Energy Glossary
Abandoned well
- A well that is permanently shut down because it was a dry hole or because it has ceased to produce crude oil or natural gas.
- Permanently shutting down a drilled well so that it can no longer produce crude oil and/or natural gas and so it can be left indefinitely without further attention and will not damage freshwater supplies, potential petroleum reservoirs or the environment.
- Natural gas originating from non-biological sources
- A theory of petroleum formation in which petroleum is thought to have formed from hydrocarbons trapped inside the earth while the planet was forming.
- Blackened surface in a collector that absorbs solar radiation and converts it to heat energy.
- Occurs when sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide gases react in the atmosphere with water vapor to form acidic compounds. These compounds can travel hundreds of kilometres before falling to the earth as rain, drizzle, snow or dry particles (this fallout is also known as “acid precipitation” or “acid deposition”).
- A method of improving porosity and permeability of a reservoir by injecting acid under pressure to dissolve reservoir rock.
- Use of electical or mechanical devices to convert solar energy into electricity or to move heat to where it can be of use..
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Term used to characterize major drivers of energy use in a sector
(e.g. floor space area in the commercial/institutional sector).
- Where molecules of a gas, liquid or solute are held to the surface of a solid substance, causing a thin film to form. Natural gas is adsorbed onto the surface of coal or shale in coalbed methane and shale gas reservoirs respectively.
- A hub is a market centre where several pipelines interconnect and where many buyers and sellers trade natural gas, thereby creating a liquid (i.e. one with numerous buyers and sellers) pricing point. The AECO-C hub is the main pricing point for Alberta natural gas and represents the major pricing point for Canadian gas. Prices are determined via the spot market, which includes all transactions for sales of 30 days or less, but it typically refers to a 30-day sale.
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The agriculture sector includes all types of farms, including livestock,
field crops, grain and oilseed farms, as well as activities related to hunting
and trapping. Energy used in this sector is for farm production and includes
energy use by establishments engaged in agricultural activities and in providing
services to agriculture. Agriculture energy use is included in total secondary
energy use for Canada.
- The use of compressed air instead of mud as a drilling fluid to remove the cuttings; air drilling increases penetration rates but offers no control over downhole gas pressure or water in subsurface formations.
- A device that extracts heat from air, either to heat a building in winter or cool a building in summer.
- The rate of production for a well or group of wells that is set by a regulatory authority (conservation commission).
- Electric current that reverses its direction many times per second; AC current can be lowered or increased, making it suitable for transmission over long distances; most of today’s electricity is AC
- Fuels that can be used in place of fossil fuels, such as ethanol, biodiesel, biogas, hydrogen. In motor transportation, compressed natural gas is an alternative to gasoline.
- Natural condition of the environment at any given time.
- Colorless, strong-smelling gas that occurs when nitrogen is extracted from crude oil products.
- A measure of electric current (similar to describing water volume in litres per minute)
- Bacteria capable of surviving without oxygen
- Decomposition of organic wastes by bacteria, in the absence of air (oxygen), to produce a gas, consisting mostly of methane and carbon dioxide.
- The space between two concentric lengths of pipe or between pipe and the hole in which it is located.
- Depleted of or deficient in oxygen
- The hardest, most organically mature coal, having the highest carbon content and lowest water content
- This type of dwelling includes dwelling units in apartment blocks or apartment hotels; flats in duplexes or triplexes (i.e. where the division between dwelling units is horizontal); suites in structurally converted houses; living quarters located above or in the rear of stores, restaurants, garages or other business premises; caretakers’ quarters in schools, churches, warehouses, etc.; and private quarters for employees in hospitals or other types of institutions
- A scale developed by the American Petroleum Institute for measuring the density or gravity of crude oil; the higher the number, the lighter the oil.
- Energy-consuming equipment used in the home for purposes other than air conditioning, centralized water heating and lighting. Includes cooking appliances (gas stoves and ovens, electric stoves and ovens, microwave ovens, and propane or gas grills); cooling appliances (evaporative coolers, attic fans, window or ceiling fans, and portable or table fans); and refrigerators, freezers, clothes washers and dishwashers. Other appliances include small ones such as televisions, video cassette recorders, digital video disc players, radios, computers and toasters.
- Water-bearing stratum of permeable sand, rock, or gravel.
- A group of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules connected together in a power system.
- Gas that is produced from the same reservoir along with crude oil, either as free gas or in solution.
- The smallest particle of an element that retains all the characteristics of the element, comprising electrons (negative charge) orbiting a nucleus which contains protons (positive charge) and neutrons (no charge)
- Actions taken by staff or a third party to help measure a company’s compliance with legislation and internal requirements, and to identify opportunities for improvement. Audits can involve field inspections, interviews with management and document review.
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With the exception of auxiliary motors (see Auxiliary Motors), “auxiliary equipment” includes stand-alone equipment powered directly from an electrical outlet such as computers, photocopiers, refrigerators and desktop lamps. Also includes equipment that can be powered by natural gas,
propane or other fuels, such as clothes dryers and cooking appliances
- Refers to devices used to transform electric power into mechanical energy in order to provide a service, such as pumps, ventilators, compressors and conveyors.
Background radiation
- Naturally occurring radiation which every person is exposed to, resulting from radiation from the Earth’s crust and cosmic rays.
- A transaction that results in natural gas being “transported” in the opposite direction of the physical flow of a transportation system. This is usually achieved by redelivering the gas at a point upstream from the point of receipt.
- A service that provides alternate supplies of natural gas in the event that a consumer's gas is not delivered.
- The common unit for measuring petroleum. One barrel contains approximately 159 litres.
- A specific crude oil, usually a blended crude with defined properties such as API gravity, sulphur content, etc., used as a reference for pricing other crude oils. Typical benchmark crudes are West Texas Intermediate (WTI), Brent (North Sea), Arab Light and Edmonton Par crude. As the price of the benchmark crude fluctuates, other crude oils from the same geographic area move up and down, depending on their properties relative to the benchmark and on supply and demand. Also known as marker crude.
- Flammable, colourless to light yellow volatile aromatic hydrocarbon. A byproduct of cokemaking and other industrial processes, benzene is considered to be a carcinogenic (cancer-causing) substance.
- A geothermal electricity generating plant employing a closed-loop heat exchange system in which the heat of the geothermal fluid (the "primary fluid") is transferred to a lower-boiling-point fluid (the "secondary" or "working" fluid), which is thereby vaporized and used to drive a turbine/generator set.
- Biodegradable transportation fuel for use in diesel engines that is produced from biomass (organically derived vegetable oils or animal fats). The oil or fat is reacted with alcohol to produce a fuel that can be used on its own or mixed with petrodiesel.
- Refers to the variety of ecosystems and animal, bird, fish and plant species.
- Useful renewable energy produced from organic matter. Organic matter may be directly used as a fuel or processed into liquids and gases.
- Liquid fuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel, made from biomass. These fuels can be used in their pure form or blended with gasoline or petrodiesel.
- Combustible gas produced from decomposing biological wastes. Biogas consists of 50 per cent to 60 per cent methane.
- Natural gas originating from bacteria acting on organic matter
- A theory of petroleum formation in which the petroleum is thought to have originated from plant and animal matter that has undergone transformation by heat and pressure resulting from deep burial.
- Organic materials containing stored chemical energy. Includes forest residues, agricultural crops and wastes, wood and wood wastes, livestock wastes, animal wastes, fast-growing trees and plants, and municipal and industrial wastes.
- Liquid, solid or gaseous fuel produced by conversion of biomass.
- Use of biomass to generate electricity or industrial heat and steam.
- Solid or semi-solid petroleum that cannot be pumped without being heated or diluted; bitumen generally has an API gravity of less than 10°.
- The second hardest, most organically mature coal, ranking between sub-bituminous coal and anthracite
- An uncontrolled flow of gas, oil or other fluids from a well.
- Equipment that is installed at the wellhead to control pressures and fluids and to prevent uncontrolled fluid flow from the reservoir during drilling, completion and certain remedial operations to restore production.
- A large furnace that burns fuel to produce steam for power, processing or heating
- The amount bid at land auctions for Crown mineral rights. Bonus payments are in addition to rental fees.
- Several blowout preventers used in combination.
- Heavier ash that collects in the bottom of the boiler after coal is burned. This ash is collected and stockpiled in approved disposal areas.
- A seismic reflector paralleling the sea floor and resulting from seismic energy slowing significantly as it passes from denser hydrate-bearing strata to less dense gas bearing strata
- A geothermal solution containing appreciable amounts of sodium chloride or other salts.
- The quantity of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit at or near 60° Fahrenheit. Equivalent to 1,055.056 Joules.
- An individual or independent corporation engaged in bringing together sellers and buyers of natural gas, assisting in negotiations, arranging transportation and delivery terms. Brokers usually do not buy or sell for their own account but act as an agent for the buyer and/or seller.
- Heaters that heat floors or ceilings via hot water pipes or electric cables.
- A service provided by a pipeline or a local distribution company which includes the natural gas as well as all the necessary services required for a consistent supply (backstopping, load balancing, storage).
- The point of end-use consumption of a particular fuel, such as natural gas or residual fuel oil.
- The price of natural gas (or other fuels) paid by the final consumer. For natural gas, this includes the price of the gas plus the cost of processing, gathering, transmitting and distributing it.
- A component of natural gas consisting of four carbon atoms and 10 hydrogen atoms; condenses into a liquid at relatively low temperature and pressure
Cable-tool drilling
- One of two principal methods of drilling for crude oil and natural gas. Cable-tool drilling is the older method and consists of raising and dropping a heavy drill bit, suspended from the end of a cable, so that it pounds and pulverizes its way through the subsurface structures. Water in the hole keeps the cuttings in suspension for removal at regular intervals by bailing.
