Daniel MacIsaac
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Mar 24/00) - The Inuvialuit Regional Corporation is aiming at a bright future for natural gas development in the Beaufort Delta.

Exploration proceeds Petro-Canada is already carrying out explorations on land parcels picked up in last year's bid process, worth more than $100 million. Speaking from Calgary, corporation communications officer John Percic said the surveying is still going on and is being carried out by Schlumberger Oilfield Services. "We're looking forward to analyzing the survey results and to drilling our first well next year," he said. Paying a visit Monday to the Camp Farewell survey site two hours northwest of Inuvik on the ice road was Allan Chatenay, Canada manager for Schlumberger Reservoir Evaluation seismic segment. He said a crew of 50 is currently working at the camp, with more employees based in town, and that surveying will likely be halted for the spring next month. "We're limited by break-up," he said, "but one of the things we're hoping to do is support ourselves with helicopters and extend the season ... and we're looking at some ways of operating this summer." Chatenay said the New York-based Schlumberger company concerns itself with three basic goals in conducting operations around the globe: to evaluate the reservoir, to develop it and to manage it. He said the Camp Farewell survey results will be turned over for Petro-Canada to interpret and act on; to decide whether to drill and where to drill. He added that Schlumberger comes to the North with experience, after having acquired Sonix and Geco-Prakla seismic companies, which were active here in the past. "We're here because we have a history in the region from the late 1980s and 1990s," he said, "and then had operations for many years on the North Slope of Alaska, and much of the equipment we're currently using comes from there." Chatenay said Schlumberger would have no problem adhering to environmental conditions set down by the Invuialuit Regional Corporation. He said the company won the 1992 North Slope governor's award for environmental leadership. Meanwhile, Petro-Canada's Percic declined to comment on whether the company's current foray into Delta exploration means it is taking a serious look at the latest bids offering. "We review all these opportunities but won't say if we're involved," he said.

Chair and chief executive officer Nellie Cournoyea and chief financial officer Wilf Blonde held a press conference to elaborate on the progress being made on current exploration and to give an update on the recent bid offerings.

"We saw what was happening concerning demand and pricing around the world, and that's why we decided to move now," said Blonde of the corporation's Feb. 28 bid offering.

The Inuvialuit Regional Corporation is entertaining bids for oil and natural gas exploration on six parcels of land totalling almost 500,000 hectares of the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, northwest of Inuvik. That follows last year's offering from DIAND on four parcels of Crown land in the settlement area that were picked up by Petro-Canada and Poco Petroleum (which later merged to become Burlington-Poco).

Blonde said rising global gas prices and a growing market in southern Canada and the United States means Beaufort Delta gas will be in demand by the time it's ready for production, as early as 2007.

"This gas will be needed in that time-frame," he said.

Cournoyea said it's not quite clear exactly how much natural gas the region contains but that the latest series of parcel offerings has already attracted a good deal of interest ahead of the April 14 deadline.

"Companies know what's out there because they've been doing calculations based on formations and geological layout," she said. "Previous work by the industry involved looking for oil and natural gas wasn't attractive to them then, but it's what they want now and we're sure the reserves are there. Otherwise, they wouldn't be here."

Cournoyea said that with the help of management consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, the corporation has drafted a projected 10-year gas-development plan. She added while it is too early to know what sort of returns can be expected, the plan includes provisions such as environmental testing and training and employment for beneficiaries.

"The big difference now is that we have a claim," she said. "I would say aboriginal groups have been against development but that was always about insecurity and how environmental screening would take place and how economic benefits would be disbursed."

Cournoyea also said that development will include the construction of the proposed Mackenzie Valley pipeline, to transport the gas to the southern markets.

"I'm confident that with the prices and interest that it will be there," she said. "What the end consumer wants is natural gas and it's feasible to say the Mackenzie Valley pipeline can take natural gas; nothing has to be done to it -- it's a pure solution."

In that vein, Cournoyea said Aklavik will be the site of a meeting of a pipeline working group, comprised of aboriginal representatives who attended the Fort Liard discussions earlier this year.