Brian Zinchuk’s first in a six part series on the two heavy oil upgraders built in the late 80s/early 90s that have become fundamental to today’s Saskatchewan economy;
If you had followed Saskatchewan politics in the 1990s, you would have thought the world was ending as a result of the Grant Devine Progressive Conservative government’s two signature megaprojects, the heavy oil upgraders in Lloydminster and Regina.
With oil price fluctuations dramatically hurting their economics, the Alberta government couldn’t abandon its investment in the Bi-Provincial Upgrader in Lloydminster fast enough, leaving Saskatchewan holding the bag and eventually selling it to Husky in 1998. Similarly, the NewGrade Upgrader in Regina was also wrought with financial and political peril.
Well researched and well written, I’ll be linking all six parts as they go live.
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I’ve always been curious as to what/how/where Saskatchewans Oil Industry was located. I assumed incorrectly they were simply drilling and pumping “light” oil. To read that they are essentially pulling out of the same vein as we are up in Northern Alberta, comes somewhat as a surprise…but then again, makes total sense.
Looking forward to the remaining episodes.
Saskatchewan’s lighter oil is in the Bakken formation and Williston Basin in the SE part of the province. The city of Estevan is the big oil field servicing industry in that region
Actually most of Southeast Saskatchewan’s light oil production is Mississippian, formations like the Frobisher, not the Bakken . The Bakken peaked at 70,000 barrels per day several years ago and is quite a bit lower now. The Bakken is in decline. But it got all the press from 2008-on, so everyone still talks about it like it’s the big thing in Saskatchewan, but it’s really not. I’m North Dakota, yes, absolutely. Here, not so much anymore.
It’s a good idea to remind the left about how all their hysterical predictions of doom were quite simply wrong.
They won’t understand it but younger people need to see how wrong they were so they can apply that to the current leftwing promises and predictions.
That’s kind of what this series does.
Wasn’t it Bernstein that promised to walk across the dry river bottom after the Devine Estevan dam project ?
Must have been a bit embarrassing to see it fill in the first year.