permits were up for both the resi-

dential and non-residential sectors on

an annual basis. Residential permits

rose by 49 per cent while non-resident

permits were up by 46.4 per cent.

Month-over-month, building

permits in the province were up 31.7

per cent between August 2012 and

July 2012. Saskatchewan ranked fi rst

among the provinces, well ahead of

the 7.9 per cent recorded nationally.

“Construction projects bring jobs,

business opportunities and a legacy of

infrastructure improvements to com-

munities across Saskatchewan,” Boyd

said.

“Th e steady increases in our

population will likely mean that this

high-level of construction work will

continue the future, building an even

stronger Saskatchewan as we move

forward.”

Saskatchewan tops in building permits


SURFACE BIT RENTALQUALITY RERUN & RETIP

24 HR SERVICECELL: 306-421-3726RES: 306-634-7538

CHAD FROESE OFFICE: 306-388-2941

ANNER BIT SERVICE

A resource assessment of Passport Energy

Ltd.’s land holdings in the Hardy area of south-

eastern Saskatchewan by independent evaluators,

GLJ Petroleum Consultants, has a best estimate of

original oil in place (OOIP) of 1.72 million bbl.

Th e study, eff ective April 30, 2012, covers 1,774

net hectares of Passport’s interests in the Hardy

area along with an additional 2,189 net hectares of

lands subject to a farm-in agreement.

Th e OOIP estimate is based on the Hardy S

HZ 1A4-16-4B4-09-004-21W2 well performance

along with existing well control over 259 (58 net)

hectares of land in the Hardy North area.

GLJ’s best estimate of 7.44 million bbl. of

discovered petroleum initially in place (DPIIP) re-

sources was based on the 1A4-16 well performance

along with existing well control encompassing more

than 1,490 (252 net) hectares of land in the Hardy

North area. Th ere is no certainty that it will be

commercially viable to produce any portion of the

resources.

Th e undiscovered petroleum initially in place

(UPIIP) resource (total best estimate of 75.62

million bbl.) is based on existing Bakken oil pro-

duction and well control encompassing more than

9,327 gross hectares of land in which the company

has earned a working interest in more than 1,522

net hectares of land in the greater Hardy area. All

numbers are net to Passport. Subject to the terms of

a farm-in agreement, Passport has the right to earn

an additional 2,189 net hectares of land. Th ere is no

certainty that any portion of the resources will be

discovered. If discovered, there is no certainty that

it will be commercially viable to produce any por-

tion of the resources.

All GLJ estimates of DPIIP are as at April 30,

2012, and have been prepared in accordance with

the Canadian Oil and Gas Evaluation Handbook.

Th e 1A4-16 well, Passport’s fi rst development

well in the Hardy Bakken pool, has cumulative

production of more than 27,000 gross bbls of oil

in its fi rst year of production. Th e well continues to

produce above expectations, averaging more than

60 (15 net) bpd of light sweet (38.5 degree API) oil

for the month of August 2012.

Passport recently completed and placed on

production its fi rst operated horizontal Bakken oil

well, Passport Minton HZ 1C11-32-3A-16-33-

3-21W2. Th e well was completed using a 32 stage

multi-fracture stimulation program and is currently

in its initial cleanup and optimization phase of

production. Th e company plans to announce the

well's performance once stabilized rates have been

achieved.

Th e 1C11-32 well represents the fi rst of a

two-well commitment program on the previ-

ously announced farm-in agreement with a large,

independent, Canadian oil and gas producer that

encompasses 32 contiguous sections of land. With

this well, Passport has earned a 32.5 per cent work-

ing interest (APO) in fi ve sections.

Th e agreement calls for Passport, as the opera-

tor (along with its 50 per cent partner), to fund the

drilling and completion of two horizontal Bakken

commitment wells to earn 100 per cent (50 per cent

net Passport) in the spacing unit until payout of

the wells (subject to a convertible gross overriding

royalty) and a 65 per cent (32.5 per cent net) work-

ing interest after payout of the wells and 10 sections

of land.

Passport plans to drill, complete and place on

production the second horizontal commitment well

on or before the end of the fourth quarter, surface

conditions permitting.

Following the two wells, the companies have

the option to drill fi ve additional wells under the

same terms and conditions to earn the balance of

the 32 section block.

Passport reports hardy resource assessment, updates activity

Curly’s Picker Service Ltd.Curly’s Picker Service Ltd.Mark T. (Curly) Hirsch

1595 Dieppe Cres.Estevan, Sask.S4A 1W8

Secor Certi edCell: (306) 461-5898Fax: (306) 634-6690


516 Nesbitt Drive, Estevan • 634-2631(Behind Power Dodge)

Canada's leading distributor of industrial, eet and safety products.

Proud to provide selection, quality and

excellence to our customers.

[email protected]

www.aspentrailer.com

Aspen Custom Trailers

6017-84th Street S.E.

