ONTARIO 01

2008 EDITION

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Canadian Publications Ma il Product Agreement: If 40069240 ~ AnnivErsAry of tHE Pirst CommErciAl Oil WEll July & August 2008 Oil SpringsoLAmbton CountyoOntAriooCAnAdA www.2008celebrate.com www.oilsprings.ca www.lambtononline .com/oil_museum \?--~ANl( ~\. ~

COUNTY OF LAMBTON WELCOME

A Message from the Minister of Natural Resources

t is a pleasure to convey my best regards to Ontario Oil & Gas magazine, a publi­ I ca tion that provides valuable opportunities for readers to stay in touch with the emerging trends and technologies of your industry.

The oil and gas sector is an important contributor to Ontario's economy. This year marks a significant milestone for the industry in Ontario as it celebrates 150 years of pumping commercial crude oil in . Last year, Ontario's oil and natural gas production was valued at almost $150 million; hydrocarbons, which were stored in our underground storage reservoirs, were valued at $3 billion; and salt produced from solution mining operations was valued at $40 million.

Your industry has a long history of impressive accomplishments in the province, and there are many exciting and innovative opportunities on the horizon. For example, T understand that your industry is using horizontal drilling technology to access oil resources beneath the waters of , as well as 3-D seismic to loca te previously undiscovere d reservoirs of oil and natural gas. These innovative opera­ tions demonstrate that your industry is lead ing the way in creating high-value jobs and opportunities right here in Ontario.

I know that the Ontario Petroleum Institute is working very closely with my ministry's Petroleum Resources Centre in London, Ont., on revisions to Ontario regulation 245/97 under the Oil, Gas and Sa lt R esources Act. The Ministry of Natural Resources will continue to work in partnership with the oil and gas industry as we sustainably manage this vital natural resource for the benefit of all Ontarians.

- Donna Cansfield Ontario Minister of Natural Resources

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUN E 2008 5

WHAT IS C02 SEQUESTRATION? presence of a suitable impermeable cap rock, a pressure and In simple terms, sequestration of carbon dioxide is the temperature regime suitable for injection and storage of C02 capture of C02 from anthropogenic sources before it can be in a "supercritical" or liquid phase, proximity to large point released into the atmosphere, or the removal of C02 directly sources of C02 emissions, and a well-characterized migra­ from the atmosphere, coupled with permanent storage of the tion route for the sequestered gas. Potential risks must also be captured C02 to keep it isolated from the atmosphere. The characterized, with special attention paid to seismic activity, world's natural carbon cycle removes large amounts of C02 faults, fractures, and unplugged wellbores that could provide from the atmosphere (e.g. photosynthesis, mineral weath­ a pathway for C02 to escape to the surface and any effects on ering, dissolution in seawater), but at a rate insufficient to proven and potential oil and gas reservoirs. match the increased emissions due Given the geologic conditions to human activity. encountered in , Numerous strategies have C02 will exist as a liquid below a been proposed to remove more depth of approximately 865 m. This C02 from the atmosphere. We can is desirable because as a liquid it use natural terrestrial processes will more readily mix and dissolve such as no-till farming to increase in water and it takes up much less carbon content in the soil or tree volume than as a gas. This minimum planting to increase C02 capture depth also helps ensure that there is by photosynthesis. We can use sufficient rock above the injection mineral carbonation reactions interval to act as an impermeable with magnesium silicate minerals seal. This is important since the (ultramafics) to remove C02 from liquid C02 is less dense than water exhaust gases at thermal power and will rise to the top of the porous plants. We can inject C02 into deep interval in the saline aquifer. ocean basins where high pres­ sure and cold temperature will Is THE GEOLOGY OF ONTARIO sequester the C02 as a liquid phase WELL !)UITED FOR GEOLOGIC on the ocean floor. One of the most SEQUESTRATION OF C02? promising strategies is geolog­ Four major sedimentary basins occur ical sequestration of the carbon within Ontario. In , dioxide in deep underground rock sedimentary rocks occur within, the formations, also known as carbon Moose River and Hudson Bay basins capture and storage (CCS). but these basins tend to be too shallow CCS is a technical process for carbon dioxide storage. They are that involves capturing C02 from also remote from large point sources of large point sources, purifying the C02 emissions and thus are presently emissions to maximize the C02 impractical for consideration as candi­ content, and transporting the C02 dates for geological sequestration. to a storage site where it is injected, Southern Ontario is located using a specially constructed well, Potential CCS spin-off benefits for the Ontario petroleum on the edge of two of the largest into deep geological formations industry include enhanced oil recovery from known sedimentary basins in eastern reservoirs. for permanent storage. Once it is North America, the Michigan injected into these rocks, it reacts over very long periods of time and Appalachian basins, containing thick accumulations with mineral components and fluids in the rocks to form stable of sedimentary rocks. Rocks within these basins were compounds that permanently trap the C02. Several variations originally horizontal, but have subsequently tilted and on CCS are proposed and include injection into: depleted oil deformed forming a northeast-trending ridge known as the and gas reservoirs; geological structures such as salt dOjTIes, Algonquin Arch. Because of this, the thickness of the rocks coal beds, organic shale beds, and depleted reservoirs; oil increases westerly into the Michigan Basin and southerly reservoirs for enhanced oil recovery; and saline aquifers. Also into the Appalachian Basin, reaching a maximum thick­ proposed is storage in solution-mined salt caverns. Research ness of about 1,400 m beneath Lake Erie and at the southern indicates that the volume of pore space available in deep saline tip of , and much greater thicknesses beneath aquifers far exceeds that of enhanced oil recovery projects and the neighbouring U.S. states. Extensive development of depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs, and offers perhaps the best porosity and permeability is evidenced by the presence of potential for C02 sequestration in the landlocked areas of the oil and gas reservoirs and regional saline water aquifers in world. Numerous estimates suggest that global storage capacity these basins. is sufficient to accommodate at least 150 years of the world's There are several geologic options for C02 sequestration total annual anthropogenic emissions. in Ontario. Saline aquifers, oil and gas reservoirs, and solu­ Saline aquifers are deep formations of porous and perme­ tion-mined salt caverns, all located within the Michigan and able rock that contain salt water in the pore spaces and, in Appalachian basins in southern Ontario, have the best near­ Ontario, are located below the deepest sources of potable term potential. There is also longer-term potential for use of water. In addition to porosity and permeability, other impor­ mineral carbonation reactions with ultramafic rocks in the tant characteristics of the storage formation include the extensive rocks of northern Ontario. ~

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 7 Saline aquifers offer the la rgest storage capacity in Onta ri o. (EOR). The C02 repressurizes the reservoir a nd mixes w ith Sa line aquifers occur w ithin the sedimentary bedrock in the remaining oil, m aking it less viscous and more mobile. the basins of southern O nta ri o and Hudson Bay, genera ll y This results in recovery of additional oil that would have been at depths greater than a few tens of metres and loca ted left behind by conventional production me thods. Studies below a nd isolated from fr eshwater aquifers. Wa ters w ithin show that most of the C0 2 rem a ins in the reservoir. There a re these deep aquifers contain elevated concentrati ons of salt presently no EOR projects in Onta ri o due la rgely to lac k of a and sulphur a nd a re genera ll y not cheap local sou rce of C0 2. suitable for drinking, irrigation, C0 2 ca n also be injected into or other domesti c purposes. solu ti on-m i ned sa It caverns for

While most of the other _ DRIFT both perma nent and tempora ry sedime nta ry formations are z D SANDSTONE storage. Ontari o produces la rge too sh a ll ow for CCS, the Upper 0 MIDDLE qua ntities of sa lt from solution > • SHALE Cambria n-age Mount Simon UJ mining ope rati ons a nd has a a _ CARBONATE Formati on of the Michiga n a nd numbe r of aba ndoned caverns Appalac hi an basins is conside red D EVAPORITE where sa It extrac tion no longer z • OIL the best ca nd id ate for C0 2 storage. « UPPER occurs. Unfortunately, the Sa lina 0:: GAS The Mount Simon Formati on is ::::> f:t Group fr om w hi ch the sa lt is ...J OIL& GAS a porous sandstone underl ying U5 .. produced occurs at too sha ll ow la rge pa rts of southern O ntario a depth in most of Ontari o to a nd the neighbouring U.s. states. provide the necessary condition s The fo rmation thickens to the for storage of C02 as a liquid. west under La ke Huron a nd into Depth of sa It beds beneath La ke Michigan a nd to the south under UPPER Huron is unknown but if deep Lake Eri e a nd the adj acent states z enough there may be pote nti al for « and pinches out over the top of U con struction of sa lt caverns for the Algonquin Arch. It is sealed 5> storage beneath the lake. o by approx imately 600 m or more a 865m critical depth One other opportunity for a:: of non-porous O rdovician lime­ o geolog ica l sequestrati on of C0 2 stones a nd shales, which form an in Ontario is the use of mineral excell ent ba rrier to upward move­ MIDDLE carbonation reacti ons. Ca nadian ment of fluids. Shield rocks in northern O ntari o Prel i m i nary studies h ave i nd i­ contain surface outcrop s of ultra­ cated the potentia l to store up to mafi c rocks a nd waste rock piles at a:: mines. These rocks a re comprised ~l~ Otl~t ~~ :~ 2 ~ :~1~~i~: nad~l; ~f~~: ~ predominantly of magnesium sili­ w ithin southern Onta ri o. W hile 8 PRECAMBRIAN cate minerals. When exposed to Ontario's cap ac ity to geologi- ~ L':::======~~~~~~ ______--.J the atmosphere these minera ls ca lly store C0 2 in saline aquifers Idealized stratigraphic section through Paleozoic undergo a slow natural reaction is m odest, sig n i ficant opportu­ sedimentary rocks in the Sarni a area of Ontario show ing with C02 to form a stable mineral nities fo r carbon sequestrati on Mt. Simon saline aquifer. known as magnesite, w hich exist in the midwest region of perma nently traps the C02 in the the U nited States, in the same rocks being con sidered mineral fabric. Studies are in progress on how this natura l fo r storage in O nta ri o. More than 475 Gt of capacity are process can be accelerated and adapted for use to capture estimated fo r the states borderin g on southe rn Onta ri o C0 2 in the exhaust gases of large industria l facilities such as including India na, Kentucky, Ma ryla nd, Michigan , O hio, cement plants and thermal power pl ants. Pennsylva nia, and West Virg inia. U lt imately, O ntario may need to tap into this cap ac ity. WH ·\1 I'> nil STATUS m THIS TECHNOLOGY? Oil and gas reservoirs in Ontario are found at a vari ety of A va ri ety of capture processes are at va ri ous stages of depths a nd in different rock types mainly restricted to south­ technical readiness and commercial viability. These processes western Ontario; to date neither oil nor natu ra l gas has been a re complex, capital intensive, and genera ll y integrated w ith discovered in the Hudson Bay and Moose River basins or in a n existing set of facilities. The technology exists a nd is in . Sequestration of C02 would ta ke place either use at petroleum fa cilities, but has not yet been adapted and by injection into depleted oil and gas pools or into producing insta lled at a full-sca le industria l operati on such as a coal­ oil pools. In depleted p ools, the C02 woul d occupy the pore fired generating station. space left by the extrac ti on of the oil a nd gas a nd would be [n the Sleipner Vest gas field in the North Sea, about 1 confined within the same boundaries as the ori ginal pool. million tonnes per yea r of C0 2 a re removed from the natural The capac ity is limited by issues w ith shallow depths of the gas and injected into sandstones of the 250 m thick Utsira reservoirs in Onta ri o, la rge numbers of unplugged well s, a nd Formation about 1,000 m below the seabed . Injecti on sta rted limited pore volume. Individual reservoirs may prove to be in September 1996. The cost of capture and injection, rather technica ll y suitabl e but require fu rther study to confirm. tha n venting it, is economically justi fied to avoid a Norwegian C0 2 ca n also be injected into active oil pools to enha nce tax of approximately C$50 per tonne of C02 emitted to the oil producti on in a process known as enhanced oil recovery atmosphere in offshore oil and gas operati ons.

S JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OI L & GAS Worldwide, C02 is used for EOR in more than 70 projects, and storage is evolving as a viable option for managing mainly relying on naturally occurring sources. In the United emissions from stationary sources while helping the world's States, more than 100,000 tonnes of C02 are used annually for industrial base secure its future in a "greener" environment. EOR. In Canada, EnCana Ltd. of Calgary, Alta., is purchasing Ontario's Speech From The Throne of Nov. 29, 2007, adopted C02 from the Great Plains coal-gasification plant at Beulah, the 15 per cent absolute (as opposed to intensity) target of N.D. The C02 is reduction of carbon piped 330 km to be dioxide emissions by used for EOR in the Historical Protection the yea r 2020 (1990 2~ ,------~======~----~----~======~------~ Weyburn oilfield in being the base year). Saskatchewan. This is Existing policies, which the largest EOR oper­ = ~------+--~======~~~~~ include ending Ontario's ation in Canada and use of coal for meeting will extend the life of 200 +------.., its electricity needs, the field as much as ~ still leave Ontario with 25 years, while at the g carbon dioxide annual same time storing 2 emissions higher than a million tonnes of :: those of any year from C02 annually in the ~ 1~ 1990-2007. This leaves oil reservoir. a lot of room for new 0::~ The United States ~ 125 policies to add ress has formed seven 5] other sources of emis­ regional carbon sions, namely those g 100 sequestration part- ~ 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 201 6 2018 2020 from the transportation nerships to work on 0 L-______---' and industrial sectors. studies, pilots, and Ontario's greenhouse gas emissions and prOjected future levels. Should Ontario's plans for a CCS demo with support from the U.S. Department Action Plan adopt "new policies" that include managing emis­ of Energy. The seven partnerships include more than 350 state sion from its industrial sector, such new policies may very well agencies and governments, universities, and private companies, incorporate geological storage as a viable option for managing spanning 41 states, two Indian its industrial emissions of nations, and four Canadian C02. Potential spin-off bene­ provinces. The Midwest fits for the Ontario petroleum Regional Carbon Sequestration industry and wider industrial Partnership includes all the sector include availability of states bordering on southern carbon dioxide for enhanced Ontario. The partnerships have oil recovery from known been in operation since 2003 and I \ reservoirs, and provision \ are preparing to conduct C02 \ of expertise, supplies and injection tests at selected sites in services for drilling of wells, 2008 and 2009 as part of phase 2 construction of pipelines, of their ongoing studies. construction of compressors, In Canada, the Canadian \ and consulting services. Clean Power Coalition has The Ministry of Natural been evaluating Oxy-fuel and g;: // Resources is currently conduct- gasification as technologies that ;i; ..,. ~ ~ ~ ~ ing an internal analysis of the ,:..: deploy CCS and replace conven- 15 feasibility of implementing this

tional combustion of coal. 0~ L-______~ technology in Ontario as part The Integrated C02 Network of the government's climate Major rock types and sedimentary basins in Ontario. (IC02N), in consultation with change strategy, including government, non-government organizations, and respected further geoscientific studies. Participation by industry would be researchers, seeks to harness the broad range of expertise and critical to the success of any resulting initiative. n :; resources required to fast-track development of a national CCS system. This network would combine investments in FURTHER READING infrastructure and technology with the development of a C02 Carter, T.R., Gunter, w., Lazorek, M., and Craig, R., 2007. marketplace, supported by appropriate federal and provincial Geological sequestration of carbon dioxide: a technology review and policy, government and private funding, and an effective regu­ a/wlysis of opportunities in Ontario; Ontario Ministry of Natural latory framework. IC02N represents key industries ranging Resources, Applied Research and Development Branch, CCRR-07, from minerals and metals refining, fertilizer production, and 24p. electrical generation, to petroleum extraction and refining. INTERNET www.co2network.gc.ca CARBON C\['TURf \ND STORACE lNrJJATIVES IN ONTAWO www.fossil.energy.gov/programs/ seq uestration/ partnerships The global climate change agenda is moving the industrial www.gogreenontario.ca world towards a carbon-constrained economy. Carbon capture

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 9

However, we have been reluctant to engage both the la nd­ The environmen tal legacy of development from the historical owners a nd the public in di scussions of risk a nd rewa rd, and industry is largely related to old well bores, and compared while we will typi cally sha re ri sk amongst companies, we to env i ron mental issues faced by other industries (such as have not typica ll y brought in the la ndowners as ri sk-sha ring downstrea m oil and gas, manufac turing, etc.), is minor. partners. In Ontario, as a result of the landowners owning Although produced formation waters in Ontario are high in the mineral rights, they sha re in the rewards of successful dissolved solids, brine-related impacts are rare a nd typically development and ex ploitati on. Perh aps we need to mod ify loca li zed . Historically, spills were left to "rem ediate" over the approac h to development so that landowners become true time. Interestingly, the locati ons of some of the earl y spills p artners in the development of the resou rce, sharing the risk, a nd gushers can no longer be determined based solely on the the responsibili ty, a nd the rewa rd . current environmental condition of the sites. Hydrocarbon s Unfortu nately, the erosion of public understanding of the degrade a nd brine spills are diluted a nd dissipated. d irect relationship be tween developmen t a nd production The modern industry in Ontario operates in a man ner of hyd rocarbons, and the natu re of our modern society a nd similar to oil a nd gas operations around the world. The current stand ard of living, often makes it diff icu It to ac h ieve the level regulatory regimes require that environmental impairm ent be of partnership that we may need in the future to be abl e to addressed in a timely fash ion, and has financial incentives reach the resource. As an industry, we must do a better job to ensu re compliance. Numerous industry-based standard of educating landowners and government regulators about prac ti ces a re fo ll owed to reduce future environmental costs. what we do, a nd our impac t on the environment and on the In Onta rio it is not uncom mon to see oil and gas well s and Canadian a nd world economies. fac ilities being operated immediately adjacent to agricultural The upstrea m oil and gas industry in Ontario has a good field s, with no apparent affect. By working with landowners record with respect to interacti on w ith the environment. a nd government regulators, the industry in Ontario h as been The record is in part due to the low pressu res and volumes ac ti ve for 150 yea rs . Working together, the stakeholders can of produced products, a nd in pa rt due to the na tu re of our en sure that the industry will conti nue to fu nction and prosp er sh allow soils in many of the producing areas of the province. for the next 150 years. II l.

Energy for a planet When Ca nada's historic oil boom en ded in th e late 1880s, that first generation of Canadian "hard oilers" went on to apply th eir im pressive tec hnological know-how to the challenge of opening up the world's grea t oilfields and ushering in the oil age.

Today the world faces quite a different energy challenge. Yet the need for creativity and practical thinking is unchanged , points out Shell Canada president Dave Collyer.

"At Sh ell ," Collyer says, "we be lieve that as solutions are being developed , the world must face three hard truths:

1. "Th e first is that global dem and fo r energy is accelerating. Some statistics show that energy use in 2050 may be twice as high or higher than it is today. What's driving this? Predom inantl y popul ation grow th and higher levels of prosperity.

2. "Th e second is that th e supply of 'easy oil ' will not keep up. While demand is accelerating, conve ntional oilfields in mature basins are going into decline. Other resources such as oil shale and Ca nada's oi lsa nd s are bein g developed , but th ey come with technological challenges and higher costs.

3. "Th e third hard truth is th at usin g mo re energy now means more carbon dioxide emitted at a time when climate change looms large as a critical global issue."

Dave Coll yer. So what does th e world nee d to address th ese truth s?

Collye r says th at a broad portfolio of energy sources is needed. "More oil and gas, more renewables, and likely more coal and nuclear. We also need a hu ge drive fo r energy effi ciency," he says.

"A barrel of oil saved is better than one discovered. Governments need to impl emen t smart gre enhouse gas emission regulations internationally in a coordin ated and efficient way, addressi ng the life cyc le from pro du ction to con sumption of energy. And we need new technology now more than ever before: to increase recovery of oi l and gas, to deli ver breakthro ughs in ren ewable energy sources, to enable the cleaner use of coal, to in cre ase efficien cy, to sequ ester C0 2, and to do all of thi s at a lower cost th an is poss ible toda y.

"Which brings us back to Lambton Cou nty, where Cana da's oil industry bega n 150 yea rs ago, and to western Canada , regions where Shell is looking to invest in long-term projects to help the world meet its energy ne eds while providing adva nced carbon management technologies, " Collyer says.

"Innovation, problem-solvi ng, and tec hnica l know-how-just like 150 years ago, th e world needs all we have to offer."

12 JUNE 2008 ON TARIO OIL & GAS PROVIDING NATURAL GAS STORAGE AND o U1longas TRANSPORATION SERVICES TO ENERGY A Spectra Energy Company MARKET PARTICIPANTS IN ONTARIO, QUEBEC AND THE UNITED STATES.

DAWN ... A WORLD CLASS FAaUTV

• The largest underground natural gas storage facility in Canada with more than one hundred and fifty billion cubic feet of high deliverability storage - located east of

• One of the fastest growing market hubs in North America, averaging close to eight billion cubic feet of trading activity per day

• Fully integrated into the North American supply and transportation system providing customers INVESTING TO MEET CUSTOMER DEMAND price stability and access to all major North American supply basins • Union Gas is investing in excess of $350 million to complete a three phase expansion of its • Offering a full slate of firm and interruptible Dawn to Parkway transmission system over storage and transportation services including the 2006-2008 period. This will increase short notice balancing services that provide capacity by approximately 1.2 billion cubic feet customer flexibility in managing intra-day per day, providing storage and transporation balancing and gas requirements customers the ability to ship more natural gas from the Dawn Hub to downstream markets.

• Union Gas is also investing more than $150 million to expand its storage capacity in 2008 and 2009, to provide new capacity and services required by its customers.

Dawn plays an important role in connecting multiple supply basins to Eastern Markets Pantera Rig #3 at Dawn 156 Field

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW UNION GAS CAN HELP YOU MEET YOUR NATURAL GAS STORAGE AND TRANSPORTATION NEEDS, CALL: (519) 436-4527 with close to 400 Bd each. Ontario, by comparison, supplies by-product. A neighbouring depleted reservoir, Dawn 59-85, markets with 250 Bd of working storage capacity. Figure was commissioned for underground storage a year later. These 1 compares the top 20 states and provinces by working two reservoirs provided the only storage in Ontario for the next capacities. 14 years. Depleted production reservoirs are the most common Several transcontinental pipelines were built during the underground storage containers. By virtue of their commercial 1940s and '50s to bring abundant reserves of natural gas to hydrocarbon reserves, the growing markets of they have demonstrated Natural Gas In Underground Storage _ 2007 Ontario and the American they can contain gas 700,000 northeast population for millions of years. centres. Pipeline gas

Production data over ~ 800,000 was first imported into time provides additional ~ 500,000 Ontario in 1944 via the containment information ~ Ojibwa crossing near as well as size and flow ~ 400,000 Windsor. Supplies were characteristics impor- ~ only allowed to ship across ; 300,000 tant for engineering and c the international border economical analyses ! '00,000 between April 1 and Nov. for converting poten- 1 due to a combination tial reservoirs to storage 100,000 of low heating demand in service. No chicken- • U.S. markets during this and-egg paradox here. ~~-t. ":.. l' .,//" *Jf ,l~"" ~":".~" <1'<1'/ .." /J'.,.~./'; ,/ ..../" / ,~/. time and optimizing pipe- Exploration and produc- ... ~ line capacity year-round. State/ Province tion had to happen first. However, Ontario market Its history must also be Figure 1: Top 20 underground storage states and provinces. demands were also low. reviewed to establish an The imported natural gas understanding of the growth of storage in Ontario. therefore needed to be injected into the existing underground The culmination of the 19th century saw the birth of the storage reservoirs and displaced the still gas from refineries. natural gas industry in Essex, Ont. Additional reserves were Additional natural gas imports arrived across international subsequently discovered in several counties north of Lake pipeline connections constructed in the Niagara region. This Erie, from Essex to Niagara. Distribution infrastructures "season" was (and still is) referred to as the "injection season" expanded to meet growing local demands. A few decades of by the industry. demand growth was eventually curbed by dwindling local Discoveries were also made in , Ont., supplies (Figure 2). Alternative economical sources of natural which assisted with meeting demand. These new producers, gas rapidly become a necessity. together with growing pipeline supplies from the United Storing natural gas in a depleted underground reservoir States, stimulated market growth in the region between the was a new concept first tested in 1915 at a gas field in WeIland, late 1940s and early '60s. Several of these discoveries would Ont. Commercial development of natural storage reservoirs later contribute to the region's storage development. commenced in the United Natural gas deliveries Natural Gas Production 1906-2000 States with approximately 700,000 began arriving from the 50 depleted reservoirs younger Western Canadian

successfully converted to 600,000 Sedimentary Basin via the storage operations during newly constructed, 2,300

the ensuing 27 years. 500,000 - .. _-- km trans-Canadian pipe-

Canada's first commercial "400,000 _ _ ___ , _ line, owned and operated storage field, Dawn 47-49, ~ by TransCanada Pipeline

was placed in service in .-t 300,000 -- - - - ~ ~- - -~ Ltd. (TCPL), to Ontario 1942. This development 200,000 ~ ~ -i ~ ' j and Quebec during the was mainly driven by the l -~ --I [l ~ mid- to late 1950s. TCPL need to offset dwindling 100,000. ,111_1 - -- - _ _ . I established long-term 10caTlhnatf~ratl supplies. m ._ cd~nttr~bctst:Vith severallo~al e lIS gas commer- 1906 ,.,. ,... ,... ,... ,... IS n u Ion companIes ciallyinjected underground Year and started delivering over in Ontario did not arrive 100 Bd per year. from any producing field. Figure 2: Ontario natural gas production. As the industry grew, In fact, it wasn't even "natural." It was a by-product, still gas, so did the benefits of storage. Pipelines were optimized year­ from 's Sarnia Refinery, located approximately round, which aided in managing transportation costs. Having 50 km away. The refinery produced in the neighbourhood inventories close to market provided distribution companies of 5 to 10 million standard cubic feet per day (MMsd/ d) and their customers with security of supply. Natural gas prices of still gas. The majority of production occurred during and transportation costs were lower during injection seasons, the summer when customer-heating demand was low. The which helped offset higher winter season prices. Pipeline newly converted Dawn 47-49 reservoir provided 3.4 Bd of capacity limitations experienced during peak winter weather working storage space for the unconsumed summer gas conditions were augmented with storage inventories. ~