- Impermeable rocks such as shale, that overlies the reservoir rock and traps natural gas and crude oil in the reservoir. Also, impermeable rock overlying a geothermal reservoir. Also called sealing rock.
- The rates of capacity use are measures of the intensity with which industries use their production capacity. It is the ratio of an industry’s actual output to its estimated potential output.
- A group of compounds made up of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.
- A non-toxic gas produced from decaying materials, respiration of plant and animal life, and combustion of organic matter, including fossil fuels; carbon dioxide is the most common greenhouse gas produced by human activities.
- Colorless, odorless, poisonous gas produced by incomplete combustion of fossil fuels.
- In a geological sense, carbonate refers to rocks consisting of CaCO3 (limestone) and CaMg(CCO3)2. Limestone consists of skeletal fragments of marine organisms and/or chemically precipitated CaCO3 or CaMg(CO3)2 cements and pellets.
- A process that uses a stream of geothermal hot water or steam to perform successive tasks requiring lower and lower temperatures.
- A type of pipe that is used to encase smaller diameter production pipe for installation in a well. Casing prevents the wall from caving in and protects against groundwater contamination and uncontrolled hydrocarbon releases.
- A highly volatile liquid that is separated from natural gas at the wellhead and was once used as unrefined gasoline.
- A refinery process that uses catalysts in addition to pressure and heat to convert heavier fuel oil into lighter products such as gasoline and diesel fuel. Cracking refers to breaking long, heavy carbon molecules into smaller, lighter molecules.
- Materials that assist chemical reactions.
- A technique for preventing corrosion in metal pipelines and tanks that uses weak electric currents to offset the current associated with metal corrosion.
- A rotating pump, commonly used for large-volume oil and natural gas pipelines, that takes in fluids near the centre and accelerates them as they move to the outlet on the outer rim.
- Where a nuclear reaction such as fission causes similar reactions that continue to cause reactions
- Remains of solid biomass that have been incompletely combusted, such as charcoal from wood.
- The valve assembly at the top of tubing strings and casing ina natural gas well (or a free-flowing crude oil well) that provides primary pressure reduction, production rate control and shut-in capabilities.
- The delivery point or the point of interconnection between long-distance transmission pipelines (usually interprovincial or interstate) and local distribution companies.
- Made up of pieces (clasts) of older rock; rock derived from mechanical process; generally sandstone, siltstone or shale.
- Natural gas contained by a lattice of water molecules. Also known as gas hydrate
- Ultra low sulphur diesel fuel (clean diesel fuel) contains fewer than 15 parts per million sulphur, compared with 500 parts per million for low sulphur diesel and 5,000 parts per million for regular diesel prior to October 2007. Since September 2006, all on-road diesel fuel has been ultra low sulphur.
- A technology that incorporates ultra low sulphur diesel fuel with more efficient engines that combine more precise fuel injection and more effective emission control.
- Term used to describe the view that the Earth’s temperature and climate will change, in part, due to the buildup of greenhouse gas emissions from human activities.
- Natural gas in its gaseous state that has been compressed to about one per cent of its volume and stored at 20,000 to 27,500 kilopascals.
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The process of burning natural gas in conjunction with another fuel. Cogeneration: The simultaneous production of electricity and steam from one energy source (e.g., natural gas, oil, biomass).
Also the practice of burning biomass along with coal in coal-fired boilers
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A hydrocarbon-based fossil fuel composed of the remains of land plants which have been transformed into a solid mass of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen through heat and pressure resulting from burial
- A mixture of hydrogen, carbon monoxide and methane, produced by distilling coal. Coal gas was once a principal used for heating and lighting.
- Natural gas generated during the coalification process and trapped within coal seams, commonly referred to as natural gas from coal
- Transformation of organic material, primarily plant remains, into coal through high temperature and pressure
- Technology that simultaneously produces power and thermal energy (heat and steam) from a single fuel source such as natural gas. An example is using steam generated for injection into reservoirs to also generate electricity.
- A continuous, jointless hollow steel pipe that is stored on a reel and can be uncoiled or coiled repeatedly as required; coiled tubing is increasingly being used in well completion and servicing instead of conventional tubing, which is made up of joined sections of pipe.
- A high carbon material resembling fine ground up asphalt material. It is a by-product of fuel coking
- Gas generated when volatile materials are driven out of coal during the coking process. Coke oven gas can be used as a fuel in steelmaking to offset purchases of natural gas and oil
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Process of heating coal in a coke oven in the absence of air to high temperatures between 1,000° C and 1,100° C for 16 to 20 hours to produce a very pure form of carbon.
Also refers to removing carbon from bitumen to produce lighter hydrocarbons
- Device that concentrates the sun’s power into a smaller area and converts it to heat and electricity.
- Two or more generation processes operating in parallel, so as to increase the energy output from a power system. In a combined-cycle power plant, the waste heat from a gas turbine provides heat for a steam turbine.
- When the steam generated in a cogeneration or combined cycle process is used to create additional electricity. In this way, the efficiency of producing electricity is increased.
- A homogeneous mix of natural gas from various physical (or contractual) sources.
- A method of recording and processing seismic signals so that signals belonging to the same subsurface point are brought together.
- Consist of a small-diameter fluorescent tube arranged such that the ends terminate in a single base that screws into a conventional light socket.
- The Government of Canada encourages improvements in the fuel efficiency of the Canadian new vehicle fleet by setting voluntary annual company average fuel consumption (CAFC) goals for vehicle manufacturers and importers.
- Preparing a newly drilled well for production; usually involves setting casing – pipe that lines the interior of a well to prevent caving and protect against ground water contamination – and perforating the casing to establish communication with the producing formation
- Natural gas in its gaseous state that has been compressed to about one per cent of its volume and stored at 20,000 to 27,500 kilopascals.
- Increasing the pressure of natural gas to move it through pipelines or other facilities
- A machine used to boost natural gas pressure to move it through pipelines or other facilities.
- Permanent facilities containing compressors that supply the energy needed to move natural gas at increased pressures.
- Liquids recovered during the production of natural gas, consisting primarily of pentane and heavier hydrocarbons.
- Equipment that condenses turbine exhaust steam into condensate.
- Equipment in the thermal plant that captures used steam and changes it back to water for reuse in the facility
- Material, such as wire or cable, used to carry electricity
- End use of energy and energy sources, such as electrical energy, typically measured in kilowatt-hours; or natural gas, typically measured in thousands of cubic feet or millions of British thermal units, or crude oil and petroleum products, usually measured in litres or barrels.
- Device that starts up the turbine at wind speeds of above 13 kilometres per hour and shuts the machine down at speeds over 90 kilometres per hour for safety reasons.
- Crude oil that flows naturally or that can be pumped without being heated or diluted.
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Natural gas that can be produced using recovery techniques normally employed by the oil and gas industry. The distinction between conventional and unconventional gas is becoming less clear. See also unconventional gas.
- A fluid phase in a nuclear reactor that, in cooling the reactor core, creates steam to drive turbines to generate electricity
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A measure of how hot a location was over a period, relative to a base temperature. In this handbook, the base temperature is 18.0°C and the period is one year. If the daily average temperature exceeds the
base temperature, the number of cooling degree-days for that day is the difference
between the two temperatures. However, if the daily average is equal to or less
than the base temperature, the number of cooling degree-days for that day is zero. The number of cooling degree-days for a longer period is the sum of the daily cooling degree-days for the days in that period.
- A measure of how relatively hot (or cold) a year was when compared with the cooling degree-day (CDD) average. When the CDD index is above (below) 1, the observed temperature is warmer (colder) than normal. The CDD normally represents weighted average of the 1951–1980 CDDs observed in a number of weather stations across Canada. Its value, which varies from year to year because of population flow, was 170 CDDs in 2004
- A structure in which heat is removed from hot condensate.
- A cylindrical sample of rock cut by a special bit during the drilling process.
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A refining process for increasing the yield of gasoline from crude oil; cracking involves breaking down the larger, heavier and more complex hydrocarbon molecules into simpler and lighter molecules through the use of heat and pressure, and sometimes a catalyst.
With heavy oil and oil sands, cracking refers to breaking down large, heavy and complex hydrocarbon molecules into simpler, lighter molecules
- The state at which a reactor produces enough neutrons to maintain fission reaction
- A sour gas well that has the potential to release unsafe levels of hydrogen sulphide, which might affect nearby residents.
- The zone in a well where sour gas will likely be encountered.
- Mineral rights that are owned by the federal or provincial governments in Canada.
- Naturally occurring liquid petroleum.
- Earth's outer layer of rock.
- : Cryogenic liquids are liquefied gases that are kept in their liquid state at very low temperatures and have a normal boiling point below -238 degrees Fahrenheit (-150 degrees Celsius). All cryogenic liquids are gases at normal temperatures and pressures. These liquids include methane, oxygen, nitrogen, helium and hydrogen. Cryogens normally are stored at low pressures.
- The volume of gas that fills a cube that is one foot by one foot by one foot under set temperature and pressure conditions. The standard pressure is 14.73 pounds per square inch (101.6 Kilopascals) and the standard temperature is 60° Fahrenheit (15.56° Celsius).
- Changes to the environment caused by an activity in combination with other past, present and reasonably foreseeable human activities.
- The flow of electrons in an electrical conductor. Current is measured in amperes.
