Industry trailblazer turned industry leader

August 2021 - We reached a significant milestone this year – 20 years of commercial operations at Foster Creek oil sands. The anniversary celebrates two decades of safely and responsibly producing oil using Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD), a technology that has been revolutionized at Foster Creek and by our company.

What started as a stake in the ground on the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range in Alberta has become an industry-leading example of technological innovation, pioneering SAGD techniques that efficiently extract oil with minimal surface disturbance compared to oil sands mining techniques and does not require tailing ponds.

Watch our video above to learn more about Foster Creek’s history and accomplishments over the past 20 years!   

Quick Facts about Foster Creek

• Foster Creek is 330 kilometres northeast of Edmonton on the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range in Primrose, Alberta.
• Construction began in 1995, the pilot project launched in 1997 and commercial operations began in 2001. 
• In its first year of commercial production, Foster Creek production averaged 2,600 bbls/d. In 2020, production averaged 164,000 bbls/d. 
• The project has produced 645 million barrels in its 20 years of commercial production and is estimated to hit 1 billion barrels produced by 2025.