Oil Sands Producer Preparing for Unplanned Maintenance Shutdown

---

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)-- Nexen Incorporated (NYSE:NXY) (Calgary, Alberta) and OPTI Canada Incorporated (TSX:OPC) (Calgary) are preparing an unplanned maintenance shutdown at the jointly owned Long Lake Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) oil sands project. The plant will be shut down for two weeks in August to replace valves and perform modifications to the steam generators.

The Long Lake facility is built to produce 58,500 barrels per day (BBL/d) of synthetic 39° API sweet crude from 72,000 BBL/d of bitumen, from 81 SAGD well pairs. There are more than 2 billion barrels of recoverable reserves and resources at Long Lake, which translates to a reserve life of about 40 years.

Production is averaging 13,000 BBL/d of bitumen production because of steam generation issues. Nexen and OPTI expect that, once the modifications are complete, the facility will be able to reach full production in late 2010.

Nexen has received regulatory approvals to proceed with development phases two and three. The company is performing internal evaluations to determine when to proceed with the project. When the next two phases are complete, an additional 140,000 BBL/d of bitumen production will be brought online in two 70,000-BBL/d phases.

In 2001, Nexen and OPTI Canada formed a joint venture to develop the Long Lake project. In January 2009, Nexen acquired an additional 15% interest in the project and 25,382 hectares (or 98 sections) of land from OPTI Canada for C$735 million (then US$608 million), making Nexen the sole operator of the facility. Long Lake began steam injection in mid-April 2007. Start-up of the upgrader and production of first synthetic crude was announced on January 22.

View Plant Profile - 1059422
View Project Report - 056000748 056000875 056000753 056001584

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy related markets. For more than 26 years, Industrial Info has provided plant and project opportunity databases, market forecasts, high resolution maps, and daily industry news.