Shell achieves production milestone at oil sands operations

CALGARY, Aug. 20, 2012 — /CNW/ – Shell, as operator of the Athabasca Oil Sands Project (AOSP), today announced that its oil sands operations have achieved the production milestone of 500 million barrels since production began in 2003.

“This is a tremendous achievement for Shell’s oils sands business,” said John Abbott, Executive Vice President, Heavy Oil. “This milestone is the result of the hard work and dedication of many thousands of employees and contractors. The oil sands are a secure, reliable source of energy for North America and an economic engine which drives employment, training and business development across Canada and beyond.”

The success of the AOSP over the past decade is a result of the collective efforts of many thousands of men and women in roles spanning from operations, technical to commercial.  As Shell looks ahead, the organization will continue to require skilled people to help sustain and grow its operations.  With production capacity at the Athabasca Oil Sands Project at 255,000 barrels-per-day, Shell’s focus is on further improving operational yields and reliability followed by adding capacity through debottlenecking.

“In less than a decade, we have built an oil sands mining and upgrading business capable of delivering over a quarter of a million barrels per day. As our business has grown, we have listened to the concerns of Canadians and the global community,” said Abbott. “Our vision is to be the leading company in environmental performance. We recognize that we must do a better job in reducing the environmental impacts of our oil sands operations if we are to compete in a world rightly asking more of the energy it uses.”

This year Shell, along with the AOSP joint venture owners, plan to take a final investment decision on advancing Quest, the proposed carbon capture and storage project. Quest would see more than one million tonnes of CO2 a year captured from the Scotford Upgrader near Edmonton, Alberta and safely stored over two kilometres underground.  If approved, beginning in 2015, the Quest project will help reduce the carbon footprint of the Athabasca Oil Sands Project.

Shell Canada Energy is 60 per cent owner and operator of the Athabasca Oil Sands Project along with Chevron Canada Limited (20 per cent) and Marathon Oil Corporation (20 per cent). The AOSP includes the Muskeg River Mine and Jackpine Mine, located near Fort McMurray, Alberta and the Scotford Upgrader, located near Edmonton, Alberta.