Rangeland to begin building Marten Hills pipeline

EDMONTON Construction on a new oil pipeline serving the Marten Hills region of north central Alberta is set to start soon, with contractors mobilizing beginning next Monday.

The system of new crude oil and condensate pipelines will extend about 85 kilometres, ending at an interconnect at Plains Midstream Canada’s Rainbow Pipeline System, which serves the Edmonton hub and refining market.

“This is our first asset in Canada, and we’re really excited about it. It’s a pretty significant piece of the pie,” said John Millar, senior vice-president and chief commercial officer of Rangeland Energy, headquartered in Sugar Land, Texas. Millar said the economics for oil and gas producers in the Clearwater Formation are “very compelling.”

The project could create about 100 construction jobs, as well as full-time operator jobs in a potential field office in Athabasca, 145 kilometres north of Edmonton, said Millar.

The Canadian subsidiary of Rangeland Energy, Rangeland Midstream Canada, was formed in 2016 to serve oil and gas producers in Western Canada. Its Calgary office has five employees.

The Marten Hills system is expected to come into service in the second quarter of 2020.

Three of the region’s largest crude oil producers have made a combined minimum-volume commitment representing 40 per cent of the system’s capacity.

The agreements span a 450,000acre area of mutual interest dedicated to the Marten Hills system.

Millar said he expects that within a year of starting up the pipe, Rangeland will be expanding it.