Alberta Wildfires Threaten 500,000 BPD of Oil Sands Output as Crude Tops $100
Updated
Updated · WorldOil · Jun 1
Alberta Wildfires Threaten 500,000 BPD of Oil Sands Output as Crude Tops $100
3 articles · Updated · WorldOil · Jun 1
Summary
Six out-of-control wildfires are burning within 20 kilometers of about 500,000 barrels a day of Alberta oil sands production near Lac la Biche.
Key sites run by Cenovus, Canadian Natural and ConocoPhillips sit 11 to 19 kilometers from blazes larger than 10 hectares, with the biggest fire spanning 1,000 hectares.
Conklin's roughly 229 residents have been told to prepare to evacuate, though nearby wildfires do not usually disrupt oil and gas operations.
The threat lands as Middle East conflict has already curbed as much as 20% of global oil supplies, helping push crude above $100 a barrel at times in the past three months.
Canada, the world's fourth-largest oil producer, has seen wildfire damage before: blazes shut about 7% of national output last summer and more than 1 million barrels a day for weeks in 2016.