ON TAR IO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 1 5 A local distribution company signed a 20-year storage Deregulation of storage was well underway in the United contract in 1958 to service the Greater area. States and the industry continued to grow at a healthy Add itional storage was developed in the late 1950s to early pace. Ontario development in the market was virtually non­ '60s using two depl eted reservoirs discovered nearly a existent for the distribution companies. This hiatus was decade earlier. The Pa y ne and Waubuno reservoirs expanded temporary as the regulatory body initiated a forum to discuss Ontario's storage capacity another 18 Bcf, bringing the total the merits of deregulating the industry in Ontario. to over 25 Bcf. Interest groups from all points The increasi ng importance 400,000,---______-, of the industry compass debated of storage in Onta rio led to the the issue of storage deregulation r - S3S4.s. . 21715 organization of user groups, 350,000 for many months. Their efforts ratepayers, and landowners. culminated with a regulatory 300,000 These groups approached - Une8r {$erlesl) decision in favour of deregu­ -UnI!8r (Serles2) government lobbying for -Unear{SerlesJ) lating storage while reserving standard rates and policies. sufficient existing storage to meet

Storage regulation ramped up 200,000 current and foreseeable demands in the province in the early of consumers in Ontario. Details 1960s. A landmark study, Th e 150 ,000 of the decision can be found Langford COlIl/lliss ion Report, in the Ontario Energy Board's resulted. The study provided 100,000 report, Natural Gas and Electricity a definition of how the provin­ Interface Review. The required 50,000 ci a l government s hould be incentives were provided and involved . It said: local storage growth resumed in "Th e rol e of th e provin ­ a competitive marketplace. cial gove rnmel1t with res pec t to Storage designation still [natnral gas] storage shollid be Figure 3: Ontario discoveries vs. storage development. requires demonstrating several that of cOl1trolling al1d reg lliating of the recommendations stated in it only in so far as is necessary to ensllre efficient and economical the Langford Commission Report. Companies must demonstrate development of th e industry. " they are technically and financially capable of developing It a Iso included five key recom mendations: storage safely and in the public's interest. They are not 1. Th e riglit to develop and operate storage areas sl/OlIld be required to provide evidence regarding a storage project's granted only to experienced and co lllpetent cOlllpal1ies. economic viability as that becomes fundamentally regulated 2. Th e li se of storage facilities shollid be placed on a priority by markets. basis with th e distribution cO lllpanies having first call. Figure 3 reviews the incremental discovery and storage 3. Storage rights in Ontario should rel1lain under th e jurisdic­ expansion in Ontario. Reservoir discoveries that were consid­ tion of th e provin ce . ered storage candidates averaged 3.714 Bcf per year. Conversion 4. Storage rights in Ol1tario shollid be lI sed prilllarily for the to storage generally lagged about 10 years behind discovery. people of Ontario. Time lags are necessary to allow for the determination of 5. An authoritative body shollid be created to reglliate and reservoir appropriateness for potential storage operations. advise on all phases of th e natural gas industry in Ontario. Production-pressure declines determined the potential Storage development was primari Iy governed by these recom­ capacity. Well information and performance elicited internal mendations for the ensuing reservoir characteristics. fou r decades. Distribution Storage conversion occurred companies grew storage at a slightly higher pace of "as needed." They were 3.99 Bcf per year discounting required to demonstrate delta pressuring (pink that proposed developments line). Overall storage space, were safe, economically including delta pressuring viable, technically sound, ~ (green line), averaged 5.355 and in the public's interest. ~ Bcf per year between 1941 Na tu ra I gas price fl Ll ctua- cS and 2007. o tions increased significantly ~ Several factors continue around the turn of the millen- ~ to challenge growth in the nium and accentuated another 0 industry today. They include contribution from storage, ~ escalating land, develop­ short-term marketing or "- ment, and operating costs; trading. Distribution compa- Union Gas began storing natural gas underground at its diminished exploration nies operating storage assets Dawn facility in the 1940s. activities in mature basins; were challenged to compete in such a market with unregu­ and declining seasonal commodity price spreads. Financial lated companies who were profiting off rate-regulated storage experts agree that the nature of the storage business is cyclical. services. As long as sufficient storage was available to meet its The ebb and flow of storage growth will continue with customers' needs, distribution companies had little incentive industry participants contributing to enhance one of Ontario's to further grow storage assets. natural assets. 0 ~;

16 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS flkrtMasloIsands_al'eacl\'JIIOo(blnmey,ll!&dIaii!re!s Aleap of laith IIIoarl1l~btt.1a~IIIlU

l'IIII , illlalf_~C!QI'«JIiIOMIer..'stllwlds....oooo elli & GAS NEWS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS SUBSCRIBE TODAY! JUNEWARREN.COM

IlwPl JuneWarren ~_ ~_ PUBLISHING The Oil and Gas Plays of Ontario By Michael Lazorek Ministry of Natural Resources, London, Ont. Terry Carter Ministry of Natural Resources, London, Ont.

he oil and gas industry in Ontario has had a long and storied history since Tthe first commercial well was dug at Oil Springs in 1858. Today, the Ontario industry remains small but profitable with total cumulative production of over 86 MMbbl of oil and nearly 1.3 Tcf of natural gas from rocks ranging from Cambrian to Devonian in age (Table 1).

While oil and gas exploration and CAMBRIAN PLAY (CAM) Discovered pool sizes range up to a production has declined in recent The sedimentary rocks of the Michigan maximum of 1.8 MMbbl of oil and 31 years, part of this is due to the and Appalachian basins in southern Bcf of natural gas at depths ranging from fevered activity in the are separated by a ridge known 700 to 1,200 m. A total of only 1,050 wells United States and western Canada as the Algonquin Arch. During late have been drilled to test Cambrian targets drawing investment dollars, explora­ Cambrian time, most of Ontario was to the end of 2007 in a prospective area tion personnel, and equipment away covered by warm shallow seas, which of 48,000 sq. km. Of the 22 Cambrian from Ontario. With inflated costs and deposited sandstone, limestone / dolomite, pools discovered in southern Ontario a slowdown in activity in western and sandy limestones and dolostones since 1923, 11 are still active. Canada, investors should find Ontario over all of southern Ontario, including There is still considerable potential a ttractive with high producer netbacks, the arch. However, much of the Cambrian for the Cambrian in Ontario. Bailey low royalties and leasing costs, conve­ and Lower Ordovician sediments were GeolOgical Services Ltd. and Cochrane nient access to exploration data, low subsequently eroded away during early estimated the potential reserves in the transportation costs, easy road access, Ordovician time leaving the crest of the stratigraphic pinch-out type play to be and numerous untested prospects in arch almost completely bare of Cambrian 180 Bcf of gas and 19.1 MMbbl of oil, five classic petroleum plays. sedimentary rocks. The focus of explora­ and for the structural play, 42 Bcf of gas All of Ontario's oil and gas discov­ tion of the Cambrian plays is therefore and 112.3 MMbbl of oil. However, by the eries and production to date are found restricted to the basins bordering the arch, end of 2006, only 5.2 MMbbl of oil and in southern Ontario in Paleozoic rocks with all of Ontario's Cambrian produc­ 30 Bcf of gas had been produced from of the Michigan and Appalachian tion to date occurring from rocks in the both play types combined. Although basins. Commercial quantities of Appalachian Basin (Figure 3). the Michigan side of the arch has not oil and gas have been discovered at Cambrian reservoirs occur as 1.) struc­ produced any commercial quantities of several stratigraphic intervals and tural traps associated with faulting and oil or gas, favourable trapping condi­ comprise five principal plays: CAM­ 2.) stratigraphic traps along the Cambrian tions exist. Exploration strategies need structural and stratigraphic traps sub-crop edge (Figure 4) . Structural traps to incorporate mapping of the Cambrian in Cambrian sandstones and sandy occur where fault blocks of porous and erosional limit to assist in locating future dolomites; ORD-hydrothermal dolo­ permeable Cambrian sandstones and prospects. mite reservoirs in middle Ordovician sandy dolostones are juxtaposed against A recent study also suggests that some limestones; CLI-stratigraphic traps the overlying less permeable Ordovician of the sandstones mapped as Cambrian in lower Silurian sandstones and asso­ shales and limestones. Stratigraphic traps in the pinch-out play are actually a sandy ciated carbonates; SAL-reefs and occur where Cambrian sedimentary rocks facies of the Middle Ordovician Shadow structural traps in middle Silurian are truncated or pinch out up-dip along Lake Formation. More oil and gas may carbonates; and DEV-structural traps both sides of the arch in the Michigan and be trapped in isolated lenses of Shadow in Devonian fractured, dolomitized Appalachian basins. Overlying Middle Lake sands preserved in depressions on carbona tes and sandstones (Figures Ordovician shales and limestones provide the crest of the Algonquin Arch, and 1 and 2). a cap rock. would constitute a new play type. ~

1 S JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS Cambrian Play Ordovician Play

Silurian - Sandstone Play Silurian - Salina - Play

() ::0 rn Interval Cumulative Production through 2006 o :::; s: Z OIL (m3) OI L (b bls) GAS (xlOOO m3) Bef ::0

DEV 7,035,308 44,250,756 0 0

SAL 2,285,983 1 14,378.400 22,806,196 805 1 .4

CLI 7,520 47,304 11,055,927 390.4

ORD 3,536,097 1 22 ,241,382 1,134,633 40.1

CAM 828,475 5,210,955 844,943 29.8

Tota l 13,693,383 1 86,128,797 35,841,700 1,265.7

Devonian Play Table 1: Cumulative oil and gas production in Ontario.

Figure 1: Approximate boundaries of principal oil and gas producing areas (past and current) in southwestern Ontario, with counties shown for reference.

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 1 9 r------~ n;lJ Terminology of Paleozoic strata in the subsurface of southwestern Ontario (modified after Winder and Sanford 1972). rn ~------,_--~~------_r------~--_,r_------~~ o Standard Elljln E"'':)t-'Jt lillfUIl Kj ~ ot L ilrnbtl1!1 M:I,)(jJp~P ... Pen'l Br\k f-" Grt''r O~Jrhdr "l I IAII I)n W d te/loo ,l! ld Brant H alrJunaml. Lln:'olll Norfolk 0>:10 ((.1 Weiland ~ Reference COl..lntl('s and \,Ve~tern l<:i\(c Eoe Wel; jr\gIOfl Countres ~~~; tW O (li 1 Cowntles and Eastern and Cer"ltrat Lake ~

~~====~~~MISSISSIppi an c s~unVb~ur~y ~VV~~~~~~.~r~. ~~~~~r·~l.. .~lr. . ~l. ~=r~~-~-~-~-~· =-~· ~· -~· r~·~ ;lJ t: £ "- 0.0 Berea 0. gas ::l Kettl e POint KeHle Point -"'1'0. • oi I Ipporwash Widder c: g Hungry Hollow Hungry Hollow E Arkona c (1) g C I Rackporl Qu~rry E Arkona I1l .!!2 (1) c D Boll I 0 D > Marcellus Q) :2: 1 c ], o a; Lu cas z ;> Q) . - 00:: - 'L "-

Precambrian crysta lline basemenl ~

Fi gure 2: Sub surface stratigraphy of southwestern Ontario.

