Alberta Oilsands acquires Athabasca leases
Alberta Oilsands Inc (C:AOS)
Shares Issued 39,025,144
Last Close 9/5/2007 $1.34
Wednesday September 05 2007 - News Release
Mr. Shabir Premji reports
ALBERTA OILSANDS INC. OPERATIONAL AND FINANCIAL UPDATE
Alberta Oilsands Inc. (AOS) has acquired 22.5 sections (14,400 acres) of contiguous oil sands leases, at 100-per-cent working interest, in the heart of the Athabasca oil sands fairway near Fort McMurray.
To date there have been five penetrations drilled on the acquired oil sands leases surrounded by approximately 100 wells drilled on adjacent sections that confirms the presence of the reservoir oil sands with bitumen pay thickness ranging from 25 to 60 metres. The Alberta Energy and Utilities Board crude bitumen reserves atlas estimates that the leases contain undiscovered resource in excess of two billion barrels of original bitumen in place (OBIP).
Drilling is planned for the 2007/first quarter 2008 season to further delineate the potential for an in situ project. The prospective zone on the oil sand leases is the McMurray formation, which comprises high-quality fluvial and estuarine channel sands. The company has engaged Ryder Scott Petroleum Consultants to complete a National Instrument 51-101-compliant resource assessment on the acquired leases.
The acquisition of the additional oil sands leases increases the company's land base to a total of 107.5 sections (68,800 acres). The acquired leases in conjunction with AOS's Hangingstone assets will form the basis of the company's plan for a series of successive in situ bitumen extraction projects, likely applying SAGD (steam-assisted gravity drainage) technology.
In addition, AOS has acquired and interpreted 60 kilometres of trade 2-D seismic on its 23-section Hangingstone parcel. The data reveal four main anomalies indicating potential bitumen pay similar to the Hangingstone Meadow Creek reservoir to the south.
Shabir Premji, executive chairman of the company, stated: "AOS is very pleased to have added this large-scale oil sands property to its portfolio. We intend to aggressively pursue moving this resource to the reserves category."
As at Sept. 5, 2007, AOS had positive working capital of $14.5-million.
