Alberta to fund $50 million for new drilling test site

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The provincial government plans to invest up to $50 million to fund an open-access drilling test site to allow companies to develop new drilling techniques.

Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz said Canada currently does not have an open-access test site and the Alberta Drilling Accelerator could spur innovative drilling technologies to support development in the geothermal, lithium, oil, and natural gas industries.

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“This accelerator will be open to companies big and small, driving breakthroughs in geothermal and many other sectors,” Schulz said.

While the location for the test site has yet to be finalized, Premier Danielle Smith said at a Monday news conference in Leduc County, 35 km south of Edmonton, that the project will mean “big things” for oil and gas exploration in the province and will be vital in achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.

“What we’re doing here today is setting the stage for innovation and prosperity far into the future,” Smith said.

“By providing a test site for new drilling techniques, we’ll be expanding our already vast knowledge base and keeping Alberta out in front as a preferred global energy provider, but supporting the development of technology the world desperately needs to support its sustainability goals.”

Last April, the Alberta government invested $750,000 towards a feasibility study on the project conducted by Eavor Technologies and the Canadian Association of Energy Contractors and Geothermal Energy Association. The study found that creating an industry-led accelerator would be both economically and environmentally viable.

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Jeanine Vany, executive vice-president of corporate affairs at Eavor Technologies, said sites have not been finalized but the area currently being considered is small and the location will be announced in 2025.

“We are going to be near high road corridors and supply hubs, which is very important, and international airports, so a very central location in a very geologically robust area,” Vany said.

“The industry’s vision is that this is just the beginning, and we really hope that it can be active for a long period of time.”

‘There’s no clear plan’: NDP

Alberta NDP energy and minerals critic Nagwan Al-Guneid said supporting geothermal energy is a welcome announcement but added she is unclear about how the province plans to reach its carbon neutrality by 2050 goal.

“What I’m hearing from the industry is that they’re unable to invest in clean energy in Alberta,” Al-Guneid said.

“There are no targets. There’s no clear plan. We have a so-called climate plan in Alberta, but there is no funding, there’s no implementation plan for it. So I’m not too sure how the province plans to achieve any target if it doesn’t have an actual plan.”

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The project will be funded through a public-private partnership model with the $50 million being invested from the Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) program.

The province said the Alberta Drilling Accelerator could potentially start drilling in 2026 or earlier.

Smith told reporters an announcement will be coming in the next week on how the province plans to make good on its promise to fight the federal government’s emissions cap regulations.

ctran@postmedia.com

X: @kccindytran

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