20 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS ORDOVICIAN PLAY (ORD) The Ordovician play in Ontario is a con tinua tion of the prolific Tren ton-Black River Group hydrothermal dolomite play of Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Michigan, and New York. The play has seen production of more MICHIGAN than 485 MMbbl of oil and 1 Td of BASIN gas from Ohio and Indiana and more than 146 MMbbl of oil and 275 Td of gas in Michigan, most notably from the Albion-Scipio field . In New York State, the Trenton-Black River Group ..•...... •. Lrmil of Mount Simon Fm. has produced over 154 Bd of gas since APPALACHIAN,. .- _ _ . LlfmlofEauClareFm BASIN 1995 and accow1ted for 80 per cent of _ " - " _ " _ Unlit of Trempeleau Fm the state's gas production in 2005. ..-. Gamboan Poots

Ordovician gas was first discovered • Cambnan Wells in the late 1800s and was in commercial production at the turn of the century. Figure 3: Subcrop limits of Cambrian sandstones in Ontario. Modified from Trevail , 1990. Successful application of seismic tech­ .------,0 niques by Ontario-based exploration :n '"o companies in the early 1980s led to a ;=:i string of new discoveries and rejuve­ ~ z nated this play. A recent reassessment of :n Trenton-Black River oil and gas reserves estimated total potential reserves of 281 Bd of gas and 39.7 MMbbl of oil in

Ontario. The report was highly favour­ Precambrian able for continued exploration because

85 per cent of the gas volume and 43 HydrocarbooS per cent of the oil volume has yet to be discovered. Fau4t Oil and gas in these pools are trapped in Middle Ordovician carbonates of the Trenton and Black River Groups where the regional limestones have been dolomitized and fractured adjacent to vertical wrench faults (Figure 5). The faults are believed to have provided a conduit for movement of hydrothermal waters, which subsequently altered the limestone to porous and permeable dolostone in the immediate vicinity of the faults. The resulting linear hydro­ Figure 4: Trapping styles in Cambrian sandstones. Top , structural trap associated with thermal dolomite reservoirs reach up faulting. Bottom, pinch-out style trap along Algonquin Arch. Modified from Bailey Geological to 14 krn in length and several hundred Services Ltd. and Cochrane, 1984. r------~._----__ ~------~------,o metres in width. The marine shales of Major Trenton - Black River :n the overlying Blue Mountain Formation Hydrothermal Dolomite Pools '"g :-:< provide a vertical cap to the reservoirs z~ with unaltered limestones limiting their :n lateral extents. Porosities and perme­ abilities can vary widely, both laterally and vertically, resulting in pods and sweet spots of enhanced porosity and permea bili ty. Discovered pool sizes in Ontario range up to a maximum of 6.1 MMbbl .~ of oil and 14 Bd of natural gas at an average depth of 800 to 850 m. Approximately 1,150 wells have been drilled to date to test Ordovician targets in a prospective area of over 130,000 sq. km. Most of the recently drilled Figure 5: Trenton-Black River hydrothermal dolomite pools and exploration wells have been horizontal. Several ~ model. Modified from Golder Associates (2005).

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 21 ..-...------r-....:::------,(') ;u rn o ) ;:::i ;;: z / ;u /

S,lunan Sandstone 0:: Subcrop Edges Z Thorotd :2' o .:-: o ~L-~~~ __ ~~~/~/_'/_' ______~-='=J=W=h=i n=~==I~ Figure 6: Silurian sandstone subcrop edges in Ontario, Modified from Figure 8: Reef belts in Ontario, Modified from Coniglio et aI., 2003, Bailey Geological Services and Cochrane, 1986, long-reach horizontal wells have been Weiland Township in 1889, By the end of pay thickness varies from a few metres drilled since 1998 to exploit extensions 2006,236 Bd of gas had been produced to several tens of metres in several pay of the pools beneath Lake Erie, Drilling onshore and 152 Bd had been produced zones, with some production occurring for oil from wells located on the lake is from beneath Lake Erie, with all of the from the immediately overlying carbon­ not permitted, Lake Erie production coming since the ates of the Irondequoit and Reynales Current exploration methods focus early 1960s, formations (Figure 7), on 2-D and 3-D seismic. Typically a During early Silurian time, large The Silurian sandstone play is a subtle but resolvable structural depres­ amounts of sand, silt, and clay were mature play, but exploration and sion over the dolomitized zone can be eroded from highlands to the south and development drilling is continuing in seen in the seismic section, as well as were deposited into the Appalachian areas not previously drilled, Bailey vertical displacement of the underlying Basin, Sediment grain sizes fine to the Geological Services and Cochrane esti­ Precambrian crystalline basement rocks northwest into Ontario, Sand deposi­ mated proven recoverable gas reserves and a change in the seismic character tion was restricted to the Appalachian of 260 BeE from Lake Erie of which 106 occurring at the boundary between the side of the Algonquin Arch, Within Bd of gas is yet to be prod uced, highly porous dolomite and the unal­ this wedge of clastic sediments, porous tered limestone, sands are generally confined to the SILURIAN CARBONATE PLAY (SAL) Whirlpool Formation and the Grimsby The late Middle to Upper Silurian S ILURIAN SANDSTONE PLAY (CLI) and Thorold formations of the Clinton saw a return to warm equatorial seas Gas-prone sandstones of Lower to early and Cataract Groups, They occur as over what is now southern Ontario Middle Silurian age constitute the oldest extensive regional blankets and in and Michigan, These conditions were Silurian strata in southern Ontario, They channels and bars, Natural gas occurs ideal for the formation of barrier and underlie an extensive area beneath the wherever there is good porosity devel­ patch reef complexes in the warm and eastern and opment, making this a classic continuous shallow waters of the Ontario Platform, central Lake Erie (Figure 6), extending distribution style of play. and for the formation of towering south through Pennsylvania, Ohio, and The continuous nature of the reser­ pinnacle reefs in the deeper wa ters New York, and into northern Kentucky. voir makes it impractical to define pool sloping into the Michigan Basin (Figure The sandstones have been a historically bOlmdaries and size with any confidence, 8), In Ontario, these reefal carbonates important source of natural gas produc­ Average depth of the reservoirs ranges are known as the Guelph Formation, tion since gas was first discovered in from as little as 150 m up to 500 m, Gross while in Michigan they are known as Western Lake Erie Eastern Lake Erie Irondequoit - Reynales Carbonates

0:: Z :2' Head

Figure 7: Conceptual cross-section through the Cabot Head-Grimsby strata of eastern Lake Erie showing lateral facies changes, Modified from Bailey Geological Services and Cochrane, 1985,

22 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS () ;u rn o ;=:i ;:: z ;u

a: z 2 ,:..: ow 5t:!mlE!tmE=~ Rgure 9: Summary of lower Salina Group units overlying and adjacent to Guelph Figure 10: Conceptual model of Devonian structural traps formed by Formation pinnacle reefs in Lambton County. Modified from Carter et aI., 1994. differential salt dissolution in the Salina Group . the Niagaran. The Guelph reefs were This is a mature play with opportuni­ Discovered pool sizes range up to subsequently buried by carbonates, ties for further discoveries both on and a maximum of 18.4 MMbbl of oil at evaporites, and minor shales of the offshore. There is potential for conver­ depths not exceeding 150 m. Secondary Upper Silurian Salina Group (Figure 9). sion of additional reefs for use as natural recovery methods have proven very Hydrocarbon reservoirs occur within gas storage reservoirs. While early effective in extending the life of these the Guelph Formation reefs and the A-I exploration methods focused on gravity older pools. Water injection in the Carbonate and A-2 Carbonate units of anomalies to locate pinnacle reefs, both Rodney Pool resulted in a 232 per cent the Salina Group. 2-D and 3-D seismic have become far increase in daily production and 55 per Within the Guelph Formation, three more important in combination with cent recovery of original in-place oil. distinct reef types are seen. Pinnacle careful study of drill cuttings samples to The Devonian oil reservoirs are a reefs are reef buildups greater than 50 m identify reef proximi ty indicators. Careful mature play and only two small pools in height and extend through the subse­ mapping of dolomitization patterns and have been discovered since the 1949 quent deposition of A-I carbonate. They thickness of the A-I Carbonate Unit may discovery of the Rodney Pool in the occur in the pinnacle reef belt running also provide a useful gUide to undiscov­ Columbus sands. This may be due more through Lambton, Huron, and Bruce ered pinnacle reefs. to a lack of modern exploration effort counties. Incipient reefs are less than 50 specifically targeting Devonian reser­ m in height and occur in the same reef DEVONIAN PLAY (DEV) voirs rather than a lack of targets. The belt. Patch reefs also exhibit less than In 1858, James Miller Williams dug shallow depth and potentially large pool 50 m of buildup but underlie very large the first commercial oil well in North size make this play worthy of further geographic areas. Most of these reefs America into shallow Middle Devonian investigation, despite its long history have been dolomitized. Oil and gas carbonate rocks at Oil Springs, Ont. of exploitation. Detailed mapping and reservoirs occur within all three reef After 150 years, oil is stiU produced interpretation of subsurface structures types and are sealed by impermeable from this area. By the end of 2006, will be key in locating these targets. () ~; anhydrites and carbonates of the over­ total cumulative oil production from the lying Salina A-2 and A-I units. Middle Devonian totalled more than 44.3 Hydrocarbons also occur in dolo­ MMbbl and oil continues to be produced FOR MORE INFORMATION mitized sections of the Salina A-I and from six active pools. Armstrong, D.K. and Carter. T.R. A-2 Carbonate units where porosity Oil production from Devonian 2006. All updated guide to the subsurface is developed and a trapping mecha­ rocks is confined to the Lucas and Paleozoic stratigraphy of so uthern Ontario; ni sm exists. Hydrocarbon traps most Dundee formations and a sandy facies Ontario Geological Survey, Open File commonly occur on the up thrown side of the Lucas locally referred to as the Report 6191, 214 p. of regional faults and in structural Columbus. Only minor gas production Bailey Geological Services and drapes over reef buildups in the under­ has been reported from the Devonian Cochrane, R.O., 1984-1990. Evaluatioll of lying Guelph Formation. carbonates of Ontario, but there may be the conventional and potential oil and gas Discovered pool sizes range up to potential for shale gas in overlying black reserves of Ontario; Ontario Geological a maximum of 280 Bcf of natural gas shales. The Devonian rocks are restricted Survey, Open File Reports 5498, 5499, in the patch reefs. Pinnacle reefs may to the western portion of southwestern 5555, 5578, 5722. contain up to 42 Bcf of natural gas and Ontario. Reservoirs consist of fractured, Golder Associates, 2005. Hydrocarbon 1.6 MMbbl of oil. Depths range from microporous limestones, dolomitic resource assessment of the Trenton-Black 300 to 700 m. Thirty pinnacle reefs siliciclastics, sand-rich limestones, and River hydrothermal dolomite play in have been converted to natural gas fractured limestones with no associated Ontario; Ontario Oil, Gas and Salt storage with total working gas volume matrix porosity. All of the Devonian oil Resources Library, 35 p., 27 figures, 8 of 243 Bcf of natural gas. Approximately pools are located on structural domes, tables, 11 cross-sections, 7 pool maps, 4 5,000 wells have been drilled to date to which are the result of differential disso­ append ices. test targets in these middle Silurian lution of salt beds in the underlying www.ogsrlibrary.com carbonate rocks. Salina Group (Figure 10).

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 23 ENBRIDGE OU have just been informed that as of today you are in charge of the new YOntario Exploration Branch of your company and management eagerly awaits your first drilling prospect to be presented on this day next month. You know nothing about the geology of Ontario.

Where to start? There are hundreds, perhaps thousands of For those who still think that Ontario sedimentary rocks articles and books produced by industry and academia. Most result in simple layer-cake stratigraphy, Bruce Sanford and are far too detailed for the non-specialist; many of the old clas­ his colleagues from the Geological Survey of Canada have a sics have been superseded; some are out of print. surprise in store. Plate Tec ton ics: A Possible Controlling Mechanism What follows is an entirely subjective review of the in the Development of Hydro carbo n Traps in Southwestern Ontario essential literature for petroleu m geoscientists practicing was the first public recognition of the importance and in Onta rio today. It's based on 40 years of experience-as a complexity of faulting in southwestern Ontario. The authors student, consultant, and teacher-usually in haste and always established a conceptual framework for the faulting system under pressure. There are many other excellent and useful across the whole area and ti ed it in with plate tectonics. The documents out there. But these are the ones to which this message, first delivered to a stunned audience at the Ontario geoscientist has returned, time after time and project after Petroleum Institute in 1983, was subsequently published in project. They shou Id be enough to get you started. the Bulletin of Canadian Petrolellm Geology. This classic little Most, if not all the cited works a re available at the Oil, Gas paper, some 20 pages long, also provides an introduction to & Salt Resources (OGSR) Library located in London, Ont., the major producing horizons in southwestern Ontario. where well-cutting samples, core, geophysical logs, and digi­ These same exploration horizons were later featured in tized sample data are stored as well. Many are also retained an article entitled "Play by Play Action" written by a team of by university libraries. practicing geologists in the first OPI magazine published in For those who like to start with the big picture and ease 2004. They are reviewed once again in this issue: slowly into the details, Ontario Rocks is a user-friendly, lavishly 1. Cambrian sandstones and dolomites illustrated, armchair geological tour of Ontario. Nick Eyles, a 2. Middle Ordovician hydro-thermal dolomites University of Toronto professor, has directed this book largely 3. Lower Silurian sandstones to students and the general public. However, he has not 4. Silurian reefs and carbonates scrimped on technical explanations, and a lthough definitely 5. Middle Devonian carbonates outcrop oriented, the images are a beacon to sample-loggers That the fault system would be more elaborate in this part mentally burrowing throughout the subsurface of Ontario. of Ontario should not really have been regarded as such a After Ontario Rocks, serious geoscientists should consult novelty. The Southwestern Ontario peninsula, bounded by the the final word on the subject in Geology of Ontario put out by on three sides and the Precambrian Shield to the the Ontario Geological Survey. With two volumes of text and north, consists of a foreland basin on the east and an intracra­ one of maps and charts, it will take up almost a foot of your tonic basin on the west, separated by an arch down the centre. bookshelf space. For our purposes, however, you can narrow The whole area has been affected not only by the Appalachian your attention to Chapter 20, "The Paleozoic and Mesozoic tectonic activity described in Plate Tectonics, but by underly ing Geology of Ontario." This tome pulls together information Precambrian basement structures as well. Further light was from many geological survey memoirs and maps published shed on the faulting system in Oil and Gas Accumulations and about specific areas over the years. It also updates the classic Basement Structures, Southern Ontario. Geology and Economic Min erals of Canada and fleshes in the By this time, one of the producing horizons may have caught more general Decade of North American Geology. your imagination and you are ready for a review in greater ~