- Small chips of rock from the formations through which the drill has bored, brought to the surface by the drilling mud.
- A method of producing heavy oil which involves injecting steam, allowing time for the steam to heat and soften the heavy oil and producing the oil from the same wellbore used to inject the steam.
Dam
- Barrier constructed to store or divert water for different purposes, including electricity production. Dams are usually made of earth, rock or concrete.
- A standard unit of measure of permeability. One darcy describes the permeability of a porous medium through which the passage of one cubic centimetre of fluid having one centipoise of viscosity flowing in one second under a pressure differential of one atmosphere where the porous medium has a cross-sectional area of one square centimetre and a length of one centimetre
- Removal of a facility (reactor) from service, including actions to safely dismantle buildings, reclaim land and restore the site to other uses.
- Gas that is found at depths greater than the average for a particular area.
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The amount of natural gas a well, field, gathering, transmission or distribution system can supply in a given period of time.
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The heaviness of crude oil, indicating the proportion of large, carbon-rich molecules, generally measured in kilograms per cubic metre (kg/m3) or degrees on the American Petroleum Institute (API) gravity scale; in Western Canada oil up to 900 kg/m3 is considered light to medium crude – oil above this density is deemed as heavy oil or bitumen.
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The process of changing natural gas or electricity market regulations to allow a greater role for market forces to balance supply and demand and set prices. It does not mean the absence of regulation.
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A load-bearing tower-like structure over a natural gas or crude oil well that holds the hoisting and lowering equipment for drilling, testing and reworking wells.
- Any absorbent or adsorbent (liquid or solid) that will remove water or water vapour from a material.
- Freeing natural gas from the surface of coal or kerogen, usually by lowering the reservoir pressure
- The process of removing sulphur and sulphur compounds from gases or liquid hydrocarbon mixes.
- A naturally occurring hydrogen isotope with one proton and one neutron
- A molecule composed of one oxygen atom and two deuterium atoms also known as heavy water
- A well drilled in or adjacent to a proven part of a pool to optimize petroleum production.
- A mid-product of fractional distillation, heavier than kerosene or naphtha.
- A liquid used to dilute bitumen to the point where it will flow. Condensate is the most commonly used diluent in the oilsands industry
- Electric current that flows in only one direction (as opposed to alternating current). The current supplied from a battery is direct current; early electric distribution systems were DC
- Use of geothermal heat without first converting it to electricity, such as for space heating and cooling, food preparation or industrial processes.
- A well drilled at an angle from the vertical by using a slanted drilling rig or by deflecting the drill bit; directional wells are used to drill multiple wells from a common drilling pad or to reach a subsurface location beneath land or water where drilling cannot be done.
- Drilling a wellbore at any angle other than vertical; used where the rig cannot be set up directly over the target, or to drill more than one hole from a single location.
- Exploratory well that discovers a new gas or oil field.
- Process to resolve conflicts in mutually beneficial ways, using techniques such as negotiation or third-party mediation instead of public hearings or courts
- A tall, cylindrical steel tower divided by a number of perforated trays, used in fractional distillation to collect distilled liquids as they condense.
- Energy produced by generating units close to the location of use. PV cells are a form of distributed energy.
- A process of moving power at lower voltages from substations to customers
- A type of direct energy use in which a utility system supplies multiple users with hot water or steam from a central plant or well field.
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A calcium and magnesium carbonate mineral CaMg(CO3)2. A sedimentary rock rich in dolomite in which oil or gas reservoirs are often found. See also limestone.
- Developing a gas field by drilling more than one well per section
- The refining and marketing sector of the petroleum industry.
- Large electrically powered mobile machine, with bucket suspended from the end of a long boom, used in open pit mining
- The hoisting mechanism on a drilling rig which spools off or takes in the drilling line and thus raises or lowers the drill string and bit.
- The drilling tool that cuts through rock strata.
- Steel pipe sections, approximately 9.5 meters long, that are screwed together to form a continuous pipe extending from the drilling rig to the drilling bit at the bottom of the hole. Rotation of the drill pipe and bit causes the bit to bore through the rock.
- A column or string of drill pipe. The drill string carries the mud down to, and rotates, the drill bit.
- The operation that involves boring a hole through overlying geological horizons to the target zone(s) to determine if oil or gas is present in commercial quantities, and to convey oil and gas to the surface if found in commercial quantities.
- Specialized mud mixed at the drill site and pumped down the drillstring and up the annulus to prevent blowouts, remove cuttings and cool and lubricate the bit.
- A method of sampling fluid from a formation using a tool attached to the drillstem; the sample is used to assess the type and volume of fluids in the formation as well as their pressure and rate of flow.
- Natural gas from the well that is free of liquid hydrocarbons, or gas that has been treated to remove all liquids; pipeline gas.
- An unsuccessful well; a well not capable of producing commercial quantities of oil or gas.
- Very hot steam that does not occur with liquid.
- A dwelling is defined as a structurally separate set of living premises with a private entrance from outside the building or from a common hallway or stairway inside. A private dwelling is one in which one person, a family or other small group of individuals may reside, such as a single house or apartment
Edmonton Par Price
- A reference price for Canadian crude oil.
- The ratio of the useful energy output of a machine or other energy-converting plant to the energy input.
- Power delivered over a period of time; commonly measured in kilowatt-hours (kW-h) or megawatt-hours (MW-h)
- Rate of delivery of electric energy; also a measure of a power plant’s generating capacity or installed capacity; the basic measures are the kilowatt (kW) and megawatt (MW).
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A record of electrical characteristics, primarily resistivity, of formations that have been drilled. Crude oil and natural gas are more electrically resistive than water, therefore rock with oi and gas filled pores registers a higher resistivity. Electric logs are used to identify the formations, determine the nature and amount of fluids they contain, and estimate their depth.
- The energy lost during the conversion from primary energy (petroleum, natural gas, coal, hydro, uranium and biomass) into electrical energy. Losses occur during generation, transmission and distribution of electricity and include plant and unaccounted-for uses.
- Any specific activity that requires energy (e.g. refrigeration, space heating, water heating, manufacturing processes and operating machinery)
- Crops that are grown specifically for energy (electricity or liquid fuels). Examples of plants and trees that are cultivated as energy crops include corn, sugar cane, willow, alfalfa, poplar, switchgrass and eucalyptus.
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The amount of energy use per unit of activity. Examples of
activity measures in this report are households, floor space, passenger-kilometres, tonne-kilometres, physical units of production and constant dollar value of gross
domestic product.
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Any substance that supplies heat or power (e.g. petroleum,
natural gas, coal, renewable energy and electricity).
- Rock fracturing, water injection, and water circulation technologies to sweep heat from the unproductive areas of existing geothermal fields or new fields lacking sufficient production capacity.
- Any method that increases oil production by using techniques or materials that are not part of normal pressure maintenance or water flooding operations. For example, natural gas or carbon dioxide can be injected into a reservoir to "enhance" or increase oil production.
- Planning and decision-making tool used by industry and regulators to identify the environmental impacts and costs of proposed energy projects, and potential solutions. Power companies are potentially subject to environmental assessments for new power projects or changes to existing facilities.
- Generally defined as proved reserves plus one half probable reserves.
- A component of natural gas consisting of two carbon atoms and six hydrogen atoms, condenses into a liquid at relatively low temperature and pressure
- Colourless, flammable liquid produced by fermentation of sugars.
- The act of searching for potential subsurface reservoirs of gas or oil. Methods include the use of magnetometers, gravity meters, seismic exploration, surface mapping, and exploratory drilling.
- A well drilled either in search of a new, as yet undiscovered accumulation of oil and gas, or in an attempt to significantly extend the limits of a known reservoir.
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The reduction in volume of natural gas resulting from the removal of the natural gas liquid constituents at the processing plant. See also shrinkage.
Farmout
- An arrangement whereby the owner of an oil and gas lease assigns some portion (or all) of the lease to another company for drilling.
- A fracture or fracture zone in the Earth's crust along which displacement of one side relative to the other has occurred at some time.
- Any material converted to another form or product.
- The geographical area encompassing a group of one or more underground petroleum pools sharing the same or related infrastructure.
- The pressure of the natural gas as it is found in the underground formations from which it is produced.
- The amount received by petroleum producers after deducting transportation and distribution costs.
- An object left in the well bore during drilling or workover operations that must be recovered or bypassed before work can proceed.
- Series of pools arranged like steps that allow fish to pass upstream over a dam.
- The term encompasses both the special equipment and the special procedures required to remove undesirable objects from the well bore.
- The splitting of an atom in two releasing energy; induced fission occurs when a free neutron collides with a nucleus causing it to split, unlike spontaneous fission which occurs without external influence
- Controlled burning of natural gas that cannot be processed for sale because of technical or economic reasons. The biggest portion is solution gas flaring, which involves the burning of natural gas produced along with crude oil and bitumen. Flaring contributes primarily to emissions of sulphur dioxide and greenhouse gases. Depending on the combustion efficiency of the flare, there may be other compounds produced in very small quantities, some of which are considered to be toxic.
- Steam produced when the pressure on a geothermal liquid is reduced. Also called flashing.
- The area enclosed by exterior walls of a building. In the residential sector, it excludes parking areas, basements or other floors below ground level; these areas are included in the commercial/institutional sector. It is measured in square metres.
- Management of hydro electricity operations to control downstream water flows and their effects.
- Light bulbs in which the glass tube or bulb is filled with a gas through which an electric current is run, causing the gas to react with a coating on the inside of the glass and emit light. Fluorescent bulbs have no filiments such as are found in incandescent bulbs.