Calgary, AB T2C 4S1

[T] 403 236 2244

[F] 403 236 8829

[C] 403 813 6319[Toll Free] 877 236 2244

Lance Wotherspoon

Regional Sales Manager

BIG D’S LEASE SERVICE

P.O. Box 544

Stoughton, Sask. S0G 4T0

(306) 457-7033(306) 457-7673

Backhoe

Mowing

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Gravel Supplies & Hauling

Dwight G. Blomander, CFP, CLU, CH.F.C., CHS• Life Insurance• Disability Insurance• Critical Illness Insurance• Employee Bene t Plans

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105, 335 Hoffer Drive, Regina, SK. S4N 6E2

LECLAIRTRANSPORT

Lyle LeclairCell: 306-421-7060

General Oilfi eld Hauling

Cordell JanssenCordell JanssenDistrict ManagerDistrict Manager

DownholeDownhole

93 Panteluk Street, Kensington Avenue N93 Panteluk Street, Kensington Avenue NEstevan, SaskatchewanEstevan, Saskatchewan

PHONE:PHONE: 306-634-8828 • 306-634-8828 • FAX:FAX: 306-634-7747 [email protected] • www.nov.com

JUSTIN WAPPEL - Division Manager

401 Hwy. #4 S. Biggar, SaskatchewanPO Box 879 S0K 0M0Ph (306) 948-5262 Fax (306) 948-5263Cell (306) 441-4402 Toll Free 1-800-746-6646Email: [email protected]

Lloyd Lavigne • Kirk ClarksonOwners/Managers

6506 - 50th AvenueLloydminster, AB

Phone: (780) 875-6880

5315 - 37th StreetProvost, AB T0B 3S0

Phone: (780) 753-6449

Fax: (780) 875-7076

24 Hour ServiceSpecializing in Industrial & Oilfield Motors

Your best choice for accommodations

in Carlyle, Sk.• Full kitchen and upscale extended stay

• Complimentary continental hot breakfast• Free high speed internet

• Meeting roomReservations: 306-453-2686

RICK CORMIERManager

Box 609 Bus: (306) 634-8084Carlyle, SK Cell: (306) 577-8833S0C 0R0 Fax: (306) 453-6075www.truetorq.ca [email protected]

RESOURCE Gu de


CAREER Gu de

We require the following:

Matrix Well Servicing

S

S

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

Corner Pocket Publishing in Melita, MB is seeking an individual for

ADVERTISING SALES The successful candidate will have

strong written and communication skills. Computer skills are an asset, however, training is available.

This is a permanent full-time position with benefit package.

For more information or to apply, contact: Corner Pocket Publishing

Box 820 Melita, MB R0M 1L0

Phone: (204)522-3491 Fax: (204)522-3648

Email: [email protected] A TTENTION : C HERYL R USHING

Th e Alberta government decided in early Octo-

ber not to lay charges in connection with an incident

that saw several hundred migratory birds land on

tailings ponds at Syncrude Canada Ltd. and Suncor

Energy Inc. on Oct. 25 and 26, 2010, after an expert

found the primary cause was adverse weather.

Th e decision was made after a thorough inves-

tigation and was based on expert advice provided

by the University of Alberta’s Colleen Cassady St.

Clair, a leading expert in North America on human-

wildlife encounters and the deterrence methods

used to mitigate that confl ict.

St. Clair concluded that both Syncrude and

Suncor could not have prevented the bird landings.

She also determined that there were many factors

leading to the incident where 551 birds were killed

or euthanized after coming in contact with bitu-

men. Th e most signifi cant factor was adverse weath-

er conditions, including strong and variable winds,

freezing rain and poor visibility. Th ese factors forced

migratory birds to land abruptly in large numbers in

and around tailings ponds, as well as on roadways

and parking lots.

Based on the evidence gathered by provincial

investigators and on St. Clair’s expert opinion, the

Crown prosecutor has found that there is no reason-

able expectation of conviction in this case.

Th e investigation has, however, led to discover-

ies that may change the approach taken to bird de-

terrence in Alberta. In her report, St. Clair suggests

that the position of deterrents and artifi cial lights

may have infl uenced where the birds landed. Indus-

try practice for bird deterrence had not previously

accounted for the infl uence of light during poor

weather. Th is important new information has been

shared with oilsands operators.

A number of other improvements have also been

implemented since the incident, including radar-

based deterrent systems and standardized regional

monitoring protocols. Industry and the University

of Alberta are working collaboratively to implement

electronic, fi eld-based data recording, develop new

technologies for automating bird monitoring, and

testing new methods for bird deterrence.

Th ese eff orts, together with the court-ordered

research project resulting from an April 2008 in-

cident in which more than 1,600 ducks died after

landing at Syncrude’s Aurora mine tailings pond,

will identify best practices for preventing bird land-

ings on tailings ponds in the oilsands and lead to

innovation for other industrial developments. Syn-

crude was charged in connection with that inci-

dent.

