With oil sands production climbing steadily and conventional production rebounding, Canadian oil production will more than double by 2030, predicts the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers.

WPX Energy Inc. plans to add two drilling rigs in western Colorado’s Piceance basin for the rest of 2013, making a total of seven compared with earlier plans for a five-rig drilling plan.

US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement Director James A. Watson and US Coast Guard Rear Adm. Joseph Servidio signed a memorandum of agreement for regulating mobile offshore drilling units on the US Outer Continental Shelf.

Statoil has let contracts for the construction and operation of two tailor-made jack up rigs to be used for drilling at Gullfaks and Oseberg oil fields offshore Norway and to be owned by the license-holders.

BlackPearl Resources Inc., Calgary, will accelerate thermal enhanced oil recovery at a heavy oil property now producing conventionally in Saskatchewan to help finance a larger oil sands development in northern Alberta called Blackrod (OGJ Online, May 6, 2012).

MGM Energy Corp., Calgary, said it has surrendered exploration licenses in Canada’s Mackenzie Delta region, where the company had been exploring for conventional gas for the proposed Mackenzie gas pipeline.

The estimated cost of producing bitumen in Canada has increased by 6.3-13.2% in the past year, depending on the production method, according to the Canadian Energy Research Institute.

EnQuest PLC, London, has agreed to acquire 70% participating interests in the oil-producing and development assets of PA Resources AB in the Gulf of Gabes offshore Tunisia and will become operator.

The Texas Railroad Commission has amended well construction requirements rule to clarify oil and gas well construction requirements related to casing, cementing, drilling, well control, and completions.

Marathon Oil Corp. said negotiations to sell its 20% interest in the Athabasca oil sands project have ended without any agreement being reached.

Magellan Petroleum Corp., Denver, said it could eventually add 50 million bbl of oil reserves to its books by bringing an existing oil field at Poplar, Mont., to full-scale carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery operation.

InterOil Corp. and its joint venture partner, Pacific LNG Group, are talking with ExxonMobil Papua New Guinea Ltd. regarding development of Elk and Antelope gas-condensate fields.