- Particulate matter from coal ash that exits boilers along with hot gases. Pollution control equipment (such as electrostatic precipitators) removes more than 90 per cent of the fly ash before it can be released into the atmosphere.
- A designated subsurface layer that is composed throughout of substantially the same kind of rock or rock types.
- Fuels sourced from plant and animal matter that have undergone transformation through heat and pressure.
- The process of separating petroleum into its component parts or fractions, such as heavy gas oils, light gas oils, kerosene, naphtha and light gasoline.
- A reservoir stimulation technique in which fluids are pumped into a potentially productive formation under high pressure to create or enlarge fractures allowing the oil or gas to flow from the zone at higher rates. In some operations proppants such as frac sand are injected with the frac fluid to help hold the rock fractures open.
- A mixture of air, water and bitumen that rises to the surface of the primary separation vessel in the oilsands extraction process
- Bundles of tubes containing uranium dioxide pellets that fuel nuclear reactors
- A vent or hole in the Earth's surface, usually in a volcanic region, from which steam, gaseous vapors, or hot gases issue.
Gas
- One of the three states of matter: liquid, solid and gas. Gas is characterized by having neither shape nor specific volume: it expands to fill the entire container in which it is held.
- A layer of free gas on top of the oil zone in an underground reservoir.
- A person or persons who are responsible for monitoring and controlling daily gas system operations and ensuring safety of a gathering, transmission or distribution system.
- A petroleum recovery process that takes produced gas and condensate and injects it back into the reservoir to increase pressure and increase the production of natural gas liquids. See also repressuring.
- Crystals of water and methane molecules found in vast quantities on ocean floors and in the Arctic.
- The volume of gas in a reservoir at any given time, calculated at standard temperature and pressure conditions, including both recoverable and nonrecoverable gas.
- An instrument that measures (and may record) the volume of gas that has passed through it.
- The term "pool" is generally synonymous with the term "reservoir".
- Any facility which performs one or more of the following: removing liquefiable hydrocarbons from wet gas or casinghead gas; removing undesirable gaseous and particulate elements from natural gas; removing water or moisture from the gas stream.
- A porous and permeable rock formation in which natural gas accumulates.
- Shale formations containing natural gas
- Pipelines that carry natural gas at high pressure from producing areas to consuming areas.
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The process of turning liquefied natural gas into a vapourous or gaseous state by increasing the temperature and decreasing the pressure.
- Device for converting solid biomass into gaseous fuels.
- One of the lightest products of fractional distillation.
- Pipelines that move raw petroleum from wellheads to processing plants and transmission facilities.
- A system of small-diameter plastic or steel pipes (gathering lines) transporting natural gas from producing wells to field facilities.
- High efficiency gear system that increases the rotor-shaft speed for the generator.
- A power plant’s ability to produce a specific amount of electricity at a specific moment in time; measured in kilowatts or megawatts. Also known as installed capacity or nameplate capacity.
- The process of converting different forms of energy — thermal, mechanical, chemical or nuclear — into electricity
- An arrangement of magnets spinning inside a coil of wire to produce electricity.
- The science of chemistry applied to rocks and minerals; geochemists analyze the contents of subsurface rocks for the presence of organic matter associated with oil deposits.
- Any geological structure that stops the migration of natural gas, crude oil and water through subsurface rocks, causing the hydrocarbons to accumulate into pools in the reservoir rock.
- A person trained in the study of the Earth’s crust; petroleum geologists search for traps that could contain petroleum, recommend drilling locations and analyse drilling results.
- Sensitive vibration-detecting instruments used in conducting seismic surveys; marine versions are known as hydrophones.
- Searching and mapping the subsurface structure of the earth's crust using geophysical methods to locate probable reservoir structures capable of producing commercial quantities of natural gas and/or crude oil.
- The science that deals with the relations between the physical features of the Earth and forces that produce them; geophysics includes the study of seismology and magnetism.
- Of or relating to the Earth's interior heat.
- Energy available in the ground and rocks beneath the Earth’s crust. Geothermal energy resources include hot temperature sources such as hot rock, molten rock and geysers and lower temperature sources in the ground one or two metres below the surface.
- The rate of temperature increase in the Earth as a function of depth. Temperature increases an average of 25° C for every kilometre of descent (1° Fahrenheit for every 75 feet).
- Devices that take advantage of the relatively constant temperature of the Earth's interior, using it as a source and sink of heat for both heating and cooling. When cooling, heat is extracted from the space and dissipated into the Earth; when heating, heat is extracted from the Earth and pumped into the space.
- A spring that shoots jets of hot water and steam into the air.
- One gigajoule equals one billion Joules
- A measure of electric power; the equivalent of 1,000 megawatts or 1 million kilowatts
- A measure of electric energy; the equivalent of 1,000 megawatt-hours or I million kilowatt-hours
- Facility in which a glycol-based process removes water from produced natural gas, often in the field and before processing. The removal of water is needed to prevent corrosion and water freezing in pipelines.
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The warming of the Earth’s surface caused by the presence of carbon dioxide and other gases, known as greenhouse gases, in the atmosphere that trap the heat of the sun.
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The amount of greenhouse gas emitted per unit of
energy used.
- Gases that trap heat near the Earth’s surface. These include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and water vapor. These gases occur through natural processes (such as ocean currents, cloud cover, volcanoes) and human activities (such as the burning of fossil fuels).
- Network of high-voltage transmission lines.
- The total value of goods and services produced within Canada during a given year. Also referred to as annual economic output or, more simply, output. To avoid counting the same output more than once, GDP includes only final goods and services – not those that are used to make another product. GDP figures are reported in constant 2002 dollars to account for inflation.
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The total value of goods and services produced by an
industry. It is the sum of the industry’s shipments plus the change in value due to labour and capital investment. Gross output figures are reported in constant 2002 dollars to account for inflation.
- Ground source heat pumps are similar to air source heat pumps except instead of absorbing heat from air, they absorb it from the earth. (Also known as or earth energy systems)
- Product of reactions during combustion of coal, gasoline and other fuels and chemicals.
- Water accumulations below the earth’s surface that supply freshwater to wells and springs.
- A device that creates small holes through the casing, cement and into the producing formation of a well. The holes provide channels for gas and/or crude oil to flow into the well.
- A well that comes in with such great pressure that the oil or gas blows out of the wellhead like a geyser; gushers are rare today because of improved drilling technology, especially the use of drilling mud to control downhole pressure.
Halogen bulbs
- Incandescent bulbs filled with halogen gas which slows evaporation of the tungsten filament, prolonging the bulb’s life.
- Hot dry rock. Subsurface geologic formations of abnormally high heat content that contain little or no water.
- A device such as a coiled copper tube immersed in a tank of water that is used to transfer heat from one fluid to another through a separating wall.
- Movement of heat from within the Earth to the surface, where it is dissipated into the atmosphere, surface water, and space by radiation.
- Heat gained by a building from the operation of appliances. These heat gains reduce the space heating load in the winter and increase the space cooling load in the summer.
- Represents the amount of energy released as heat by an appliance or piece of equipment while it is in operation.
- Water heaters that transfer heat from the air, or from the earth or groundwater, to water in a tank. They do not generate heat, and are not effective at temperatures lower than 8°C.
- Heat exchangers that recover heat from used hot water as it goes down the drain. The recovered energy is used to preheat water in a conventional storage tank heater.
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A measure of how cold a location was over a period, relative to a base temperature. In this handbook, the base temperature is 18.0°C and the period is one year. If the daily average temperature is below the base temperature, the number of heating degree-days for that day is the difference
between the two temperatures. However, if the daily average temperature is equal to or higher than the base temperature, the number of heating degree-days for that day is zero. The number of heating degree-days for a longer period is the
sum of the daily heating degree-days for the days in that period.
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A measure of how relatively cold (or hot) a year
was when compared with the heating degree-day (HDD) average. When the HDD index is above (below) 1, the observed temperature is colder (warmer) than normal. The HDD normal represents a weighted average of the
1951–1980 HDDs observed in a number of weather stations across Canada. Its value, which varies from year to year because of population flow, was 4476 HDDs in 2004.
- Oil having an API gravity less than 22.3º. Includes some oil that will flow, however slowly, but most heavy oil requires heat or dilution to flow to a well or through a pipeline.
- A truck with a gross vehicle weight that is more than, or equal to, 14,970 kg (33,001 lb.). The gross vehicle weight is the weight of the empty vehicle plus the maximum anticipated load weight.
- A molecule composed of one oxygen atom and two deuterium atoms also known as deuterium oxide
- Used nuclear fuel that is highly radioactive and requires long-term management and storage in shielded facilities to protect people and the biosphere. Canada’s high-level waste is held in interim storage facilities at reactor sites. Canada and other countries are exploring opportunities for long-term management of this waste, including deep geologic disposal in stable rock formations.
- Drilling horizontally through a reservoir to increase the exposure of the formation to the well.
- A series of horizontal drainage wells branching off from a horizontal wellbore.
- A method for separating bitumen from oil sand using hot water and caustic soda, developed by Karl Clark of the Alberta Research Council.
- A person or a group of people occupying one dwelling unit is defined as a household. The number of households will, therefore, be equal to the number of occupied dwellings.
- Vehicles that combine two power sources to make the engine run.
- A large class of liquid, solid or gaseous organic compounds, containing only carbon and hydrogen, which are the basis of almost all petroleum products.
- A refining process which adds hydrogen to the carbon-rich molecules of heavier oil, in the presence of a catalyst, to produce a higher proportion of gasoline and diesel fuel.
