Frequently Asked Questions

What Is an Orphan?

In the upstream oil and gas industry, an orphan is a well, pipeline, facility or associated site which has been investigated and confirmed as not having any legally responsible or financially able party to deal with its abandonment and reclamation.

Who is the Orphan Well Association?

The Orphan Well Association or OWA is a not for profit organization unique to the province of Alberta which was created from the work of many genuinely concerned individuals from our oil and gas industry and from our provincial government. We operate under the delegated authority of the Energy Resources Conservation Board or ERCB, the provincial regulators of the oil and gas industry.

The purpose of the OWA is to manage the abandonment and reclamation of upstream oil and gas orphan wells, pipelines, facilities and their associated sites.

The OWA provides information on our activities to a stakeholder group known as the Fund Advisory Committee or FAC. The FAC provides advice and input into the ongoing development of government policies related to upstream oil and gas orphans. Members of the FAC include representatives from industry - Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), Small Explorers and Producers Association of Canada (SEPAC), and representatives from our provincial government - the Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB), Alberta Environment (AENV), Alberta Department of Energy (AE), and Alberta Sustainable Resource Development (ASRD).

Who Pays For This?

The OWA operates under the direction of its members who include: the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), the Small Explorers and Producers Association of Canada (SEPAC), and the ERCB. Industry funds all of the costs incurred by the OWA, mostly through an Orphan Fund Levy. This levy is based on the abandonment and reclamation liabilities held by each company and it is collected annually by the ERCB and remitted to the OWA.

Who Can I Call?

If you have any questions or concerns about possible orphans, please contact your local ERCB or AENV field office for investigation. Wells, pipelines and facilities before they are abandoned, fall under the jurisdiction of the ERCB. Once these are abandoned properly, any reclamation concerns including contamination, fall under the jurisdiction of Alberta Environment or AENV.

When the investigation of a potential orphan has been completed, the ERCB may designate or deem it as an orphan. After steps have been taken to give proper legal authority to the OWA to abandon or reclaim the deemed orphans, the OWA can then conduct the abandonment and reclamation.

How Do I Take Over An Orphan Well?

The ERCB processes applications for transfer of well licences, even those for orphan wells. Therefore, any party wishing to acquire an orphan well has to apply to ERCB in accordance with section 24(6) of the Oil and Gas Conservation Act to request that the Board direct the transfer of the well licence. It is the Enforcement Section of the Corporate Compliance Group that processes Board Directed Transfer applications. The application comes with a fee of $10,000 per licence in accordance with section 17.010(d.1) of the Oil and Gas Conservation Regulations. The money is paid into the ERCB but ultimately flows to the Orphan Well Association to help fund the abandonment and reclamation of orphaned sites. Please contact Valerie Vogt at (403) 297-8448 for more information.

A party wishing to hold a licence for an orphan well has to qualify to be the licensee of the well by having the right to the purpose to the wellbore (i.e., normally an active mineral lease, but can be the right to produce water or the right to inject or dispose into the well), and having the right to access the surface of the well site (i.e., a valid surface lease).

If the well is attached to an expired Crown Mineral lease, then the party wishing to acquire the well licence also has to apply to the Department of Energy for the right to the wellbore. This is normally an administrative process which the Department of Energy typically approves once it is satisfied that the ERCB will transfer the well licence to the same party.

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If you would like further information about our organization or would like to know who to contact at the ERCB or AENV with your concerns, please feel free to contact:

Patricia Payne, P.Eng.
Manager, Orphan Well Association
Toll free during office hours 310-0000,
ask for ERCB switchboard (403) 297-8311,
ask for OWA or email: pat.payne@ercb.ca