The reclamation process and criteria for oil and gas sites is a responsible standard in which operators transform a well site or pipeline back to its original state. In 1963 reclamation legislation was introduced by the government of Alberta that created a statutory obligation to reclaim disturbed land in the surveyed parts of the province. This was known as the Surface Reclamation Act.
With increasing international recognition, Alberta developed further legislation to regulate and create standards to monitor and properly restore former worksites back to the lands original state. In 1993 reclamation criteria for well sites was implemented. Since 2005 Alberta’s First Nations Consultation Guidelines have guided the interaction and approvals staff with First Nation. The continuance of Aboriginal partnership has increased which has been a key component to the SRP Phase 5 funding allocation and eligibility amounts.
On May 1, 2020, the Government of Alberta launched the Site Rehabilitation Program (SRP), which provides grants to oil field service contractors to perform well, pipeline, and oil and gas site closure and reclamation work. Qualifying work includes well site abandonment, pipeline abandonment, pipeline segment removal, facility abandonment, environmental site assessments, remediation and reclamation.
So far, there have been 5 phases of the SRP each with different funding amounts and eligibility. On February 1, 2021, the Government of Alberta launched Phase 5 and Phase 6 of the Site Rehabilitation Program (SRP), including additional information within the updated Site Rehabilitation Guidelines. The deadline to apply for Phase 5 funding, is March 31, 2022, or until allocations are fully subscribed.
NL Fisher Can Help Your Company Navigate the SRP Process
Does your company have well site abandonment or well closure objectives it aims to complete in 2021? Think your company could lever SRP funding to stretch your capital budget further? Not sure if your work qualifies for the SRP funding? Or where to start to with the SRP application process?
We can help.
NL Fisher has successfully completed SRP applications on behalf of its clients, successfully achieving approvals in all five phases of the SRP for Environmental and Abandonment scopes.
We are efficient and effective in navigating the SRP application process and have secured SRP funding on behalf of our clients for their abandonment and well closure programs.
Let NL Fisher Deliver Your Above And Below Ground Well Closure Objectives
Once funding for your projects are approved, NL Fisher can help deliver your above and below ground oil and gas well closure objectives.
That’s right. The same company you’ve trusted since 1988 to successfully deliver all your oil and gas project management, well-site construction, regulatory, drilling engineering and field supervision needs also delivers well-closure services.
We have significant expertise in wellbore operations including mature asset retirement, annular communication and surface leakage, contaminated site reclamation and methane and GHG emissions reduction.
It’s part of our commitment to being the one-stop-shop for all our clients services for all aspects of their upstream oil and gas operations.
Want To Double Your SRP Funding Potential?
In January 2021, NL Fisher announced the creation of a joint venture with West Earth Sciences Ltd., a Certified Aboriginal Company, which, according to the terms of the SRP, means clients working with the joint venture are eligible to receive 100% of the SRP grant money available to them in each phase of the program - effectively doubling the potential environmental and economic benefit of the program.
Contact us at info@nlfisher.com to find out how we can help your company achieve its site closure and reclamation work objectives while maximizing the benefit of the SRP to your business.
About Alberta SRP Period 5 Funding Details:
$300 million in funding is available.
Licensees with confirmed hydrocarbon production in 2019, and that spent corporate funds doing closure work in 2019 or 2020, have been allocated SRP grant funding amounts for period 5. Licensees can choose to use their allocation on sites where they are the Working Interest Participant (WIP).
Oil field service contractors can contract with licensees to do closure activities and apply for an SRP grant to get funding to do the work; licensees cannot apply for this funding – only the contractor doing the work can do so.
Projects are eligible for up to 50% grant funding – the licensee or WIP is responsible for paying the remaining amount.
Grant funding will be increased up to 100% of the project value if the licensee/WIP contracts with Indigenous oil field service companies (see the Site Rehabilitation Program Guidelines (PDF, 903 KB), page 18 and 19, for details).
Licensees can review a list of some Indigenous oil field service companies in Alberta to contract with them to do SRP closure work.
When a licensee has wells on First Nations Reserves or on a Metis Settlement or both, their period 5 allocation will not be available until the relevant First Nation or one Metis Settlement submits an allocation tracker under period 6 to the Department.
Once an allocation tracker is submitted for a community, all the licensees with wells in that community will have access to their Period 5 allocations, regardless of whether they are listed on the allocation tracker.
Contact us at info@nlfisher.com or (403) 266-7478 to learn how NL Fisher can help deliver all your completions needs.