Through a number of energy projects coming down the pike, oil and gas production in Canada is expected to be robust for many more years to come, according to speakers at the Canadian Energy Opportunities conference in Houston recently. For example, the C$7-billion Mackenzie Valley gas project is expected to produce first gas in 2011. "There are many benefits for Canada in this project," said Phillip Jennings, director general, petroleum resources branch, for Natural Resources Canada. "The project will provide substantial economic opportunities....." Bringing the gas to market is less of an issue than in the past. The public's view of pipelines is vastly different now, Jennings said, "and it appreciates the socio-economic benefits and believes that the environment is being protected. Drilling offshore British Columbia could be important to supply as well. "The time seems to be right for external voices to be heard in a constructive way on things like B.C. offshore," said Brian Tobin, senior business advisor for law firm Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP. "For those who don't know it, we're talking an estimated 1.3 billion barrels of oil. We're talking 9.8 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of gas in one basin alone. That's up to $140 billion of value. Total offshore estimated reserves come to 10- to 19 billion barrels, depending on the estimates you want to use. Gas can be up to 400 Tcf in the offshore. These are huge, staggering numbers." Tobin doesn't accept the notion that oil and gas projects in Canada aren't doable. "If you can operate in the North Sea or off the coast of Africa or in the Gulf of Mexico and struggle through the hurricane season and make it work, the notion that it cannot work offshore British Columbia is no longer acceptable. "It's time for exploration in Canada to stop being driven by a well-orchestrated minority as opposed to a scientifically based action plan."

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