Oil 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.
- A theory of petroleum formation in which petroleum is thought to have formed from hydrocarbons trapped inside the earth while the planet was forming.
- 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.
- 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.
- The rate of production for a well or group of wells that is set by a regulatory authority (conservation commission).
- 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.
- Colorless, strong-smelling gas that occurs when nitrogen is extracted from crude oil products.
- The space between two concentric lengths of pipe or between pipe and the hole in which it is located.
- 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.
- Gas that is produced from the same reservoir along with crude oil, either as free gas or in solution.
- 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.
Backhaul
- 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.
- Refers to the variety of ecosystems and animal, bird, fish and plant species.
- 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.
- Solid or semi-solid petroleum that cannot be pumped without being heated or diluted; bitumen generally has an API gravity of less than 10°.
- 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.
- The amount bid at land auctions for Crown mineral rights. Bonus payments are in addition to rental fees.
- Several blowout preventers used in combination.
- 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.
- 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.
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.
- 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 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.
- 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.
- 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.
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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
- A mixture of hydrogen, carbon monoxide and methane, produced by distilling coal. Coal gas was once a principal used for heating and lighting.
- 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
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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
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 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
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Darcy
- 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
- 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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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.
- The process of removing sulphur and sulphur compounds from gases or liquid hydrocarbon mixes.
- 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
- 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.
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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.
- The refining and marketing sector of the petroleum industry.
- 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.
Edmonton Par Price
- A reference price for Canadian crude oil.
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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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- The term encompasses both the special equipment and the special procedures required to remove undesirable objects from the well bore.
- 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.
- 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.
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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
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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.
- 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).
- See volatile organic compounds.
- 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.
Heavy oil
- 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.
- 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 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 naturally occurring, highly toxic gas with the odour of rotten eggs.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- A person, business entity or other organization that is granted the right to participate in a regulatory hearing.
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.
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.
- 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.
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.
- 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.
- 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°.
- 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.
- 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.
- Detailed depth-related records of certain significant characteristics of an oil or gas reservoir; obtained by lowering measurement instruments into a well.
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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.
Main
- 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.
- 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).
- 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.
- 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 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.
Naphtha
- 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.
- Liquids obtained during production of natural gas, comprising ethane, propane, butane and condensate.
- 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.
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.
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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.
- 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
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.
- The producing part of a formation.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
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.
Rathole
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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.
- The location where gas enters a transporter's system from a well, plant or pipeline interconnect.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 crude oil or natural gas that is confined by impermeable rock or water barriers, and is separate from other reservoirs.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Salt cavern
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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).
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Tertiary recovery
- Enhancing recovery using sophisticated methods such as miscible flooding or fire flooding.
- 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.
- Natural gas that is found in sandstone with low permeability.
- 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.
- 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.
Underbalanced drilling
- 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.)
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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).
V-door
- The opening in the derrick opposite the drawworks used for bringing in drill pipe and casing from the nearby pipe racks.
- 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.
Well-logging instruments
- 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.
- 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.