Wood Group receives work authorisation for Suncor’s Firebag site in Canada

UK-based oil and gas services company Wood Group has received the first authorisation under an agreement signed to complete work at Suncor Energy’s Firebag in-situ site in Alberta, Canada.

The site is located 120km north-east of Ft McMurray.

Wood Group plans to complete the work using standard well pad design, which has been developed to address growing concerns about escalating cost for in-situ heavy oil facilities, including steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD) well pads.

The design uses the same approach applied by Wood Group to other heavy oil facilities.

Over the life of a SAGD project, two-thirds of all capital spending is expected on well pads and gathering line infrastructure.

Earlier, Suncor’s well pad facilities costs ranging from more than C$4m ($3.02m) to C$9m ($6.81m) per well pair and are currently C$2m ($1.51m) per well pair using the Wood Group design. 

The design reduces ownership costs associated with engineering, procurement and project management.

Accommodating pad sizes of up to 12 well pairs, the design uses a drilling pattern with the production and steam injection wells in two parallel rows. Wells will be drilled at 10m spacing.

Wood Group chief executive Robin Watson said: “Our standard well pad design provides heavy oil producers the opportunity to lower costs and increase profit margins, and offers a new design solution for heavy oil production.”