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 25 depth (no pun intended). Industry consultants Bruce Ba il ey subsurface geologist. Beards was assisted by Gordon Winder and Robert Cochrane were commissioned by the Ontario and other industry geologists. In a great leap forward for prac­ Geological Survey to conduct the publication of a series of ticing geologists, w ith this new 2006 publication, each formation studies for the Evaillatioll of the COllventiollal & Potelltial Oil & is now linked with referenced outcrop exposures, a nd a core, Gas Reserves (of the Call1briall, Ordoviciall, Silllriall alld Devonian) log, and well sa mple reference for on-the-spot consultation in of Ontario in which they describe and evaluate the geology and the OGSR Library. reserves of all the major fields, hori zon by horizon. There are a couple of other papers that assist with mapping All five producing formations are also well -i llustrated in a nd interpreting data derived from the rocks. Ernest Brisco Subsllljace Geology of SOlltilluestem Ontario: A Core Workshop. from Brisco & O'Rou rke Land Surveyors presented a short This ambitious workshop was offered to members of the a nd pithy expla nati on of the Ontario grid system to the OPr. Eastern Section of the American Associati on of Petroleum It unravels the mysteries of our 200-acre units bou nded by lot Geologists at a con ference hosted by the OPr. Terry Ca rter, and concession lines, a n older la yout that differs from much subsurface geologist at the Petroleum Resources Centre of of North America. More recentl y, Terry Carter and Arthur the Min istry of Natura I Resources, coordinated the combi ned Castillo have provided a guide of how to use GIS and dig ital contributions from himself and other workers in the fie ld. well data for 3-D subsurface mapping in Ontario. We have For an introduction to the individual producing horizons, come a long way since the first subsurface computer maps there are two major sources of references. Not surprisingly of southwestern Ontario were generated at the University of perhaps, the original seri es of "papers" published by the geolo­ Western Ontario by PhD. student Robert Brigham. At that gists at the Geological Survey of ClIlada in during the time, the data was recorded on punched cards and the infor­ 1950s and 1960s have stood the test of time and are sti ll releva nt mation saved on a magneti c computer tape. Nonetheless, he and useful. For the Cambrian, consult Sanford & Quilli an 1959; produced some excell ent contour maps, period by period, that Sanford 1961 for the Ordovician; and Sanford 1965 and Koepke revealed the broad subsurface structure of the whole a rea. & Sanford 1966 for the Sil u rian ca rbonates and sa ndstones. And finally, going on the premise that the best geologists are More recently, at the dawn of the 21st century, Bruce Bail ey has the ones who see the most rocks, it is time to ri se from the a rmchair delivered a series of talks, summarizing a lifetime of knowledge or the microscope and go out into the fi eld . The best overa ll guide obtained as a subsu rface petrologist. These have been publ ished for all of southern Ontario, from basin to basin is still the first. in the Proceedings of tire Ontario Petrolellllr Tll stitllte, more affec­ In 1972, Gordon Winder and Bruce Sanford took delegates from tionately known as the "OPI Golden Volumes." He covered the all over the world who were attending the 24th International Silurian reefs in 1999, 2000, and 2002; and the Cambrian in 2001 , Geological Congress in Montrea lout to see what southern Ontario 2003, and 2005. In the same ca tegory, Leigh Smith, a p rofessor had to offer. They explained the geology over the two basins at Queens University, deli vered a most elegant paper to the OPI and the arch, from stop to stop, all the way from Cambrian and about cyclic sea level fluctuations illustrated by Silurian reefs, Ordovici an exposures in the Ottawa-Kingston area to the classic but applicable to other horizons as well. Devonian fossil-collecting sites of Lambton County. And for the future, recognizing that a quarter-century has More recently, some grea t field trip guidebooks for speci fic passed since the Bailey and Cochrane 1983-1990 editions, horizons have been published that delve a little more into various bodies within the Ontario government have commend­ the paleogeography and incorporate the most up-to-date ably launched an on-going project to modernize this work. As scholarship. Terry Ca rter and hi s colleagues gave a demon­ such, Hydro carbon Reso llrce Assessllrcnt of th e Trellton-Black River stration of their ideas on basement structures with a field trip Hydrotlrer llrnl DololI/ite Play in Ontario is the first in a series of for the Waterloo GAC meeting. De rek Armstrong a nd W.R. welcome updated publications. Good man revealed some excell ent examples of Guelph reef Core Workshops are very ambitious contributions to exposures in the at the Eastern Section of the geological understanding anywhere, and are a most helpful American Association of Petroleum Geologists. Cam Tsujita, introduction to the producing horizons. Ontario is no excep­ a paleontologist from the University of Western Ontario, tion. Terry Carter and others produced a Core Workshop on a nd his colleagues have illustrated the paleogeography and Si lurian reefs at the 1994 Geological Association of Canada paleoecology of those classic Devonian sites with beautiful Conference held in Waterloo, Onto Bruce Bailey and Leigh interpretive drawings a nd lucid expl anations. And fin a lly, for Smith also covered Silurian reefs a few yea rs later at the the shear fun of it, the late Si mon Haynes used to regu la rl y Eastern Section of the American Association of Petroleum take out energeti c a nd thirsty OPl delegates to tour w ineries Geologists hosted by the opr in London. Ian Colqu hOLln a nd terrains in the Niagara Peninsula area. His guidebook, prepared a Core Workshop for this conference as well , based Wine, Geology and Glaciolac lI strine Soils of the Niagara Escarpment, on the findings of hi s recently defended Ph.D. thesis. is still available from the OP] for those who wish to fo ll ow in Once the theory has been absorbed, a practica l guide to his ex uberant footsteps. the appli cation of all that knowledge is most welcome. And 1£ 1 had to disti II a II the above into a two-week introduction in Ontario we have an excell ent manual for that very purpose in preparation for prospecting, [would start by Ontario Rocks; produced by Derek Armstrong from the Ontario Geological fo ll owed by a more d iligent perusal of Geology of Ontario, with Survey and Terry Carter-All Updated GlIide to the SlIbsllrjace particular attention to the maps and charts. Then r would Paleozoic Stratigraphy ofSolltherrr Olltario. This open file report has go out into the field taking the Winder and Sanford 1972 a d iscussion of each formation and a review of the nomenclature tour, supplemented by the above-mentioned period-specific to update a classic lexicon origina ll y w ritten by Gordon Winder, guidebooks. Returning to London, T would ensconce myself from the Universi ty of Western Ontario. It has also updated a in the Oil, Gas & Salt Resources Library to find out what set of standard sample and log picks originall y produced by the rocks have to tell me-with Armstrong & Carter 2006 as Ron Beards while he was the Ministry of Natural Resources's my mentor. II l,

26 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS CITED REFERENCES Armstrong, D.K. & Carter, T.R (2006). An Updated Guide to Carter, T.R, Trevail, RA. & Easton, RM. (1993). Oil and the Subsurface Paleozoic Stratigraphy of Southern Ontario; Ontario Gas Accumulations and Basement Structures in Southern Ontario; Geological Survey, Open File Report 6191, 61 pp. Proceedings, Ontario Petroleum Institute 32nd Annual Armstrong, D.K. & Goodman, W.R. (1990). Stratigraphy and Conference, London, Ontario, Technical Paper No.9, 27 pp. Depositional Environments of Niagaran Carbonates, Bruce Peninsula, Carter, T.R, Trevail, RA. & Smith, L. (1994). Niagaran Reef and Ontario; American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Eastern Inter-Reef Relationships in the Subsurface of Southwestern Ontario; Section, 1990 Annual Meeting, London, Ontario, hosted by Geological Association of Canada & Mineralogical Association Ontario Petroleum Institute. of Canada, Annual Meeting, May 16-18, 1994, University of Bailey, S.M.B. (1999). The Timing and Mechanics of Emplacement Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario. and Removal of Salt, In and Around Pinnacle Reefs in South-Western Colquhoun, 1. (2000). Ordovician Core Workshop; American Ontario: The Enniskillen 28 Reef Model; Ontario Petroleum Institute, Association of Petroleum Geologist 2000 Eastern Section Meeting, Proceedings of the 38th Annual Conference, Technical Paper London, Ontario, Canada, hosted by Ontario Petroleum Institute, No.7, 31 pp. Core Workshop, Sept. 24, 2000. Bailey, S.M.B. (2000). The Extremely Complicated, 'Simple' Pinnacle Douglas, RJ.w. (ed.) (1969). GeolofSl) and Economic Minerals of Canada; Reef Reservoirs of Ontario; Ontario Petroleum Institute, Proceedings Geological Survey of Canada, Economic Geology Report No.1. of the 39th Annual Conference, Technical Paper No.3, 33 pp. Eyles, N. (2002). Ontario Rocks-Three Billion Years ofEnvironmental Bailey, S.M.B. (2001). The Practical Geological Realities of Finding Change; Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Markham, Ontario, 339 pp. Oil and Gas Reservoirs and Water Disposal Zones in the Cambrian Golder Associates Ltd. (2005). Hydrocarbon Resource Assessment Sediments ofS. W. Ontario; Ontario Petroleum Institute, Proceedings of the Trenton-Black River Hydrothermal Dolomite Play in Ontario; Oil, of the 40th Annual Conference, Technical Paper No. 15,25 pp. Gas & Salt Resources Library, 35 pp. Bailey, S.M.B. (2002). The Geological Implications of Some Haynes, S.J. (1994). Wine, Geology and Glaciolacustrine Soils 3-D 'Fishnet' Seismic Images of Guelph Pinnacle Reefs in Ontario: A of the Niagara Escarpment; Field Guidebook for the Ontario Different Perspective on Their Growth, Destruction and Complexity; Petroleum Institute, Annual Meeting, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Ontario Petroleum Institute, Proceedings of the 41st Annual Oct. 10, 1994, 13 pp. Conference, Technical Paper No. 15,47 pp. Koepke, W.E . & Sanford, B.Y. (1966). The Silurian Oil and Gas Fields Bailey, S.M.B. (2003) . A Geological Model for the Inn erkip Gas of Sout/nuestern Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Department Pool, Oxford County, Blandford/Blenheim Townships, Ontario; Ontario of Mines and Technical Surveys, Paper 65-30, 138 pp. Petroleum Institute, Proceedings of the 42nd Annual Conference, Ontario Petroleum Institute (2004). Play by Play Action in Technical Paper No. 11, 30 pp. Ontario Oil and Gas 2004 edition. Bailey, S.M.B. (2005). A Comparison of Cambrian Reservoir Rocks Sanford, B.Y. (1961). Subsurface Stratigraphy of Ordovician Rocks Onlapping the SE and NW Sides of the Algonquin Arch in SW Ontario. A in Southwestern Ontario; Geological Survey of Canada, Paper Regional Correlation Project; Ontario Petroleum Institute, Proceedings 60-62, 54 pp. of the 44th Annual Conference, Technical Paper No.5, 20 pp. Sanford, B.Y. (1965). Salina Salt Beds Southwestern Ontario; Bailey Geologica l Services Ltd. and Cochrane, RO. (1984-1990). Geological Survey of Canada, Department of Mines and Technical Evaluation of the Conventional & Potential Oil & Gas Reserves (of the Surveys, Paper 65-9, 7 pp plus maps. Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian and Devonian) of Ontario; Ontario Sanford, B.Y. & Quillian, RG. (1959). Subsu rface Stratigraphy of Upper Geological Survey, Open File Reports. Cambrian Rocks in Southwestern Ontario; Department of Mines and Bailey, S.M.B. & Smith, L. (2000). Porosity and Reservoir Styles Technical Surveys, Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 58-12, 33 pp. in Some Silurian Pinnacle Reefs in Southwestern Ontario; American Sanford, B.Y., Thompson, FJ. & McFall, G.H. (1985). Plate Association of Petroleum Geologist 2000 Eastern Section Meeting, Tectonics-A Possible Controlling Mechanism in tile Development of London, Ontario, Canada, hosted by Ontario Petroleum Institute, Hydrocarbon Traps in Southwestern Ontario; Bulletin of Canadian Core Workshop, September 24, 2000. Petroleum Geology, vol. 33, No.1, p. 52-7l. Beards, RJ. (1967). Guide to the Subsurface Paleozoic Stratigraphy Smith, L. (1990). Geologic Controls on Porosity and Permeability of Southern Ontario; Ontario Department of Energy Resources Variation in Silurian Pinnacle Reef Bioherms, Southwestern Ontario; Management, Paper 67-2, 19 pp. Ontario Petroleum Institute, Proceedings of the 29th Annual Brigham, RJ (1971). Structural GeolofSl) of Southwestern Ontario and Conference, Technical Paper No.4, 19 pp. Southeastern Michigan; Ontario Department of Mines and Northern Stott, D.F & Aitken, J.D. (eds.) (1993). Sedimentary Cover of the Affairs, Petroleum Resources Section, Paper 71-2,110 pp. Craton in Canada; Decade of North American Geology, Vol. 0-1. Brisco, E.C (1982). Land Surveying-An Essential Service; Thurston, P.C, et aI., (1991). Geology of Ontario; Geological Proceedings, Ontario Petroleum Institute, 21st Annual Conference, Survey of Ontario, Sp. Volume 4. Toronto, Ontario, Technical Paper No.6, 5 pp. Tsujita, CJ., Tetreault, D.K. & Jin, J. (2001). Middle and Upper Carter et aI., (1990). SubsUiface Geology of Southwestern Ontario­ Devonian Strata of Southwestern Ontario; Canadian Paleontology A Core Workshop; American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Conference, Field Trip Guidebook No.9, University of Western 1990 Eastern Section Meeting, hosted by the Ontario Petroleum Ontario, London, Ontario, Sept. 22-24, 2001, 58 pp. Institute, London, Ontario, September 9, 1990. Winder, CG. (1961). Lexicon of Paleozoic Names in Southwestern Carter, T.R. & Castillo, A.C (2003). 3D Mapping in the Subsurface Ontario; University of Toronto Press, 121 pp. of Southern Ontario Using GIS and Digital Petroleum Well Data; Winder, CG. & Sanford, B.Y. (1972). Stratigraphy & Paleontology of Ontario Petroleum Institute, Proceedings of the 42nd Annual the Paleozoic rocks of Southern Ontario; 24th International Geological Conference, Technical Paper No. 18, 14 pp. Congress, Montreal, Quebec, Excursion A45-C45, 73 pp.