- A process in which bitumen is heated and hydrogen added under high pressure to break down the large hydrocarbon molecules into simpler, smaller compounds
- A naturally occurring, highly toxic gas with the odour of rotten eggs.
- Heating systems similar to forced air systems except water, instead of air, is heated and circulated throughout the building via pipes. Heat from the water is exchanged via baseboard radiators in each room.
- Use of water power to generate electricity. Electricity is produced by using the kinetic energy available in flowing water.
- Underground systems of heat, hot water and/or steam. Originally used to describe high-temperature water and steam reseources such as geysers and deep hot water reservoirs, the term now includes lower temperature earth energy resources.
- A process that uses hot water to transport oil sands excavated at oil sands mining projects through a pipeline to a processing plant.
- The process of adding hydrogen to heavy oil or bitumen molecules during the upgrading process.
In-line inspection tools
- Cylinder-shaped devices, fitted with electronic sensors, that locate pipeline wall weaknesses before they can progress to the point of causing a leak
- In-situ is defined as meaning in its original place or in position. In oil sands production, in-situ recovery refers to various methods used to recover deeply buried bitumen deposits. These methods includisteam injection, solvent injection, cold heavy oil with sand and firefloods.
- Incandescent light bulbs are the original bulbs in which light was created from heat. An electric current is passed through a tungsten alloy filament causing the filament to heat up. The heat excites electrons, which then emit photons, the source of the light. Gradually, the tungsten evaporates, coating the inside of the bulb.
- A privately owned power generating facility, which may be connected to a regional power system to supply electricity in Canada or for export
- Wells drilled between established producing wells on a lease in order to increase production from the reservoir.
- Any well that is drilled on a closer-than-normal well spacing pattern or requirement. Also, any well drilled between existing wells producing from the same reservoir.
- The process of returning spent geothermal fluids to the subsurface. Sometimes referred to as reinjection.
- Injection enhancement technique wherein water or other substances are injected into an oil field to improve production. Also, the reinjectiong of natural gas into an oil field to maintain reservoir pressure.
- A well used for injecting air, water, carbon dioxide, steam or fluids into an underground formation.
- A theory that maintains petroleum originated from hydrocarbons that were trapped inside the Earth during the planet’s formation and are slowly moving upwards.
- The amount of power that can be generated at a given moment by a power plant. Usually measured in liowatts or megawatts. Actual generation is measured in kilowatt-hours or megawatt-hours.
- A system consisting of two or more individual power systems through tie lines
- A person, business entity or other organization that is granted the right to participate in a regulatory hearing.
- A device used to convert direct current power (such as is produced by a photovoltaic cell) into standard alternating current.
- Atoms of an element that have the same number of protons but differing numbers of neutrons
Jackknife or folding mast
- The type of mast on a drilling rig that can be folded for moving, as opposed to the standard derrick, which has to be completely dismantled and re-erected.
- A means of reducing global greenhouse gas emissions whereby a country receives credit for supporting emissions reductions elsewhere – for example, planting trees or replacing inefficient power generation facilities in developing countries.
- The international unit of energy; energy produced by a power of one watt for one second; the joule is a very small unit (there are 3.6 million joules in a kilowatt-hour)
Kelly
- The first and sturdiest joint of the drill string in conventional rotary drilling rigs; a thick-walled, hollow steel forging with four flat sides that fits into a square hole in the rotary table.
- Insoluble organic matter
- A light product of fractional distillation used to make jet fuel and stove oil.
- A kick occurs when the reservoir pressure of a formation exceeds the hydrostatic pressure of the mud in the drill string, creating the potential for a well to blow out of control.
- A measure of electromotive force equivalent to 1,000 volts. Differences in electromotive force drive electric currents.
- A measure of electric power; the equivalent of 1000 watts
- A measure of electric energy; the equivalent of 1,000 watt-hours (If you burn ten 100-watt light bulbs for one hour, they use one kilowatt-hour of electricity). Residential customers are usually charged for electricity based on a rate of cents per kilowatt-hour
Land
- In the petroleum industry, "land" often refers to the oil and gas rights on a particular area of land. For example, in a "land sale," the oil and/or gas rights are "sold" (although in reality the rights are leased).
- Site designed for disposal of solid or chemical wastes by burial. It may be an open pit or an engineered facility that includes special linings to prevent wastes from leaking into water supplies.
- Biogas generated by the decomposition of organic material in landfills. This gas is about 50 per cent methane.
- A male or female member of the exploration team whose primary duties are managing an oil company’s relations with its landowners and partners, including securing and administering oil and gas leases and other agreements. Other duties include helping to formulate exploration and developmkent strategies. Also known as a land agent or land person.
- A car with a gross vehicle weight of 1182 kg (2601 lb.) or more. The gross vehicle weight is the weight of the empty vehicle plus the maximum anticipated load weight.
- The negotiated legal document giving an oil and gas company the right to utilize the surface lease site to drill for and produce oil or gas.
- Liquid petroleum which has a density less than 0.870 grams per cubic centimetre and flows freely at room temperature. Light oil has an API gravity greater than 31.1°.
- A truck of up to 3855 kg (8500 lb.) of gross vehicle weight. The gross vehicle weight is the weight of the empty vehicle plus the maximum anticipated load weight. This class of vehicles includes pickup trucks, minivans and sport utility vehicles.
- Similar to incandescent bulbs in that the light is generated by electrons emitting photons. However, with LEDs, the electric current moves the electrons across a semiconductor, causing them to emit photons. LEDs do not have filaments, nor do they emit much heat.
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The lowest ranked coal, organically immature with high water content and low carbon content; also called brown coal. Lignite is used to generate most of Saskatchewan's electricity.
- Calcium carbonate-rich sedimentary rocks in which oil or gas reservoirs are often found.
- The volume of gas which is needed to be kept in the pipe of a gathering, transmission or distribution system in order to ensure the functioning of the system. Linepack can sometimes be used for short-term temporary storage of additional gas supplies.
- The process by which natural gas is converted into liquid natural gas.
- Supercooled natural gas that is maintained as a liquid at or below -160°C; LNG occupies 1/640th of its original volume and is therefore easier to transport if pipelines cannot be used.
- The total amount of electricity required to meet customer demand at any moment
- Detailed depth-related records of certain significant characteristics of an oil or gas reservoir; obtained by lowering measurement instruments into a well.
- An underground coal mining method wherein hydraulic supports are used to brace the mine roof while large machines cut and remove the coal from the coal face; once a seam is mined out, the hydraulic supports are removed and the roof is allowed to collapse
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A method of increasing capacity on a pipeline: a new section of pipeline is constructed parallel to an existing pipeline over any part or the whole length of the exisiting pipeline.
- Refers to site-specific seismic procedures that minimize environmental impacts during exploration.
- Consists of industrial clothing, tools and equipment, which have become slightly contaminated by radioactivity. These wastes make up most of the nuclear power industry’s waste volume. These are stored at the reactor site or at dedicated waste management facilities.
Magma
- Molten rock within the Earth, from which igneous rock is formed by cooling.
- A distribution line that serves as a common source of supply for more than one service line. Its dimensions and operating pressure can be similar to those in a transmission system.
- The layer of the Earth lying beneath the Earth's crust and above the Earth's molten outer core of iron and nickel. The mantle can be divided into two parts, an upper solid but ductile upper mantle and a more rigid lower mantle.
- A gas obtained by destructive distillation of coal, by the thermal decomposition of oil, or by the reaction of steam passing through a bed of heated coal or coke. Examples are coal gases, coke or oven gases, producer gas, blast furnace gas, blue (water) gas, or carbureted water gas. Also known as syngas.
- A specific crude oil, usually a blended crude with defined properties such as API gravity, sulphur content, etc., used as a reference for pricing other crude oils. Typical benchmark crudes are West Texas Intermediate (WTI), Brent (North Sea), Arab Light and Edmonton Par crude. As the price of the benchmark crude fluctuates, other crude oils from the same geographic area move up and down, depending on their properties relative to the benchmark and on supply and demand. Also known as benchmark crude.
- The maximum rate at which natural gas and crude oil can be produced without excessive decline of reservoir energy or a loss in ultimate production.
- Technology that transmits information from downhole measuring devices to the surface while drilling is ongoing.
- Liquid petroleum with a specific gravity between that of light oil, 0.875 (30.2° API) and heavy oil, 0.92 (22.3° API).
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A truck with a gross vehicle weight ranging from 3856 to
14,969 kg (8501 to 33,000 lb.). The gross vehicle weight is the weight of the empty vehicle plus the maximum anticipated load weight.
- One megajoule equals one million joules.
- A measure of bulk power; the equivalent of 1,000 kilowatts or 1 million watts; the unit is generally used to describe the output of a generator
- A measure of electric energy; the equivalent of 1,000 kilowatt-hours or 1 million watt-hours. Megawatt-hours are determined by a plant’s capacity and how long the plant is running. A 1,000-megawatt power plant running at full power for one hour produces 1,000 megawatt-hours (MWhs) of electricity. If the plant runs all day, it produces 24,000 MWhs.
- Various grades of coal suitable for steelmaking. These include coking coal (bituminous), used to make coke, and non-coking coal (bituminous and anthracite), which is pulverized and injected into a blast furnace as a heat source in steelmaking
- Methane consists of one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms and is the largest component of natural gas. Methane remains in a gaseous state at relatively low temperatures and pressures. Methane is also produced when organic matter decomposes
- Primarily the processing, storage and transportation sector of the energy industry.
- The movement of natural gas, crude oil and/or water through porous and permeable rock.
