Today at approximately 1:30 p.m., there was a tube failure in the 8-2 CO (carbon monoxide) Boiler at Syncrude’s Mildred Lake site that required the unit to be taken offline immediately for emergency repairs.
(Fort McMurray, Alberta) – Today at approximately 1:30 p.m., there was a tube failure in the 8-2 CO (carbon monoxide) Boiler at Syncrude’s Mildred Lake site that required the unit to be taken offline immediately for emergency repairs. To allow the necessary repairs to be completed safely, gas from Coker 8-2 is being diverted from the boiler so that it goes to atmosphere through the Diverter Stack. At this time the extent of the required work is unknown, and a team of experts has been assembled to manage the issue.
“We regret that this incident has occurred one week after a similar occurrence with our other CO Boiler 8-1,” said Jim Carter, Syncrude President and Chief Operating Officer. “The health and safety of our employees and the community remains our priority. I want to stress that all necessary precautions have been put in place, including increased monitoring of the site, to ensure that all employees and contractors are not exposed to any undue risk.”
Currently Syncrude’s Environmental Department is monitoring on-site air emissions. Off-site air monitoring is via the Wood Buffalo Environmental Association’s (WBEA) air monitoring network that includes stations in close proximity to the Syncrude site, as well as ones in Fort McMurray and Fort McKay. Information on this off-site monitoring is available at http://www.wbea.org/.
All key stakeholders are being informed and Alberta Environment has been notified and will review our key recovery plans. Ongoing environmental air monitoring continues in conjunction with the appropriate agencies, including the WBEA, Alberta Environment and AEUB.
Coker feed rates are reduced and Syncrude’s Upgrading Operations has taken other measures to minimize the Diverter Stack emissions during the maintenance shutdown. This reduction is anticipated to have minimal impact on crude oil shipments.
Further updates will be issued as additional information becomes available.
The Syncrude Project is a joint venture operated by Syncrude Canada Ltd. and owned by Canadian Oil Sands Limited, ConocoPhillips Oilsands Partnership II, Imperial Oil Resources, Mocal Energy Limited, Murphy Oil Company Ltd., Nexen Inc., and Petro-Canada Oil and Gas.
Trading Symbols for Public Syncrude Joint Venture Owners
| Canadian Oil Sands Trust (via Canadian Oil Sands Limited and Canadian Oil Sands Limited Partnership) | COS.UN-TSX |
| ConocoPhillips Oilsands Partnership II | COP/NYSE |
| Imperial Oil Resources | IMO-TSX |
| Murphy Oil Company Ltd. | MUR-NYSE |
| Nexen Inc. | NXY-TSX/NYSE |
| Petro-Canada | PCA-TSX/PCZ-NYSE |
