NorthAmOil: Wildfires threaten 10% of Alberta’s oil output, says report

Wildfires in Canada’s oilpatch, Alberta, are threatening almost 10% of output, reports Bloomberg.

As much as 388,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil output and 13,400 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) of gas on Tuesday were within 10 kilometres of fires at least 10 hectares in size, according to Alberta Wildfire and Alberta Energy Regulator data for June cited by the news service.

According to the Globe & Mail, about 170 wildfires were burning, of which 53 were out of control. Most were in the northern part of the province, where the oil sands industry is centred around Fort McMurray.

Several oil-sands companies had reduced staff to the essentials. Evacuation of one of Canada’s largest national parks, Jasper, had also been forced; it is tourist season.

Goldman Sachs says the worst may yet be to come, with months of fire season left. Still, so far the disruption has been minimal.

"Rising concerns over spreading Canada wildfires have not materialised into severe production disruptions yet, with our Canada production nowcast increasing in July, in line with our expectations," the bank said in a note cited by Reuters.