- One thousandth of a darcy; a commonly used unit for measuring permeability reservoir rocks. See Darcy.
- Process to extract the uranium from the ore. Ore is crushed to fine sand and treated with chemicals that remove impurities. Uranium concentrate (“yellowcake”) is produced at the mills, and then furthered processed for use in nuclear fuel assemblies.
- The rights to explore for and produce the resources below the surface. In the petroleum industry, mineral rights can also be referred to as “land.”
- A method of tertiary recovery of oil involving injection of carbon dioxide, or solvents such as ethane, propane and butane which mix with the oil to reduce surface tension and viscosity.
- A moveable dwelling designed and constructed to be transported by road on its own chassis to a site and placed on a temporary foundation (such as blocks, posts or a prepared pad). If required, it can be moved to a new location.
- An annual period in which a national automotive industry organizes its operations and within which new models are announced. For example, if the “model year” is 2004, it begins September 1, 2003, and ends August 31, 2004.
- Matter in a nuclear reactor used to slow the speed of neutrons in order to increase the potential for fission
- A hole drilled to the side of the wellbore to hold the next joint of drill pipe to be used; when this joint is pulled out and screwed onto the drill string, another joint of pipe is readied and slipped into the mousehole to await its turn.
- Specialized fluid mixed at the drill site and pumped doun the drillstring and up the annulus to prevent blowouts, remove cuttings from the hole and to lubricate the drilling bit.
- A downhole drilling motor that is powered by the force of the drilling mud pushed through the motor by the mud pumps at the surface.
- A technique for drilling several horizontal wells from a single vertical, directional or horizontal wellbore.
- Completion of a well in such a way that production is obtained from several different formations.
- Solid wastes, including sewage, industrial and commercial wastes, from municipal sewage treatment systems and landfill sites.
Nacelle
- The enclosure or casing on a horizontal axis wind turbine that houses the gearbox and generator.
- A light fraction of crude oil used to make gasoline.
- The federal regulatory agency in Canada that authorizes oil, natural gas, and electricity exports; certifies interprovincial and international pipelines, and designated interprovincial and international power lines; and sets tolls and tariffs for oil and gas pipelines under federal jurisdiction.
- Gaseous petroleum consisting primarily of methane with lesser amounts of (in order of abundance) ethane, propane, butane and pentane, and heavier hydrocarbons as well as non-energy components such as nitrogen, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulphide and water
- Natural gas generated during the coalification process and adsorbed onto coal faces. Also referred to as coalbed methane
- Natural gas found in fine-grained, low permeability sandstone reservoirs which require extensive stimulation or sophisticated drilling techniques to produce
- Liquids obtained during production of natural gas, comprising ethane, propane, butane and condensate.
- The total generation output (gross generation) minus electricity used to operate generating stations
- Nitrogen-oxygen compounds formed mostly from the burning of fossil fuels. Major sources of nitrogen oxides are the combustion of fossil fuels by motor vehicles and power plants. These emissions react with sunlight and volatile organic compounds to form ground-level ozone. They also react with water vapor to form nitric acid, a contributor to acid rain.
- A very potent greenhouse gas which has a large number of natural sources and is a secondary product of the burning of organic material and fossil fuels.
- Natural gas that is produced from reservoirs that contain only natural gas and therefore not associated with crude oil production.
- Heavy crude oil that is too thick to flow in its natural state and cannot be produced by conventional means, but must be heated or diluted first, such as oil sands bitumen. More commonly known as unconventional crude oil.
- Natural resources that cannot be replaced after they have been consumed. This term applies particularly to fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas, but also applies to other mineral resources found in the Earth's crust.
- A benchmark crude oil used as a reference for pricing other crude oils.
- Waste products resulting from nuclear fission
Octane
- A performance rating of gasoline; the higher the octane number, the greater the anti-knock quality of the gasoline. Knocking is the result of abnormal combustion in an internal combustion engine.
- Actions or investments that companies can take outside their operations to reduce or remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. Examples of offsets are investments in energy efficiency improvements and projects to capture or dispose of greenhouse gases. Offsets are based on the concept that actions taken anywhere to control emissions will provide the same benefit to the global atmosphere.
- A measure of electrical resistance
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Naturally-occurring mixtures of bitumen, water, sand and clay that are found mainly in the Athabasca, Peace River and Cold Lake areas of Alberta.
- Fuel used in only one cycle, with no reprocessing.
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A method of surface mining where the coal seams or oil sands are too deep for strip mining but accessible from deep excavations
- The company responsible for managing an exploration, development or production operation.
- The most widely accepted theory explaining the origins of petroleum: as organic materials become deeply buried over time, heat and pressure transform them into hydrocarbons.
- Well sites for which the license operators have ceased to exist or cannot be traced.
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Bedrock which is exposed at the earth’s surface
- Compound containing oxygen in its molecular structure. Ethanol and biodiesel act as oxygenates when blended with conventional fuels. Oxygenated fuel improves combustion efficiency and lowers tailpipe emissions.
Packers
- Expanding rubber diaphragms used to seal off portions of the wellbore.
- A person trained in paleontology – the study of plant and animal life in past geological time through the study of fossil plants and animals, their relationship to present-day plants and animals and their environments.
- A paleontologist who specializes in fossil pollens and spores.
- Dust, ash, soot, metals and other solid or liquid particles released into the air. Particulate matter comes from natural sources (such as forest fires and volcanoes) and human sources (such as burning of fossil fuels, dust from mining operations, road dust and wood stoves). Particulate matter can cause eye, nose and throat irritation and other health problems.
- Waterway or device that allows fish to safely pass a dam or hydro plant. Examples include lifts or elevators, locks and screens.
- Technology that uses a building’s elements, such as walls, to capture and store the sun’s heat. Passive solar energy does not involve converting solar enegy to electricity.
- The producing part of a formation.
- A facility for both storing and vaporizing LNG intended to operate on an intermittent basis to meet relatively short term peak gas demands. A peakshaving plant may also have liquefaction capacity, which is usually quite small compared to vaporization capacity at such facility.
- Plant remains that are a precursor to coal
- A hydrocarbon compound consisting of five carbon atoms and 12 hydrogen atoms
- Creating holes in the casing to allow hydrocarbons to flow into the wellbore for production; usually usually accomplished by shooting hardened metal rods powered by explosive charges through the casing using a perforating gun lowered down the well bore.
- A special tool lowered down the well bore to shoot holes in the well’s casing into the producing formation to allow hydrocarbons to flow into the well.
- The capacity of a substance (such as rock) to transmit a fluid, such as crude oil, natural gas, or water. The degree of permeability depends on the number, size, and shape of the pores and/or fractures in the rock and their interconnections. It is measured by the time it takes a fluid of standard viscosity to move a given distance. The unit of permeability is the Darcy.
- One petajoule equals one qusdrillion (10 to the power of 15)joules. A joule is the international unit of measure of energy – the energy produced by the power of one watt flowing for a second. There are 3.6 million joules in one kilowatt-hour (see Kilowatt-hour).
- Chemicals derived from petroleum that are used as feedstocks for the manufacture of a variety of plastics and other products such as synthetic rubber.
- A naturally occurring mixture composed predominantly of hydrocarbons in the gaseous or liquid phase.
- The process by which plants convert carbon dioxide and water into oxygen and carbohydrates.
- Thin silicone wafers that convert any light, not only sunlight, directly into electricity.
- A cylindrical device inserted into a pipeline to inspect the pipe or to sweep the line clean of water, rust or other foreign matter; pipeline inspection and cleaning devices are called pigs because early models squealed as they moved through the pipe. A “smart pig” is also equipped to find corrosion, cracks or weakness in the welding.
- A conical formation, higher than it is wide, usually composed of limestone, in which hydrocarbons might be trapped.
- All parts of the physical facility through which gas is moved in transportation, including pipe, valves, and other equipment attached to the pipe, compressor units, metering stations, regulator stations, delivery stations, holders, and fabricated assemblies.
- The angle of the blades on a wind turbine. Blades are angled in such a way as to keep the rotor from turning in winds that are too high or too low to produce electricity.
- A theory of global-scale dynamics involving the movement of the many rigid plates that make up the Earth's crust. Tectonic activity is evident along the margins of the plates where buckling, grinding, faulting, and vulcanism occur as the plates are propelled by the forces of deep-seated mantle convection currents. Geothermal resources are often associated with tectonic activity, since it allows groundwater to come in contact with deep subsurface heat sources.
- Group of synthetic chemicals formerly used as insulating fluids in electrical equipment.
- When the boundaries of two or more oil or gas leases do not coincide with the drill spacing unit, then a pooling agreement is needed among the lease holders before the regulatory authority will grant a drill permit.
- The capacity od a reservoir to store fluids. The ratio of the aggregate volume of pore spaces in rock or soil to its total volume, usually stated as a per cent.
- The volume of natural gas or crude oil that is thought to exist based on geological knowledge, but has not been proven to exist though geophysical techniques or drilling.
- In electricity transmission, current delivered at a given voltage, measured in watts or kilowatts
- Type of concentrating solar power system that uses a field of mirrors to track the sun and focus its light onto a single point on a tower. At this focal point, a fluid (typically water or molten salts) is heated and passed through a steam turbine to generate electricity. Also known as a “central receiver” system.
- Electric generating facility
- Formed prior to the onset of the Cambrian era approximately; the time span lasting from 4.5 billion to 600 million years ago.
- The process of injecting water or produced natural gas back into a reservoir to prevent the reservoir pressure from decreasing.