ONTARI O OI L & GAS JUNE 2008 27

By Chaz Osburn Photography by Joey Podlubny "Ontario's the biggest market zn Canada for natural gas."

Scott Tompkins, Ontario superintendent for Talisman Energy Inc.

The drilling primarily occurs 10 to 40 miles from the Ontario shoreline. A network of pipelines runs along the bottom of the lake-the shallowest of the five Great Lakes­ connecting the wellheads to the various Talisman facilities on land. Wells are located in an area from about Port Alma, southwest of Chatham-Kent, to Port Col borne, which is about 40 km west of Fort Erie. The wells are regularly inspected and maintained by divers who work for Talisman. Safety is the first concern-the divers, wearing helmets equipped with lights and television cameras, can do their work in the sometimes murky and muddy lake bottom. Most of the gas produced from the lake is sent to Union Gas. "Ontario's the biggest market in Canada for natural gas," points Scott Tompkins. out Tompkins, who has worked for Talisman for 27 years.

30 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS Ontario has a long history of producing natural gas. Onshore production in the province began in County in the late 1860s. The first offshore gas production on Lake Erie began in the early 20th century. Since then about 2,000 wells are believed to have been drilled in the lake. Initial offshore drilling involved platforms that were within easy reach of the shoreline, but by the 1940s, wells were drilled up to a mile from shore. Today, drilling is done with rigs mounted on barges. Talisman operates one drilling barge, Dr. Bob, and one completion barge, Miss Libby. Generally the barges are sent out in mid- to late-May and return to shore in October. Drilling does not occur every year. In fact, this year only the completion barge will be sent out. "Lake Erie's the only Great Lake with offshore gas produc­ tion," observes Tompkins, adding that the United States does not produce gas from its side of the lake. As well, neither A helmet used by a diver who inspects offshore wells. country drills for oil on any of the Great Lakes. "There's no oil [production] offshore, no oil at all," Tompkins Talisman in Ontario explains. "You're not allowed to produce oil offshore." Key dates in Talisman Ene rgy's history in the province: Talisman, however, does produce oil on land in Ontario. 1977: Pembina Exploration Ltd. begins operations in Ontario. The company operates major oil producing areas in Essex and Kent counties, comprising 157 producing wells and four 19805: Pembina 's Ontario operations grow through drilling and production-gathering facilities in Renwick, Goldsmith, Hillman, some small acquisitions. and Rochester. Operations are concentrated in the Wheatley, 1994: Pembina buys the assets ofTelesis Oil and Gas, which Leamington, and Belle River areas of Ontario, with some wells more than doubles Pembina's staff and operating wells. producing inside the town of Leamington, according to the 1997: Talisman buys Pembina. company. Talisman is the largest oil and gas producer in Ontario, SOURCE: TALISMAN ENERGY INC. accounting for approximately 60 per cent of the province's daily production. 0 :.

HAROLD MARCUS LTD.

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ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 31 "lJ oI o-< o Ontario Oil, ::!! Gas & Salt Resources Library is an Richard E. Ostrowski

Faciliti es & Program "lJ I Important Administrator, o -< Ontario Oil, Gas & Salt o o Resource Resources Library ::!!

he Ontario Oil, Gas & Salt Resources Library (OGSRL) history (on-going project), geophysical logs, and oil, gas, and is the home of Ontario's Paleozoic geology, housing water analyses. All well spots are posted free of charge at rock samples from 15,000 drillings, field reports, www.ogsrlibrary.comin a comprehensive database describing Tand priceless publications portraying sedimentary each of the 25,000 wells. The web interface is also evolving sequence and intricate properties of discovered reservoirs. as we strive to accommodate and educate the industry and From shale gas to pinnacle reefs to hydrothermal conduits public in general. of the Ordovician to Cambrian sands, southern Ontario's In recent years, the Ontario Geological Survey and the geology is just as vibrant and promising as its infrastructure Ministry of Natural Resources funded two major projects. on the surface. Advances in information technology present u s Thanks to those projects, the library is proud to offer publica­ with opportunities to take advantage of geospatial mapping, tions that shed light from a more modern angle on existing enormous database compilation, reservoir calculations, and discoveries and remaining potential. The first project focused bringing vast amounts of paper data to li fe in digital formats. on hydrothermal dolomite plays of the Ordovician age where The library offers a variety of digital information such as numerous Ordovician pools were used as examples and geological formation intervals, completion reports, production related stratigraph y was illustrated with several cross-sections developed with the help of the library'S staff and resources. With a much broader scope, the second project evaluated The OGSRL can trace its the entire sedimentary sequence of southern Ontario and neatly described producing formations illustra ted on regional­ scale cross-sections. Due to the generosity of our members, the origins to the late 1800s, government, and our industry, we continue to receive support for data and publications development. when the Geological Survey Members of the OGSRL benefit from discounts on facility usage, subsurface digital data, updates to Ontario Base Maps, of Canada solicited voluntary and custom-built petroleum GIS layers such as pool bound­ submissions of drill cuttings aries and cumulative pool production data. HISTORY The OGSRL can trace its origins to the late 1800s, when the and core from oil and gas Geological Survey of Canada solicited voluntary submissions of drill cuttings and core from oil and gas wells drilled in wells drilled in Ontario and Ontario and other parts of the country. This informal collec­ tion evolved into the establishment of a core and drill cuttings other parts of the country. sample processing, storage, and study facility in Ottawa. In 1950, a similar facility was establish ed in Calgary and all

32 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS western Canada drill cuttings samples were transferred the Trust. A Trust Agreement, dated Feb. 16, 1998, was to Calgary. In 1971, the Ontario cores and drill cuttings signed with the original Trustee, the Ontario Oil, Gas- & samples were shipped to the new Petroleum Resources Salt Resources Corporation, and responsibilities for opera­ Laboratory in London, Ont. The lab was owned and tion of the library were transferred to the Trustee. The operated by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. Ontario Petroleum Institute (OPI) is the sole shareholder In 1987, the collection was moved to its current location in the Ontario Oil, Gas & Salt Resources Corporation. in a building located near Highway 401. In 2007, the Of significant importance, this partnership between the facility underwent an expansion providing capacity for Ontario government and industry continues and grows. The an estimated 30 years of continued collection of drill core committee overseeing the OGSRL encompasses the Trustee and samples. and membership from Salt Solution Mining Industry, The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, pursuant Cavern Storage, Natural Gas Storage, Exploration of Oil to the Oil, Gas and Salt Resources Act R.S.O. 1990, formed and Natural Gas, and Consultants to the industry.

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Focus OF MEMBERSHIP OGSRL Top 10 The Trust focuses on three geographical markets: Ontario, Alberta, and the Midwestern and Northeastern United States. Top 10 reasons to contact the Ontario Oil, Gas The target client is usually the operator of oil, gas, solution & Salt Resources Library mining, natural gas storage, oilfield fluid disposal or petroleum product storage wells in the province of Ontario, or a consultant 1. Unique, one of a kind facility in all of Ontario, housing providing services to these operators. Outside of Ontario, the sedimentary geology data target clients are resource exploration companies considering new locations for investment or activity. Providing informa­ 2. Core and drill cuttings from 15,000 holes tion services to the oil, gas, salt, and hydrocarbon storage and 3. Digital geology, geophysics, and production data resources industries, both to operators, service providers, and consultants, continues to be the principal focus. 4. Publications on reservoir characteristics Clients obtain data and information principally through 5. Government liaison and joint project undertaking personal visits to the OGSRL, by telephone inquiry, and most 6. Knowledgeable staff-management, geospatial, database, often via email. Six staff members are there to answer your ques­ and geology tions, and on-site equipment and a lab are available to make your research convenient while visiting the starting place for 7 . Exceptional service and unique membership benefits your exploration in Ontario. 8 . Website development into a comprehensive resource As more and more information is available in digital form, the Internet becomes more important as a distribution method. 9 . Exposure and promotion at all Eastern Section Meetings Digital files are mailed out on CD, em ailed over the Internet, or of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists more commonly downloaded from the OGSRL website. Content 10. Exciting perspectives on undiscovered potential resources on the library's website will continue to grow and will remain of southern Ontario a priority for publishing and marketing new information and presenting existing information in more accessible formats. () G