Syncrude was found guilty in court on two envi-

ronmental charges in connection with the deaths of

the ducks. Th e company was charged under the Al-

berta Environmental Protection and Enhancement

Act and the federal Migratory Birds Convention

Act with failing to protect migratory birds from a

toxic tailings pond.

No charges laid in October 2010 bird landings


THE FOLLOWING POSITIONS ARE AVAILABLE IMMEDIATELY

Interested applicants can fax to: 306-634-4258 or

email: [email protected]

MECHANIC

Some of the many

benefits to consider

when applying for

a position at

Bert Baxter Transport

in Estevan:• Full time, permanent

employment

• Full benefits packages available

• Clean, safe work environment

SERVICE TECHNICIAN

CAREER Gu de


Equal Opportunity EmployerAll applications are welcome

Currently seeking• Cathodic Protection Technicians

• General Labourers• Journeyman Electricians

Experience an asset but willing to trainCompetitive wages

Apply today with resume at:937 Henry Street, Estevan, SK S4A 1N5

Ph: 306-634-1917

Fax: 306-634-1918

Be Part of TEAM!

CAREER Gu de


101 Supreme St. (Shand access road)Sun Country Well Servicing Inc. is currently seekingexperienced Service Rig Personnel. Preference will

be given to Class 1A and 3A applicants.

Interested individuals can submit a resume via email or fax to Shannon Leibel at:

Email: [email protected] 306 634 1200 • Cell 306 421 3418

is looking for

Heavy Duty Truck& Transport Mechanics

to provide quality service in a team environment.

Competitive wages, benefits package.

Mail, fax or email resume to:P.O. Box 1577, Estevan, SK S4A 2L7Fax: [email protected]

Oilfield Construction Limited

NOW

COME JOIN OUR TEAM! We’re hiring for various

projects throughout

Southern Saskatchewan

Over 50 years strong, Arnett & Burgess Oilfi eld Construction Limited safely

provides quality pipeline construction, facility installation, pipeline integrity, custom fabrication, maintenance and

related construction services to the energy industry.

Compensation:Competitive wages

Overtime Daily Subsistence /Living

allowance

Preferred Certifi cationsH2S Alive

Standard First Aid & CPR

Required Certifi cations Driver’s License

Ground Disturbance – (Heavy Equipment Operators only)

For more details and other career opportunities please visit:www.abpipeliners.com

For Inquiries please call: 780.384.4050

Please submit your resume to :email: [email protected] • Fax:403.265.0922

• CONSTRUCTION MANAGER- Candidates must have previous leadership/managerial experience within the Pipeline Construction industry (mainly underground lines max 16”).This position’s home base is in Regina.

• FIELD SAFETY ADVISOR- The ideal candidate will have a CSO designation. This position will oversee pipeline construction projects in southern sk with a home base in Regina

• PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION LABOURERS

• FOREMEN

• HEAVY EQUIPMENT OPERATORS-Employee & Owner Operators with Pipeline Construction Experience

All positions require previous experience in Pipeline Construction. Previous experience on Pipeline Integrity projects is an asset.

CAREER Gu de


Supplementing both the Drilling and Production sectors of the Oilfield Industry. Tanker Units, Pressure Batch Trucks, and a Fully Equipped Pressure Batch Trucks, and a Fully Equipped

Service Truck are available. Service Truck are available.

We specialize in transporting Salt Water, Crude Oil, We specialize in transporting Salt Water, Crude Oil, Completions, Completions, Contaminated Mud & Fresh Water!Contaminated Mud & Fresh Water!

Office 1-306-453-4470Office 1-306-453-4470Fax 1-306-453-4404Fax 1-306-453-4404

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Specializing in Non DamagingSpecializing in Non DamagingBiodegradable Drilling FluidsBiodegradable Drilling Fluids

Designed for Horizontal DrillingDesigned for Horizontal DrillingPO Box 1089, Carlyle, Saskatchewan S0C 0R0PO Box 1089, Carlyle, Saskatchewan S0C 0R0Phone: Phone: (306) 453-4411 (306) 453-4411 Fax: Fax: (306) 453-4404 (306) 453-4404

Division PresidentDivision President306-577-9900 (Carlyle)306-577-9900 (Carlyle)

Field Supervisor Field Supervisor306-421-0344 (Estevan)306-421-0344 (Estevan)

Field SupervisorField Supervisor306-452-8182 (Redvers)306-452-8182 (Redvers)

Warehouse ManagerWarehouse Manager306-577-3347(Carlyle)306-577-3347(Carlyle)

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Cell: 306-575-7521Cell: 306-575-7521Of ce: 306-453-4414Of ce: 306-453-4414Fax: 306-453-4415Fax: 306-453-4415

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pipeline news november 2012

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