- Producing oil by using either reservoir pressure or simple pumps.
- Reserves believed to exist with reasonable certainty based on geological information.
- Heat used in an industrial process for other rtan space heating.
- The last string of casing set in a well; production casing is tubular steel pipe connected by threads and couplings that lines the total length of the wellbore to ensure safe control of production, prevent water from entering the wellbore and keep rock formations from “sloughing” into the wellbore.
- Steel pipe inside the casing used to flow the petroleum from the producing zone to the surface.
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The estimated maximum volume which can be produced from known reserves based on reservoir characteristics, economic considerations, regulatory limitations and the feasibility of infill drilling or additional production facilities; also known as available supply.
- A component of natural gas consisting of three carbon atoms and eight hydrogen atoms, condenses into a liquid at relatively low temperature and pressure
- Sand, or ceramic or resin beads pumped into a wellbore at the end of the fracturing process to prop open newly induced fractures and enhance permeability.
- A geographical area that exploration has shown contains sedimentary rocks and structures favorable for the presence of crude oil or natural gas.
- Reserves that can be economically produced with a large degree of certainty from known reservoirs using existing technology.
- The process of involving all affected parties in the design, planning and operation of a seismic program, an oil or gas well, pipeline, processing plant or other facility.
- Usually intended to mean the interest of the public generally as opposed to the interest of an individual or company.
- A device used to bring oil to the surface by raising and lowering a string of rods connected to a downhole pump.
- Thermal decomposition of biomass at high temperatures (greater than 200 degrees Celsius) in the absence of air. The end product is mixture of liquids (bio-oil), solids (a charcoal-substance called “char”) and gases (methane, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide).
Quad
- An energy quantity of one quadrillion BTUs (1,055 petajoules), which is approximately the energy equivalent contained in one trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
Radiant heaters
- Heats nearby objects, including people, rather than the air in a room. Examples of radiant heaters are portable infrared electric heaters and in some cases wood and gas stoves.
- Emission of electromagnetic particles, such as alpha particles (helium ions) released during alpha radiation
- The decay of unstable nuclei giving rise to radiation
- Radioactive materials used in cancer therapy, medical diagnostic techniques, agriculture and industry.
- Clear, odorless, radioactive gas that occurs naturally in the environment and is produced by the radioactive decay of uranium. Radon is not dangerous in open air, but in confined spaces, where it accumulates, it can be a health hazard to workers.
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A slanted hole drilled near the wellbore to hold the kelly joint when not in use; the kelly is unscrewed from the drill string and lowered into the rathole.
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A mixture containing methane plus all or some of the following: ethane, propane, butane, condensates, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, helium, hydrogen, water vapour and minor impurities. Raw natural gas is the gas found naturally in the reservoir prior to processing.
- Vessel in which nuclear fission is controlled and harnessed
- The location where gas enters a transporter's system from a well, plant or pipeline interconnect.
- Restoring the landscape to its original contours after surface mining operations are complete
- Hydrocarbon reserves that can be produced with current technology including those not economical to produce at present.
- Fuel whose physical or chemical property specification has been changed.
- The process by which LNG is heated, converting it into its gaseous state.
- Injecting natural gas produced with crude oil back into the reservoir to maintain reservoir pressure. Also disposing of water produced with natural gas by injecting it into a downhole formation
- Naturally occurring energy sources that are continually replenished. Examples of renewable energy are wind, solar and water.
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Forcing gas, under pressure, into a crude oil reservoir in an attempt to increase the recovery of crude oil. This can also be achieved using water.
- Recycling or processing of used nuclear fuel to recover its remaining uranium and plutonium (“fissile” materials) to produce fresh fuel.
- The reserve life index measures the length of time current proved or established reserves would last if current production rates were maintained and no new reserves were added. Essentially, it measures the "ready inventory" of crude oil or natural gas. Also known as reserves-to-production (R/P) ratio.
- Recoverable portion of resources available for use based on current knowledge, technology and economics.
- A porous and permeable underground rock formation containing a natural accumulation of high-temperature water that is confined by impermeable rock or water barriers, and is separate from other reservoirs.
- Body of water stored behind a dam.
- A porous and permeable underground rock formation containing a natural accumulation of crude oil or natural gas that is confined by impermeable rock or water barriers, and is separate from other reservoirs.
- Materials left over from industrial, forestry or agricultural operations.
- A heavy, black, tar-like substance that remains after crude oil has been fully refined to distil all usable fractions or components.
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A strip of land, the use of which is acquired for the construction and operation of a pipeline or electricity transmission lines, may be owned outright or an easement taken for a specific purpose.
- A string of steel rods used to provide up-and-down motion for a bottom-hole pump to lift oil to the surface.
- An underground mining method wherein sizeable volumes of coal are removed (rooms) leaving large pillars of coal to support the mine roof
- Heaters tha heat the air in the rooms in which they are located.
- The cutting tool attached to the lower end of the drill string of a rotary drilling rig. As the drill string rotates, the bit chews through the formation.
- A method for drilling wells using a cutting bit attached to a revolving drill string.
- A downhole pump used to bring oil to the surface which operates by a rotary action rather than an up-and-down motion.
- A modern drilling unit capable of drilling a well with a bit attached to a rotating column of steel pipe.
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A heavy, circular casting mounted on a steel platform just above the rig floor which rotates the drill string and thus turns the bit.
- Refers to the blades and hub of a wind turbine.
- The owner’s share of production or revenues retained by government or freehold mineral rights holders. The royalty is usually based on a percentage of the total production and the rate may vary according to the selling price.
- Hydro facility that produces power by partially diverting fast-flowing rivers through a turbine set in the river or off to the side. No dam is required as no water is stored. Also known as river run hydroelectricity
Salinity
- A measure of the quantity or concentration of dissolved salts in water.
- An underground natural gas storage cavern which has been developed in a salt dome by the solution mining process.
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A compacted sedimentary rock composed mainly of quartz or feldspar; a common rock in which oil, natural gas and/or water accumulate. Coarser than shale or siltstone.
- Injecting water or natural gas into a producing reservoir to maintain reservoir pressure and enhance recovery of oil.
- An area of land equal to one square mile (640 acres)
- A geographical area, such as the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin, in which much of the rock is sedimentary (as opposed to igneous or metamorphic) and is therefore likely to contain hydrocarbons.
- Rocks formed by the accumulation of sediment or organic materials and therefore likely to contain hydrocarbons. Includes sandstone, limestone, siltstone and shale.
- Buildup of sediment that occurs when materials that are suspended in a river or stream collect behind a barrier such as a dam. This can prevent nutrients from reaching downstream habitats.
- A method of mapping subsurface structures using data derived from transmitting acoustic energy into the earth and recording the energy reflected back from subsurface geological boundaries.
- Running one or more 2-D or 3-D seismic lines over a large area and using the acquired data to create detailed models of underlying geological formations and to find oil and natural gas reservoirs.
- A truck-mounted rig, usually smaller than a drilling rig, that is brought in to complete a well or to perform maintenance, replace equipment or improve production.
- To install steel pipe or casing in a well bore. An accompanying operation is the cementing of the casing in place by surrounding it with a wall of cement extending for all or part of the depth of the well.
- A sedimentary rock formed from clay and fine grained sediment.
- Natural gas produced from rock formations consisting mainly of shale or mudstone.
- A vibrating screen for sifting out rock cuttings from drilling mud during drilling operations.
- The reduction in volume of wet natural gas due to the extraction of some of its constituents, such as hydrocarbon products, hydrogen sulphide, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, helium and water vapour.
- A well that has been completed but is not producing. A well may be shut-in for tests, repairs, to await construction of gathering lines, or better economic conditions.
- Unit indicating the biological damage caused by radiation.
- A car weighing up to 1181 kg (2600 lb.) of gross vehicle weight. The gross vehicle weight is the weight of the empty vehicle plus the maximum anticipated load weight.
- Sophisticated instrument packages sent through pipelines to test for corrosion and buckling.
- Brown summer haze that intermittently forms over some cities. It is comprised of ground-level ozone (nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds and fine particulates). Smog can be created by natural processes (such as forest fires and volcanoes) or human activities (such as the burning of fossil fuels). The name is derived from SMoke and fOG.
- System that uses mirrors clustered in the general shape of a parabolic (curved) dish to focus solar energy onto a heat engine positioned at the focal point of the mirrors. The heat engine converts solar energy into electricity.
- Radiant energy produced and transmitted to the Earth's surface by the sun.
- Facility where many PV modules are interconnected in arrays to generate power. These are usually one megawatt or more in generating capacity.
- Devices that use energy from the sun to heat water in a solar collector, then transfer the water to a storage tank, where it is either heated further by a conventional storage tank heater or passed through a heat exchanger to heat water to be used.
- Natural gas that is disolved in crude oil in underground reservoirs. When the oil comes to the surface, the gas expands and comes out of the oil.
- Raw natural gas with a relatively high concentration of sulphur compounds, such as hydrogen sulphide. All natural gas containing more than one per cent hydrogen sulphide is considered sour. About 30 per cent of Canada’s natural gas production is sour, most of it found in Alberta and northeastern British Columbia.
- Oil containing sulphur compounds such as hydrogen sulphide.
- The rocks in which hydrocarbons are created or sourced from carbohydrates through heat and pressure. Source rocks are often black shales.
- Controlled or accidental release of a substance to land or water (oil, emulsion, produced water or other liquids).
- In hydroelectric facilities, the channel used to release excess water without passing it through the turbines.
- Fission
- Beginning to drill a well.
