Projects in Communities
Complex projects located near communities may require additional communication and status updates. If you have any additional questions or concerns pertaining to the sites in this section, please contact community@orphanwell.ca.
The Town of Bonnyville
Bonnyville Historic Well Re-Entry Program
2026 Project Schedule
Bonnyville Community Update
Bonnyville Historic Well Re-Entry Project Introduction
Background
Following the 2025 field testing program completed by the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), four (4) historic, decommissioned wells were found to be leaking small volumes of sweet natural gas within the Town of Bonnyville. The wells were drilled between 1949 and 1953 and are licensed to the defunct companies Joseph Alexender Duboc, Consolidated Bonnyville Limited, and Trican Petro-Chemical Corporation. The AER has directed the Orphan Well Association (OWA) to re-enter the wells in order to address the minor gas migration (GM) concerns. One well is located on the northwest bank of Jessie Lake and the other three are located on the Bonnyville Rodeo Grounds.
Assurance of Safety
Previous testing results have indicated that there are no immediate threats to public safety as all four wells are spaced away from buildings and surface infrastructure. Furthermore, access for re-entry is anticipated to be minimally disruptive to the community.
Wellhead Installation: Early to Mid-July 2026
The OWA plans to install wellheads on the four wells early to mid-July 2026. During this work-phase the buried well casing will be exposed at each well and a wellhead will be installed to enable testing and monitoring. Typically, the wellhead installation will be completed within one day at each well.
Monitoring Work: Mid July through Early October 2026
Following the installation of the wellheads, crews will continue monitoring the wells to enable the preparation of the re-entry programming. During this monitoring, gas levels will be tested and public safety will continue to be assured.
Commencement of Well Re-entry Program: Fall / Winter 2026
After the well monitoring and program preparation, the re-entry work will begin. While the equipment used during this phase will be confirmed following the monitoring program, it is anticipated that the re-entry work will be completed with a service rig. A service rig is much smaller than a traditional drilling rig and will help ensure minimal disruption to the community. Operations will be typically confined to standard working hours of 7am to 7pm and may include temporary disruptions to traffic along with elevated noise. The OWA will work with the Town of Bonnyville to minimize impacts to the community throughout the project. Following the re-entry operations, the wells will be re-cemented and, pending additional confirmatory monitoring, will be cut and capped below surface.
Stay Up-To-Date – Throughout the re-entry program, the OWA will continue to post project iinformation on our website http://www.orphanwell.ca/community/
Questions? – If you have questions about this project; please email us at info@orphanwell.ca.