Category: Oil & Gas Page 2 of 56

Case Commented On: Signalta Resources Limited v Canadian Natural Resources Limited, 2025 ABCA 306 (CanLII) and Signalta Resources Limited v Canadian Natural Resources Limited, 2023 ABKB 108 (CanLII).

PDF Version: Unlawful Production and Restitutionary Damages

There are two principal substantive issues in this important unanimous decision of the Alberta Court of Appeal (referred to as ABCA decision). The first issue relates to the rules pertaining to the right of a Crown oil sands lessee (Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNRL)) to produce gas cap (or non-solution) gas in the course of producing oil sands (or bitumen) when the Crown has leased the natural gas rights in the same location (and indeed the same formation) to another party (Signalta). The second substantive issue relates to the legal consequences of the unlawful production of somebody else’s natural gas, specifically the assessment of damages for such unlawful production.

The 2025 Mine Financial Security Program Update: Security Collected for Aging Syncrude Mine Offers a First Estimate of Mine Closure Costs

By Drew Yewchuk

On October 3, 2025

In Energy, Environmental, Natural Resources, Oil & Gas

By: Drew Yewchuk and Martin Olszynski

Documents Commented On: Annual Mine Financial Security Program Submissions 2025 Submissions for 2024 Reporting Year; Mine Financial Security Program – Security and Liability, September 29, 2025.

PDF Version: The 2025 Mine Financial Security Program Update: Security Collected for Aging Syncrude Mine Offers a First Estimate of Mine Closure Costs

This is our annual update post in response to submissions for the Mine Financial Security Program (MFSP) being posted to the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) website. See last year’s post here. The MFSP is Alberta’s troubled system for obtaining financial security to ensure the closure (decommissioning, remediation, and reclamation) of oilsands and coal mines when they stop operating. For a detailed assessment of the weaknesses in the MFSP, see our 2023 paper coauthored with Andrew Leach, “Not Fit for Purpose: Oil Sands Mines and Alberta’s Mine Financial Security Program”. The government conducted a review of the MFSP from 2021-2024 that concluded in February 2025 with minor changes that do not repair fundamental problems with the MFSP – see our post here.

The Mature Asset Strategy for Alberta’s Oil and Gas Closure Liability Crisis: Where there is Smoke [and Mirrors], there is Fire

By Martin Olszynski

On September 30, 2025

In Administrative Law, Energy, Environmental, Natural Resources, Oil & Gas

By: Martin Olszynski, Drew Yewchuk, and Shaun Fluker

Matter Commented On: Alberta’s Mature Asset Strategy: What we Heard and Recommendations Report, April 3, 2025

PDF Version: The Mature Asset Strategy for Alberta’s Oil and Gas Closure Liability Crisis: Where there is Smoke [and Mirrors], there is Fire

The Alberta government is poised yet again to change its policy direction for addressing the crisis of unfunded closure liabilities in the conventional oil and gas sector. The current yet-to-be-fully-implemented Liability Management Framework (LMF) was announced – to considerable fanfare – just five years ago, in what seemed like an exchange for $1 billion in federal COVID funding to be applied towards closure work on inactive and orphaned facilities. Now that this federal money has been spent (although $137 million was curiously not spent and had to be returned), and Alberta’s inactive well inventory appears to once again be growing, it is apparently time to abandon the LMF for a ‘new’ policy direction that, if nothing else, will once again delay actually dealing with the problem: enter the Mature Asset Strategy (MAS).

The Orphan Well Association Annual Report 2024/2025: The Sequoia Settlement Hits the Orphan Inventory

By Drew Yewchuk

On August 18, 2025

In Energy, Environmental, Oil & Gas

By: Drew Yewchuk

Matter Commented On: Orphan Well Association Annual Report 2024/2025

PDF Version: The Orphan Well Association Annual Report 2024/2025: The Sequoia Settlement Hits the Orphan Inventory

On July 15, 2025 the Orphan Well Association (OWA) released their Annual Report for 2024/2025. OWA annual reports provide insight into Alberta’s orphan oil and gas site problem and the pace at which the problem is being addressed (see the ABlawgs on past OWA annual reports: 2022/2023 and 2023/2024). The OWA annual report is separate from the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER)’s annual liability management performance reports, which ABlawg covered for 2022 and 2023. This blog summarizes the current state and foreseeable future of Alberta’s current orphan oil and gas site problem.

An Important Alberta Crown Lease Continuation Decision

By Nigel Bankes

On May 1, 2025

In Administrative Law, Land Use, Oil & Gas

By: Nigel Bankes

Case Commented On: APL Oil & Gas (1998) Ltd v Alberta, 2025 ABKB 201 (CanLII)

PDF Version: An Important Alberta Crown Lease Continuation Decision

In the natural resources sector, as in so many other industrial sectors that require major capital investments in physical assets, security of tenure for those engaging in exploration activities (resource lessees) is foundational. And a crucial part of security of tenure for a resource lessee is the expectation that, if they make a discovery, they will be able to hold on to that discovery at least until they have recovered all their investment including a return on risk capital, or better yet, until the discovery has been fully exploited and is no longer profitable to produce. On the other hand, the resource owner (whether private or public (Crown)) wants to ensure diligent exploration and development by the resource operator/lessee, failing which the property should be returned to the owner so as to allow the owner to explore other potential lessees.