- People with an interest in industry activities that affect them. They may include nearby landowners, Aboriginal communities, recreational land users, other industries, environmental groups, governments and regulators.
- A technique in which steam is injected into a reservoir to reduce the viscosity of the crude oil. One of the in situ methods for producing bitumen.
- An in situ method of producing heavy oil which involves two horizontal wellbores, one above the other. Steam is injected into the upper wellbore and softened bitumen is recovered from the lower wellbore.
- Enhancing the production of a well; includes acidizing and fracturing the reservoir as well as removing wax and sand from the wellbore.
- Devices that heat and store water in a single tank. The energy source can be natural gas, electricity or fuel oil. They are the most common kind of water heater in Canada.
- A gas processing plant located on or near a gas transmission line that removes natural gas liquids from the gas and returns it to the line.
- Gas is considered stranded when it is not near its customer and a pipeline is not economically justified.
- Change in water quality that occurs when river flow slows due to a dam and colder, oxygen-depleted water sinks to the bottom. If water from lower levels is released to produce electricity, the oxygen-depleted water can change downstream habitat.
- A method of surface mining used where the coal seams are very shallow and laterally extensive
- Black coal softer than bituminous but harder than lignite; used in Alberta to generate most of the province’s electricity
- Sinking of an area of the Earth's crust due to fluid withdrawal and pressure decline.
- An electrical facility where the voltage of incoming and outgoing circuits is changed and controlled
- A yellow mineral extracted from petroleum and used for making fertilizers, pharmaceuticals and other products.
- Gases produced mostly from human activities (such as metal smelting, and fossil fuel combustion by factories, power plants and motor vehicles). Sulphur dioxide combines with water vapor to form sulphuric acid, a contributor to acid rain. Human exposure to sulphur dioxide emissions can also cause respiratory problems.
- Sour gas is processed at recovery plants to extract sulphur for sale to fertilizer manufacturers and other industries in Canada and overseas. The average rate of sulphur recovery at Alberta’s sulphur recovery plants has improved from 97.5 per cent in 1980 to 98.8 per cent in 2000.
- Change in water quality that occurs when water passing over a spillway becomes supersaturated with air and higher nitrogen levels. Fish exposed to this gas can be injured or killed when the gas produces bubbles in their bloodstreams. This is called “gas bubble disease” and is similar to “the bends” that can occur in divers.
- The first string of casing put into a well; it is cemented into place and serves to shut out shallow water formations and as a foundation for well control.
- Process of removing soil and rock to expose and remove coal
- The rights to areas of land used for well pads, batteries, gas plants and service roads
- Ecosystem condition in which biodiversity, renewability and resource productivity are maintained over time.
- Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (as defined by United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development).
- Crude oil containing less than 0.5 per cent sulphur.
- Raw natural gas with a relatively low concentration of sulphur compounds, such as hydrogen sulphide.
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Remove hydrogen sulphide and carbon dioxide from sour gas to make it marketable.
- A fuel produced from solid hydrocarbons such as coal and petroleum coke. The process uses steam, air and controlled amounts of oxygen to break the solid down, and the resulting gas consists of vaying amounts of carbon monoxide and hydrogen.
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A mixture of hydrocarbons, similar to crude oil, derived by upgrading bitumen from oil sands.
Tailings
- Waste products from oil sands mining, extraction, and upgrading operations. Also solid waste left after uranium ore has been extracted from rock.
- Water heaters that consist of an electric element or gas burner which heats water on demand. Usually situated close to where the water will be used, tankless water heaters generally have lower capacity that storage tank water heaters
- Total dissolved solids. Used to describe the amount of solid materials in water.
- One terajoule equals one trillion (10 to the power of 12) joules
- A measure of electric power, the equivalent of 1,000 gigawatts or 1 billion kilowatts; the unit is generally used to describe generating capacity at national or international levels
- A measure of electric energy; the equivalent of 1,000 gigawatt-hour or 1 billion kilowatt-hours
- Enhancing recovery using sophisticated methods such as miscible flooding or fire flooding.
- Coal used for heating or to produce electricity in thermal power plants; can be anthracite, bituminous or lignite.
- Electricity generated from burning fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas and refined petroleum products; biomass such as wood, wood waste, pulping liquors and landfill methane; or other waste materials such as used tires.
- The rate of increase or decrease in the Earth's temperature relative to depth.
- Power plants that burn fuels such as coal, oil or natural gas to produce steam to generate electricity
- Natural gas originating from organic matter subjected to temperature and pressure increasing with depth of burial
- Natural gas that is found in sandstone with low permeability.
- A reservoir where the permeability is so low, extensive stimulation or sophisticated drilling techniques are required to produce the natural gas
- Clear, odorless, flammable liquid that has the characteristic aromatic odor of model airplane glue. It is added to gasoline to increase octane.
- Hydraulic or electric motors that are suspended in the derrick above the rig floor to rotate the drill string and bit.
- Tubular structures, made of steel, to support wind turbines. Because wind speed increases with height, taller towers help turbines to capture more wind energy and generate more electricity.
- An electromagnetic device for changing alternating current (AC) electricity to higher or lower voltages
- The process of moving electric power at high voltages from the generation facility to local communities
- Structures and conductors that carry bulk supplies of electrical energy from power-generating units.
- The mechanism by which oil and gas are prevented from migrating out of the reservoir.
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The process of removing the drill string from the hole to change the bit and running the drill string and new bit back into the hole.
- Large-diameter pipelines that transport crude oil, natural gas liquids and refined petroleum products to refineries and petrochemical plants; some trunk lines also transport refined products to consuming areas.
- Muddy or unclear water quality caused by suspended sediments.
- A rotary engine that converts the energy of a moving stream of water, steam or gas into mechanical energy. Turbines are classified as hydraulic (water) turbines, steam turbines or gas turbines. Turbine-power generators produce most of the world's electricity. Windmills that generate electicity are known as wind turbines.
Unconventional natural gas
- In the case of natural gas from coal, natural gas from tight sands and shale gas, conventional gas found in unconventional reservoirs or reservoirs requiring special production methods or technologies; in the case of gas hydrates, conventional methane in an unconventional form occurring in a conventional reservoir
- Drilling where the hydrostatic pressure of the fluids in the wellbore is lower then the reservoir pressure; commonly used in tight reservoirs to avoid reservoir damage
- Process whereby owners of adjoining properties pool reserves into a single unit operated by one of the owners; production is divided among the owners according to the unitization agreement.
- A blend of hydrocarbons similar to light crude oil produced by processing bitumen or heavy oil at a facility called an upgrader. (Also called synthetic crude oil.)
- The process of converting heavy oil or bitumen into synthetic crude oil
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Relating to the exploration and production sector of the petroleum industry.
- Refers to companies that explore for, develop and produce petroleum resources (in contrast, downstream refers to the refining and marketing components of the industry).
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The most common fuel used to create nuclear energy. Uranium is a naturally occurring element having 92 protons.
U-238 has 146 neutrons, is mildly radioactive and forms approximately 99.3 per cent of all uranium.
U-235 has 143 neutrons, is less stable and forms approximately 0.7 per cent of all uranium.
Enriched uranium is uranium in which the U-235 content has been increased to approximately 3.5 per cent. Uranium dioxide (UO2) is processed to form ceramic pellets that are loaded into rods which are used to fuel nuclear reactors
V-door
- The opening in the derrick opposite the drawworks used for bringing in drill pipe and casing from the nearby pipe racks.
- A geothermal reservoir system in which subsurface pressures are controlled by vapour rather than by liquid. Sometimes referred to as a dry-steam reservoir.
- Energy for seismic surveys generated by massive, truck-mounted, vibrating plates.
- The resistance to flow or “stickiness” of a fluid.
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Gases and vapours, such as benzene, released by petroleum refineries, petrochemical plants, plastics manufacturing and the distribution and use of gasoline; VOCs include carcinogens and chemicals that react with sunlight and nitrogen oxides to form ground-level ozone, a component of smog.
- A measure of the electric pressure that pushes electric current through a circuit (just as pressure causes water to flow in a pipe); measured in volts or kilovolts
Water management planning
- Decision-making process used by hydro operators, government and other stakeholders to balance different uses of a watershed and support sustainable use of water resources.
- Area draining into a stream or river.
- A measure of electric power; standard light bulbs are rated at 25, 40, 60 or 100 watts
- Assessing the geologic, engineering, and physical properties and characteristics of geothermal reservoirs with instruments placed in the wellbore.
- Instruments lowered into a well to provide specific information on the charsacteristics of the reservoir.
- A hole drilled or bored into the earth, usually cased with metal pipe, for the production of natural gas or oil.
- The assembly of fittings and valve equipment used for producing a well and maintaining surface control of a well.
- A benchmark crude oil used as a reference for pricing other crude oils.
- Canada’s largest region of sedimentary rocks; the largest source of current oil and gas production, covering all of Alberta and parts of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, and the Yukon.
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Raw natural gas with a relatively high concentration of natural gas liquids (ethane, propane, butane, and condensates).
- A well drilled in a previously unexplored area.
- Energy from moving air which is converted to electricity, by using wind to turn electricity generators.
- Cluster of wind turbines for generating electricity. These are set up in areas where there are steady and prevalent winds.
- Charts derived from devices lowered into the wellbore on a cable or wire line that measure permeability, porosity and electrical properties of reservoir fluids.
- Special tools or equipment, such as logging tools, packers or measuring devices, designed to be lowered into the well on a wireline (small-diameter steel cable).
Xylene
- Aromatic hydrocarbon that forms the basis for many synthetic organic chemicals.