By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, July 12 -- Imperial Oil Ltd. filed applications July 12 with the Alberta Energy and Utilities Board and Alberta Environment officials for development of the joint-venture Kearl Oil Sands Project.
The proposed open-pit mine is to be located in the Kearl Lake area of the Athabasca oil-sands deposit, 70 km north of Fort McMurray, on portions of oil-sands leases held by Imperial and ExxonMobil Canada Properties, a partnership of ExxonMobil Canada Ltd. and its wholly owned subsidiary, ExxonMobil Resources Ltd. Imperial is designated operator with 70% preliminary working interest; ExxonMobil Canada Properties has the remaining 30% interest. Final working interests will be determined in 2006, following evaluation of the results of the winter coring program on the Kearl leases.
The partners plan to develop the mine in stages. The initial mine train will have a production capacity of 100,000 b/d. Subsequent expansions could increase capacity to 300,000 b/d. Any future upgrading capacity to support the Kearl project would be the subject of separate applications, officials said.
If approved, construction of the Kearl Oil Sands Project mine could begin in 2007, with first production by the end of 2010. The other two proposed mine trains could start up in 2012 and 2018. Based on evaluation drilling, officials estimate total recoverable bitumen resources on the leases at 4.4 billion bbl.
Total investment in the development project is estimated at $4.5-6.5 billion (Can). It would involve a construction workforce of 2,000 and would create more than 1,000 permanent jobs when all three mine trains are operational.