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 33 three sources: primary thermogenic decomposition of organic Production in 2006 totalled 140 Bcf. Most production is from matter, secondary thermogenic cracking of oil, or biogenic depths of 100 to 500 m. Total in-place resource estimates for microbial decomposition of organic matter. the Antrim range from 35 to 76 Tcf, with an additional 86 to Initial flows may be high but short-lived (tapping the "free" 160 Tcf for the equivalent Ohio/New Albany shales. Much of gas residing in fractures and matrix poroSity), followed by a the gas generated within the Antrim is of biogeniC (bacterial) very long history of lower flow rates (slowly accessing the origin, has been adsorbed onto the organic constituents, and gas adsorbed onto micro-porous clays and organics). Fracture produces through a complex fracture network. Because the gas stimulation is almost always required to achieve commer­ is biogenic, gas content correlates directly with Total Organic cial production. Ultimate recovery rates may be rather low Carbon (TOC). The gas is predominantly methane with (about 20 per cent) but the original initial gas in place may modest amounts of C02 and was generated in the shallow be enormous. groundwater environment during the last 22,000 years by Shale is the most common lithology in many sedimen­ bacterial consumption of the organic matter contained in the tary basins. Consequently, gas shales represent a potentially shale. The reservoir is continually replenishing itself. large, technically recoverable gas resource. As production from conventional reservoirs in North America continuously declines in the future, gas from unconventional reservoirs Obviously, significant organic content and significant may become increaSingly important for energy security in permeability are the two basic factors that must be present for the future. large resources to be created and produced. Most shales retain good natural porosity, even at depth, allowing good storage I capacity. OrganiC content can be as low as the 1 per cent The first known shale gas production in North America TOC range, but certainly values greater than the 3 per cent occurred in 1821 when local townsfolk drilled a well 8.3 TOC range are preferable. Fine grained deposits are the most m deep at Fredonia, N.Y., after the accidental ignition of common sedimentary rocks, but thicknesses of 10 m or more a gas seepage, making are required. Thicknesses this the oldest hydro- of hundreds of metres of carbon play in North shaley strata are prefer- America. The well was able, but organic-rich, completed in the Upper productive intervals Devonian Dunkirk of only tens of metres shale and the gas piped are necessary to be through hollowed logs to commercially successful, light the nearby houses. depending on local depth. Shale gas development " Thermal maturity can be spread westward along I low, but only in special the southern shore of circumstances where Lake Erie into Ohio, fractured shales exist at Illinois, and Kentucky surface within the zone of during the 1860s to biogenic methanogenesis. 1880s. Throughout these For most cases, thermal decades, there was no ~ maturity at or above the ::< attempt to exploit the .:-: oil window, and into the correlative rocks across 8 gas window, is preferred. the border in Ontario. 5 '--______~ ""______" Significant gas In 1976, the U.S. This map was generated from more than 3,800 subsurface picks from the content must be estab- Department of Energy Ontario Oil, Gas, and Salt resources database. More than 180 occurences lished, preferably above initiated its Eastern Gas of surface gas in the shallow drift. 40 standard cubic feet per Shale Project and in 1980, ton. Significant natural introduced the Section 29 tax credit to stimulate development permeability, above that normally offered by the original of unconventional hydrocarbon resources. This quickly led to shales, should be present in the form of fractures or thin successful exploration and significant production of shale gas in siltstone/bioclastic carrier beds. Alternatively, it must be the Appalachian, Michigan, and Illinois basins (Antrim, Ohio, easily created in brittle rocks through fracture stimula­ New Albany, and Chattanooga shales), and in the Fort Worth, tion. Depths may be anywhere from surface to several Texas, (Barnett shale) and SanJuan (Lewis shale) basins. Although thousand metres, although very shallow plays may requi re the tax credit expired in 1992, exploitation has continued at a special circumstances and may yield water-wet biogenic high rate, and these three areas still represent the primary shale gas from thermally immature strata. Deeper targets yield gas production in North America. Approximately 36,000 wells dry thermogenic gas from mature mudstones through more have now been drilled in the United States for shale gas targets. expensive drilling. The Antrim shale in northern Michigan is the most prolific Despite the generalities discussed above, there is one clear shale gas play in the eastern United States and is the lithologic lesson from the plays developed to date. Each potential shale and stratigraphic equivalent of the Kettle Point formation gas play must be evaluated separately to find the correct in southern Ontario. Over 2.5 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of balance of all the various factors, appraise the predictability, natural gas has been produced to date from over 8,000 wells. and properly assess its economic possibilities. ~

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 35 Outcrops of Marcellus are not known anywhere in Ontario, A recent report by the Geological Survey of Canada but it appears to be present immediately beneath glacial drift (Hamblin, 2006) has documented all the shaley strata in and is likely exposed on the bottom of Lake Erie. TOC content Canada that may be prospective sou rces of natural gas. is very variable, with average values in the 4 to 13 per cent Those judged to have the best potential in Ontario are the range. The organic matter is marginally mature to mature Collingwood/Blue Mountain, Kettle Point, and Marcellus right at the onset of oil generation. Nuisance gas shows are shales, all located in southwestern Ontario. common in the uppermost few metres of the Marcellus where it subcrops beneath the glacial drift, suggesting the possibility of a biogenic gas play. The Upper Ordovician Collingwood member of the Lindsay formation and the lowermost 2 to 15 m of the overlying Blue Mountain Formation ( member) The Upper Devonian Kettle Point Formation of southwestern of southwestern Ontario are organic-rich mudstones with Ontario is an organic-rich black shale that forms the bedrock long histories of i mporta nce in petroleum geology. These beneath an area exceeding 4,000 sq. km both onshore and two associated units a re present over a large area of beneath Lake Erie and the southern tip of Lake Huron. Only southern Ontario and are the stratigraphic equivalent of the three outcrops are known. It is stratigraphically and lithologi­ Utica shales of northern New cally equivalent to the highly ~n"Pg .... Fo.l",,"l-iW'8AS" productive Antrim shale of ""' .&I "" -;' ~"'l ,J.&.' ,.. The Collingwood calcar­ adjacent Michigan, Ohio shale eous shales have been known Distribution of of Ohio, and New Albany shale Upper Devonian to be petroliferous since of New York. Black Shales the earliest reports of the The Kettle Point is overlain Geological Survey of Canada over most of its outcrop area and were the object of early by glacial drift. Although the attempts to process oil shales maximum known thickness is in the 1860s. An extensive 105 m, the preserved thickness program to evaluate the is generally much less, aver­ oil shale potential of the aging about 28 m. The lower 10 Collingwood was pursued by m of the formation is famous the Ontario Geological Sur­ for unusually large, spherical vey in the 1980s. The Colling­ calcite concretions ("kettles") wood has TOC up to 11 per 0:: exposed at the type section at cent, is marginally mature, ~ Kettle Poi nt on the shore of La ke and has likely sourced some .:-: Huron. TOC values range from is oils that are reservoired in ~ 3.6 to 15 per cent in the black

U L-______~ Cambrian and Ordovician shales. The Kettle Point is ther­ traps in southern Ontario. Distribution of Upper Devonian black shales and nomenclature modified mally immature throughout from Russell , 1985. Total gas in place estimates from Martini et. aI., 2003. The overlying Blue southwestern Ontario. Mountain Formation is dominantly composed of soft, Early reports of the Geological Survey of Canada refer to the laminated, non-calcareous grey to dark grey shale up to common seepage of natural gas from the thick sand and gravel 75 m thick. However, the lower 2 to 15 m of the forma­ deposits that overlie the Kettle Point Formation. Water well tion, referred to as the Rouge River Member, are typically records commonly report natural gas in the groundwater in dark brownish and more organic-rich. This lower the same area and petroleum well records document gas shows part of the Blue Mountain generally has TOC content in the upper few metres of the Kettle Point. This gas may be of of 1 to 5 per cent, and these strata are thermally mature. shallow biogenic origin similar to gas produced from the Antrim A number of shallow gas wells were drilled in central shale in Michigan. Scientific studies to test this hypothesis are southern Ontario in the mid-20th century and report­ underway. edly recovered significant flows of gas from the overlying Georgian Bay and Queenston units. Natural gas has been anecdotally reported from water wells in the greater Toronto There is significant potential for a shale gas play in the organic­ area for decades, and a number of water wells in central rich shales of southern Ontario. The best prospects may be for southern Ontario produce water with gas from these strata. biogenic gas in the Kettle Point, Marcellus, and Collingwood/Blue Mountain, where these formations are directly overlain by glacial drift. Dry, thermogenic gas from greater depths may be present. The Marcellus Formation shale (late Middle Devonian Water well and petroleum well records document the occurrence age) comprises black bituminous shale, which occurs beneath of natural gas. But can it be commercially recovered? ., ~; glacial drift along the north shore of Lake Erie and in the subsurface beneath the central portion of the lake. The FURTHER READING Marcellus is up to 25 m thick, averaging 17 m, in Ontario. It Hamblin, A.P. (2006). The "shale gas" concept in Canada: A conformably but sharply overlies the Dundee carbonates, and preliminary inventory of possibilities; Geological Survey of Canada, Open File Report 5384, 103 p. is sharply overlain by glacial drift or the Hamilton Group grey Oil and Ga s In vestor, January 2006. "Shale Gas." shales in Ontario, New York, and Michigan.

36 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS Ontario's Role in Launching the Oil Industry By Chaz Osburn

ntario's importance in launching the petroleum industry O 150 years ago cannot be understated. The list of oil firsts-first commercial oil well in North America, first petro­ c:: o leum company, first oil exchange, to name a few-is truly (/) remarkable. o~ But to understand Ontario's role requires some background. I Cl. In the early to mid-19th century, there was no such thing as the incandescent light bulb, something we take for granted. Ontario has a rich petroleum history, which traces its roots Most people in North America relied on fires, candles, and back 150 years, and includes notable events such as the well at Comber, which was drilled in November 1904 (main lamps that burned whale oil (and later coal oil) to light their photo). A historical well , still producing today, with original homes. Generally the light was dim. In some cases it was pumpjack operated by a jerker-line system (inset). smoky and smelly. ~

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 37 Whale oil was highly prized, but there were problems. rained, the water could not soak into the ground. The land "Whale oil was hard to get," points out Connie Bell, was so flat that the water had nowhere to run, except at the manager of the Oil Museum of Canada near Oil Springs, edges of Bear Creek that cut across the northern part of the ant. Author-historian Earle Gray also notes that it was costly. township and Black Creek to the south." "Whale oil had become prohibitively expensive-sperm oil The Tripps are worth mentioning for several reasons. They in the United States fetched $1.77 a gallon in 1856-as sailors formed the world's first oil company, the International Mining hunted whales to the edge of extinction," he writes in Ontario's and Manufacturing Co., in 1854. Charles Tripp, Gray writes, Petroleum Legacy: The Birth, Evolution and Challenges of a produced asphalt "by boiling the bitumen in open cast-iron Global Industry. pots. Tripp sent a 1,450-pound sample of the asphalt to the Enter Abraham Gesner of Nova Scotia. Gesner is credited Hamilton Gas Company, which on February 7, 1855 reported with developing a process in the 1840s that refined coal, tar, that this yielded 4,600 cubic feet of gas (130 cubic metres) in and eventually oil into a fuel he called kerosene. Kerosene three hours, and that the gas provided 10 per cent to 15 per burned much brighter than candles or even whale oil. cent more illumination than gas distilled from coal." While the popularity and production of kerosene took Also that year, Gray continues, a sample of the asphalt "was off, two brothers-Charles and Henry Tripp-arrived in included in Canada's exhibits at the Universal Exhibition at Enniskillen Township in Lambton County, ant., in the 1850s Paris and received an honourable mention. Better yet, Tripp's to mine bitumen to produce asphalt for paving streets and company received a large order for asphalt to help pave the sealing ships. streets of Paris." Enniskillen Township was in what was then western However, Charles Tripp was not a good businessman Canada. The countryside was flat, swampy, and overgrown and, looking for investors in his oil company, approached a with trees, but early surveys showed it contained "gum beds," Hamilton, ant., entrepreneur named James Miller Williams. or bitumen deposits. Williams had found success first by building carriages-the "The barrier that faced settlers was a surface of impervious Cadillac of carriages in those days-and then railway cars, clay, 14 metres to 24 metres thick, deposited as glacial drift or and was apparently looking for a new venture at the time. ground moraine near the end of the last Ice Age about 18,000 "It was almost inevitable that Tripp, in need of investors for years ago," according to Ontario's Petroleum Legacy. "When it his new International Mining and Manufacturing Company,

38 JUNE 2008 ON TARIO OIL & GAS 1. Early oil pioneer John Fairbank went on to become Canada's largest oil producer in the early 20th century.

2. An early kerosene barrel on display at the Oil Museum of Canada.

3. The Licks No.1 well in Kent County was the first big well in the field at 200 bbl/d. The well was spud in September 1862 and completed in May 1863.

4. James Miller Williams dug the first oil well in North America.

5. The Shaw well, located at the tripod in the foreground, was the site of Canada's first oil gusher.

6. Reducing stills in Petrolia in the 19th century.

7. Early petroleum products on display at the Oil Museum of Canada.

8. Early oil deliveries were made with horse-drawn tanks.

>­ Z --J o o 0.. >­w Q a: o (fJ ~ o I 0.. would make a pitch to Williams, but the shrewd carriage pole to spring back, pounding the bit through the hole. maker was probably too cautious to put money into that The stirrups were soon replaced by treadles, on which particular vehicle," Gray writes in his book. drillers rocked back and forth to lower and spring back the Gray explains that Williams saw the potential in distilling spring pole." bitumen into lamp oil, acquired property near Oil Springs, Eventually steel cable replaced rope, "leading to the cable­ and dug his first well in 1858 (Gray believes Williams discov­ tool rigs that drilled nearly all of the early American oil wells ered oil no later than July 1858) at the site of what is now until the first decades of the 20th century," Gray notes. the Oil Museum of Canada. Accounts vary, but the well is By 1861, Gray continues, Williams had five oil wells and believed to have yielded crude around 14 ft deep. was referring to his venture as the Canadian Oil Co. Williams But Williams did more than just dig a well. "He found the went on to become a respected businessman and would oil. He refined the oil. He sold the oil," says Bell. eventually represent Hamilton in the Legislative Assembly of Writes Gray: "In 1859, the year after his discovery, he Ontario. But despite all those accomplishments, digging that reportedly drilled what was then a deep oil well, the same first well forever sealed Williams' place not only in Canada's year that 'Colonel' Edwin Drake brought in the first American history, but that of the world as well. commercial oil well at Titusville, Pennsylvania. The Williams Perhaps no one summarizes Williams' legacy better than well was twice as deep as Drake's. To drill it, Williams made Gray's Ontario's Petroleum Legacy: the first oil-field application of the spring-pole drilling rig to "To classify the 1858 well dug by James Miller Williams thump, thump, thump a heavy chisel-type drill bit and sinker as simply North America's first commercial oil well is to bar through the ground." understate vastly the significance. Miller, of course, did The spring-pole rig was truly innovative. It consisted more than dig an oil well: he established the first successful of a tree, 15 to 20 ft long, anchored at the ground one end oil producing, refining, and marketing business. Nowhere and resting about a third of its length on a Y-shaped trunk. in the world before 1858 was there a sustained and inte­ From the thin end of the tree, men tied a rope and attached grated petroleum industry. It would rise to become the to it a heavy chisel. Also tied to the rope, sometimes in a world's biggest business in much of the 20th century." triangular pattern, were other ropes with stirrups. Gray As oil prices continue to skyrocket, it could be the world's writes that the "drillers kicked down then allowed the biggest business for quite some time. 0 G

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 3 9 ~~.MARslt . ~·Well Drilling & Servicing .wi"

40 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS PANTERA DRILLING INC. 600, 407 - 8th Avenue SW, Calgary, Alberta T2P 1E5

Main Office Chris Gnyra Contracts Manager Ph : (403) 515-8400 Ph: (403)515-6972 Fax: (403) 515-8505 Cell : (403) 863-8877 [email protected] [email protected]

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 41 In for the

Fairbank Family of Oil Springs Has Been Producing Oil Longer Than Any Other in the World By Chaz Osburn Photography by Joey Podlubny

he Fairbank family has been pumping crude longer than any other family in Thistory. John Henry Fairbank-a 29-year-old American who had left his wife and children on a farm in Niagara Falls, Ont.-had come to Oil Springs, Ont., in what was then western Canada for a surveying job in the late 1850s. In a classic case of serendipity, one thing led to another and Fairbank would go on to become Canada's biggest oil producer.

