Albert Oil Shale Project
Altius' Albert Oil Shale Project is located in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. This project represents the company's entry into unconventional petroleum resources that are of increasing interest in a sustained high oil price environment. Altius has a single licence covering 97 square kilometres that was successfully acquired through a tender process conducted by the New Brunswick government.
Oil shale or bituminous shale are general terms applied to a group of fine grained, black sedimentary rocks that are rich enough in solid hydrocarbon material, called kerogen, to yield petroleum liquids when the rock is heated.
The oil shales of southeast New Brunswick are considered to be among some of the most significant unconventional hydrocarbon resources of its kind in Canada. Extensive kerogen-rich shale intervals occur within the Albert Formation in the Moncton sub-basin of southeast New Brunswick, which is an active area of oil and gas exploration and development.
The resources at the Albert Oil Shale Project have been studied in some detail near the village of Albert Mines, where a potentially significant resource is apparent but has not been reliably quantified to date. Limited exploration in this area indicate that the oil shale may yield an average of 75-100 litres per tonne over a large area and offers good exploration and development potential should appropriate technologies be developed and successfully applied.
Altius is one of a handful of companies in North America with an active oil shale project and it is one of very few companies to hold a licence over a significant oil shale resource. Our objective is to explore, measure and characterize the oil shale resources while seeking a partner that can contribute substantial technical and financial resources to advance the project.