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How to apply to the Ministry of Energy and Resources to construct and operate an upstream oil and gas facility in the province.
A facility licence must be obtained from the ministry before constructing and operating an upstream oil and gas facility in Saskatchewan.
Please refer to the following legislative requirements, directives and guidance documents for information on the construction and operation of oil and gas facilities in Saskatchewan. These documents will assist you in applying for a licence:
Before applying for an upstream facility licence, you must:
NOTE: Licensees that solely hold well/facility licences for purposes other than oil and gas production (such as potash mining, storage facilities, waste facilities, helium, lithium, etc.) may be eligible for an exemption from the Security Deposit requirements under the LLR Program and/or annual Orphan Fund Levy. If a licensee is acquiring licences for the first time and would like to be considered for the exemption, please contact the ER.Servicedesk@gov.sk.ca with subject “Attn: Liability Regulations – non oil and gas producer” and provide supporting evidence for the ministry to review.
To apply for a licence to construct and operate an upstream facility:
To apply to decommission a facility licence:
Routine and Non-Routine Application
Facility Licence applications are classified either as Routine or Non-Routine in IRIS.
Routine Facility Licence Applications:
The applicant self-declares they meet all the necessary requirements and setbacks. These applications are issued automatically and do not require the ministry to review the application and make a decision.
Non-Routine Facility Licence Applications:
Based on the declarations made by the applicant, IRIS identifies that the licence application requires additional review before a facility licence can be issued. Non-Routine Facility Licence applications will require at least one of the ministries input to review the submitted application and make a decision on the application.
Facility Infrastructure ID, Facility Infrastructure Status and Facility Site ID
A single facility licence or combination of facility licences issued at the same surface location to an individual licensee is considered a site and each site is issued a Facility Site ID. Each facility licence is issued a Facility Infrastructure ID. The Facility Infrastructure ID status represents the state of the physical facility as planned, constructed, operating or decommissioned and the facility licence status would be issued, cancelled or suspended.
Request for S-20 Documentation Attachment
If flaring and/or venting is greater than 900 m3/day or the site is flaring and/or venting gas containing 10 moles per kilomole of H2S or greater, the following S-20 Compliance Documentation for the facility will be required with the licence application:
Acceptable documentation includes:
A declaration from certified personnel stating the operational limits of the combustion device or scrubber on site is designed to handle the expected volumes.
Air Dispersion Model Attachment
If flaring and/or venting is greater than 900 m3/day and the gas contains 10 moles per kilomole of H2S or greater, the aforementioned S-20 Compliance Documentation is required and a dispersion model must be submitted to ensure that Saskatchewan Ambient Air Quality Standards (SAAQS) are being met. The dispersion model should be conducted in accordance with Saskatchewan Air Quality Modelling Guideline, 2012.
Construction Notification Obligation
Once the facility has been constructed the Construction Completion obligation on the facility licence can be fulfilled. To fulfill this obligation, complete the Facility Site Construction Completion Report under Infrastructure to report the completion of construction. Enter the facility site number in the Setup screen. In the report screen select the Facility Site and disclose if it has been completed as planned and enter the construction date. If construction has been completed as planned the Construction Completion obligation will now be fulfilled in the facility infrastructure. If the construction has not been completed as planned any changes to the survey, equipment spacing and process flow diagram will be declared in the Construction Completion Report. The new documents will then be uploaded to their respective obligations in the facility site in IRIS. When Construction Completion obligation is fulfilled the appropriate field office will be notified and the facility licence number will become available in Petrinex.
Report Facility Production Through Petrinex
The facility licence number can be used to obtain a Facility ID when the Construction Completion Obligation is fulfilled. Petrinex is the system industry uses to report volumetric, valuation and royalty taxpayer and some infrastructure data to the Government of Saskatchewan.
Emergency Planning Zones (EPZ)
An EPZ is a geographical area surrounding a well, pipeline, or facility containing hazardous product that requires specific emergency response planning by the licensee. An EPZ will be requested when the H2S concentration on a facility licence application is 1 mol/kmol or greater. If the EPZ encompasses any dwellings or public facilities, consultation with the persons or entities directly affected by an EPZ will be required. The recommended method for calculating the EPZ is AER's ERCBH2S Model.
As part of EPZ development, the following information should be provided to persons or entities directly affected by an EPZ:
The activities described in this subsection should include a request for the person or entity receiving the information to also provide the operator with:
Sour Gas Management System
A facility licence application that has concentrations of H2S of 10 mol/kmol or greater will have further questions on the sour gas management system on the application. There will be a drop down list where you can choose one or multiple options that best describe the system.
Is Combustion System Engineered?
This question is displayed when flare stack and/or incinerator has been selected as the sour gas management system. This question is referencing Directive S-20: Saskatchewan Upstream Flaring and Incineration Requirements compliance for the flare stack and/or incinerator. Answering 'Yes' indicates that the flare stack and/or incinerator is compliant with Directive S-20. Answering 'No' indicates that the flare stack and/or incinerator is not compliant with Directive S-20 and an exemption will be required to be reviewed by the ministry.
Inactive Licence Expiry
A facility licence will expire because of inactivity. A new facility licence will expire two years from the date of issue if construction and notification of the upstream facility has not been completed. This means that within a two-year time period, the facility must be at a stage where it is capable of performing the function that it was licensed to perform. After two years if construction is not completed or ER was not notified of the completed construction, ER will cancel the licence and remove it from the active records. It is the licensee's responsibility to ensure that the facility licence is still valid and has not expired prior to initiating any activity associated with the licence.
If an applicant does not intend to proceed with the licence, it may also contact ER Service Desk to request a cancellation of the licence.
Facility Licence Amendment
2S concentration, adding an additional facility licence type to an existing licensed facility site or an increase of the design inlet rate.
For example, if compression is added to an existing oil battery such that the new total compression exceeds 250hp, the compressor requires its own facility licence or if water disposal/injection is being added to an existing oil battery a water disposal/injection licence is required.
When a facility licence is being amended, the applicant will amend all facility licences associate with a Facility Site.
Facility Licence Resubmission
A licence resubmission is required if a previous licence application was denied. The user may enter the previous submission number from IRIS and will have the ability to clone the previously denied application and make the necessary changes to the application.
Pressure Safety Valve and Pop Tank Requirements
The pressure safety valve or relief device from a pressure vessel at an oil or gas facility should be connected to a pop tank or flare system. The relief system must be designed such that when the pressure-relief device activates, the relief system can safely manage the pressure and flow and withstand the increase in pressure without being damaged.
If the licensee does not utilize a pop tank or flare system in association with the relief device, the system must be engineered to ensure in an over-pressure scenario, product of any kind from an oil or gas well or facility shall be allowed to freely flow to the surrounding land.
An engineered system includes the following:
A pop tank is by definition open to atmosphere; therefore, if an operator directs a pressure relief device at an oil facility where the H2S content is greater than 10 mol/kmol to a pop tank, there must be redundant (i.e., two sets of) sensors and controls for both high pressure and high level installed on the pressure vessels.
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