But 40 years ago, this was of little importance to Charles His father, Charles Fairbank II, who also ran a hardware "Charlie" Fairbank III, John Henry's great-grandson. He did business in nearby Petrolia, didn't want his son rushing not want a career as an oilman. into things. "I saw how much work my dad put into it," explains Fair­ bank, a soft-spoken man with a thick gray beard and eyes that "SOMETHING TO FALL BACK ON" sparkle when he speaks of the birth of what we know today as "My dad felt I would lose m y shirt," Fairbank chuckles, the oil industry. Fairbank recalls that in the late 1960s, "no one "so J told him I would become a schoolteacher. Then once I was making any money. Everyone was leaving. It was like the had my permanent teaching certifica te, I would come back family farm. Costs were going up but prices stayed the sa me­ and deal with the oil business. If I lost my shirt, I would this was over a period of 50 years-so 1 wanted to do much have something to fall back on. It gave him comfort." more interesting things." Fa i rba nk eventually retu rned to his home. The timing Why did he change his mind? cou Idn't have been better. "I ca me back here one spring and my dad said, 'Come out " I ca me back in 1973, about two months before the Arab to the oilfield,'" Fairbank continues. "Well, within a ha lf-hour, Oil Emba rgo a nd the price of oil shot up," he says with I found there was something really quite exciting about Oil a smile. But he quickly adds, "It was a matter of timing, Springs. I was hooked and wanted to come back." no t ability." ~

42 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS

the air. Sea ted behind the wheel of his dented maroon Chevrolet pickup truck and clad in jea ns and a ta n shirt, Fairbank is ta lking about his great-g randfather. "He was probably the ea rliest at con­ trolling producti on to control price," Fairbank says as he stops the truck to point out a landma rk. Yes, John Henry Fa irbank was an entreprene ur, he con­ cedes, but "the entrepreneurship was recognizing the need ." Recogni zing a need, of course, had brought other pioneers to Oil Springs even before John Henry Fa irba nk. Two of those men, Cha rl es a nd Henry Tripp, founded North Ame ri ca's first comme r­ cial oil business in 1854, the Internationa l Mining and Manufacturing Co. The Tripps had come to the a rea to produce asphalt from the "gum beds" to seal ships and pave roads.

THE TRIPP WELLS According to The Story of Fn irbank Oil, which was written by Fairbank's wife, Patricia McGee, Fairbank in the 1990s "stumbled upon" two ha nd-dug wells and the g um bed s that were developed by the Tripps, which a re now on prop­ erty Fairbank owns. Could it be that one of these well s yielded oil even earlier tha n the one dug by James Miller Willia ms in 1858 just severa l hundred metres away at w hat is now the Oil Museum of Canada? "We won't go there," Fairbank answers. Fairba nk leads his visitors throug h the brush a nd melting snow to the gum beds. It's still possible to find pieces of bitumen, he says as he begins sca nning the g round. "There," he says, bending to hold up a piece about the size of a cha rcoal bri­ An electric motor powers Fairbank Oil 's jerker-line system . quette for a photograph. "How about this?" one of the visitors Fa irbank, who today operates the world's longest-producing asks, holding up a smaller piece of what appears to be bitu­ oilfield, explains that his passion about the oil business grew men. "Is this from the gum bed?" once he began to recognize the important role his fa mily p layed Fa irbank studies the object for a moment. "No," he an swers. in launching the global multi-billion-doll a r oil industry. " T think what you have there is animal waste." "When I was a kid growing up, the debate was who drilled A few minutes later, Fairbank takes his visitors to the site the first well, who d ug the first well," he says. " It took a while of Hugh Nixon Shaw's oil well, also on the Fairbank property. to fig ure out that was beside the point. It was sema ntics. Then If you don't recognize the nam e, you should. Shaw brought in I started to look at my fa mily a nd realized we had probably Canada's fi rst gusher in 1862. been in business longer than anyo ne in the worl d." Standing on a hill overlooking the site, w hich is marked by In fac t, oil has fl owed from well s on the Fairbank property a wooden tripod-a reproduction of the earliest derricks used nea r O il Springs since Fairba nk's g rea t- grandfather d ug hi s in Canada-it's easy to imagine Shaw's surprise as nearby first well in 1861 on land he had leased . Today the Fairbank Black Creek and the surrounding terrain began filling with fa mily has 320 well s that produce 65 bbl. But this is no ordinary crude. One can imagine women and children frantically run­ oilfield . It's as much of a living hi story museum as anything. ning to and fro, scooping the oil up w ith pail s to try to sal vage O n a warm spring day this yea r, Fa irbank is showing visi­ what they could before the gusher was fin a ll y plugged w ith a tors the Fairbank O i I Properti es. The smell of crude permeates leather bag containing fla x seed .

44 JUN E 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS How Fairbank Oil got its start The Fairbank family-one of just a handful still producing oil in Lambton County, Ont.-traces its beginnings in the oil business to John Henry Fairbank . Fairbank, according to The Story of Fairbank Oil by Patricia McGee, was a 29-year-old American who was offered a surveying job in Oil Springs, ant., for a wealthy widow named Julia Macklem . Macklem had purchased some property that was once owned by Charles Tripp. Tripp, along with hi s brother, Henry, had produced asphalt from "gum beds" that could be found on the ground. In his newest book, Ontario 's Petroleum Legacy: The Birth, Evolution and Challenges of a Global Industry, author-histo­ rian Earle Gray writes that in 1861, Fairbank was asked to subdivide Macklem's property into 198 half-acre lots for sale or lease to wildcatters and speculators but that it wasn 't long before the man was "smitten by the wildcatter's bug." Gray goes on to write that when Fairbank was finished with the surveying job, he borrowed $500 from his father­ in-law, leased a half-acre plot, "a nd dug and cribbed a well through the clay." He called the well "Old Fairbank ." The turning point, Gray continues , did not come until November 1863 when Fairbank "coaxed 45 barrels of oil from his well in 24 hours," and noted in his diary that his $150 net profit was "the biggest ever made by me or probably I shall ever make." "How wrong he was," Gray writes. "He sold his half-ac re Oil Springs property in 1865 for $6,000, focused on bringing in deeper wells at Petrolia, and in the late 19th century and early years of the 20th, was Canada's largest oil producer." From there, Fairbank opened "the largest hardware store west of Toronto " in Petrolia , according to The Story of Fairbank Oil. Gray writes that Fairbank also created and owned a bank with a partner, and helped finance a railway spur from Petrolia to Wyoming, ant., and later the Canadian Pacific Railway. Gray writes Fairbank also "acquired a business that made boilers, tanks and stills for the oil fields ; was chief of Petrolia's volunteer fire brigade; and served one term as a Liberal member of Parliament." Fairbank 's great-grandson , Charles "Charlie" Fairbank III , says the Fairbank family has been selling oil to Imperial Oil longer than any other family. In The Story of Fairbank Oil, the earliest records show that Fairbank 's first sale to Imperial was on Aug. 12, 1880. Fairbank died in 1914.

While today plugging a g usher with a leather bag filled with seed may seem a bit rudimentary, it was downright high-tech in 1862. In fact, much of the technology still used to pump crude on the Fairbank property was cutting edge for its time. Oil is still brought from the ground via a proc­ ess known as the jerker-line system, a method for pumping oil from several wells using a central motor. At one time, steam engines were used to power the pump jacks. Now electricity is used. The oil flows to s torage tanks and is col­ lected by Imperial Oil. Fa i rbank Oi I has supplied Imperial with crude since 1880. "We've been selling to Imperial longer than anyone in the world," Fairbank says. It's a fact that Fairbank is proud of. Like a modern-day John the Baptist, Fairbank seems willing to tell anyone who will listen about the roles his family and the towns of Oil Springs and Petrolia played in the development of the oil industry. And he is grateful an event like the 150th anni­ versary of the world's first commercial oil well has brought extra attention to the area. "When I was growing up in Petrolia, it was a town that was very, very proud of its heritage," Fairbank says. " But its time had gone. Its industry had left . It had memories, which were very important. But what they ta lked about was important, much more important than Petrol ia thought it was. "They tend to demean your accomplishments if you're from a small town. But we have gravitas, as they say now." Whil e spring rods are no longer used to pump the oil from the ground , That a nd a n oil heritage that is unsurpassed a nywhere there are sti ll active we lls on the Fairba nk Oil property. in the world. 0 1;

ONTARIO OIL & GAS JUNE 2008 4S Museums Hold Oil

A large model at the Oil and Gas Museum of Treasures Canada shows visitors where oil and gas comes from. Photography by Joey Podlubny

f you haven't done so yet, it's worth the d rive to see the si te of the Inside the museum are mode ls and artifacts not only from I first commercia l oil well in North America and explore the the immediate area, but from around the world as well. One of humble beginnings of the globa l petroleum industry. the things you' ll learn is the global impact those ea rly oilmen That first well, dug by James Miller Williams in 1858, exists played in getting oil production off the ground in other coun­ on the g rounds of the Oi I Museum of Canada, which is i mme­ tries a rou nd the world. diately south of Oil Springs, Ont. Signs along Highway 21 wi ll Just a few kilometres north of Oil Springs, o ff Hi g hway lead you there. 21, is Petrolia, which bills itself as "the crad le that rocked the Not only does the well remain, but so does the "g um oil industry." There you'll find the Petrolia Di scovery, which bed"- an area where oil seeped to the surface, which drew boasts a working oilfield. You can view old pumpjacks and a oi Imen to the region in the fi rst pl'lce. In fact, a Ithoug h the jerker-line system a nd discover what a spri ng pole was used g um bed has been fenced off, you can sec bitumen is again for. You'll a lso see ea rly tools, what was used to store a nd comi ng to the su rface just outside the bed. transport oil, and much more. 0 :,

THE PETROL,A .JISCOV£R~ ('Oll

The Oil and Gas Museum of Canada includes, among other things, A working oilfield is located Site of the first commercial oil a large co llection of antique clocks and a wooden bicycle . at Petrolia Di scovery. well in North America.

ADVERTISERS' INDEX Oil, Cas & Salt Resources Library Inside Ba ck Cover Charl es Fa irbank Oi l Property 30 Oil Museum of Canada ' -I Elexco Ltd I nside Front Cover Pantera Drilling Inc -11 Enbridgc Cas Distribution Inc 24 Shell Ca nada Ltd Outside Back Cover Harold Marcus Limited 31 T.W. Marsh Well Drilling & Servicing -10 Liberty Oi l & Cas Ltd 30 Union Cas Limited 13

46 JUNE 2008 ONTARIO OIL & GAS ONTARIO Oil, GAS & SALT RESOURCES LIBRARY FlEE INTRODUCTORY DATA & TOUR ONLINE: WWW.OGSRLIBRARY.COM/oILWEEI/ CALL (519) 686-2772 OR E-MAIL [email protected] ,

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FIVE DECADES LATER, PRODUCTION FROM THE OIL SANDS IS MAKING CANADA A GLOBAL PROVIDER OF OIL.

SOMETIMES IT PAYS TO PERSEVERE (AND TO HAVE A LEAP OF IMAGINATION IN THE FIRST PLACE).

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