(Above: Brian McAusland accepting award on behalf of Nexen from Tom Huffaker, CAPP VP of Policy and Environment)

On Tuesday, May 26, Nexen was recognized at the 2009 Canadian Association of Petroleum Producer’s (CAPP) Stewardship Dinner as a winner in the Social Performance category for the Balzac Crossfield Expansion Public Consultation project. Brian McAusland, our Responsible Care manager, was present along with other Nexen representatives to accept the award.

In 2006, Nexen’s Canadian Oil and Gas division undertook an ambitious strategy to license 15 new sour gas wells and five new pipelines within existing Nexen gas operations east of the Balzac gas processing plant. The emergency planning zones for these wells and pipelines would include a portion of the city of Calgary and would directly impact more than 600 rural residences located adjacent to the city’s northeast boundary.

Given the amount of negative publicity surrounding sour gas development, drilling and poor community consultation, applications from competitor companies previously presented to the Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) were either withdrawn or denied. Nexen’s project team was committed to demonstrating that such a project was viable and achievable through careful planning and consideration of the needs of all stakeholders. The ERCB granted Nexen unrestricted approval for its Balzac Crossfield Expansion application in January 2009.

“Nexen’s operating record, together with a transparent public consultation process offering full disclosure about the project played a tremendous role in achieving unrestricted approval from the Balzac Crossfield Expansion program,” said Marvin Romanow, Nexen President and CEO. “The success of this project is a testament to Nexen’s values and beliefs, high standards and dedicated staff.”

Watch a video about the Balzac Crossfield Expansion Public Consultation project.

CAPP represents 130 companies that explore for, develop and produce more than 90 per cent of Canada’s natural gas and crude oil. The CAPP industry awards, which have been held since 2001, present awards in four categories: Environmental Performance, Health and Safety Performance, Social Performance and the President’s Award. To read more about CAPP Stewardship, visit their website.

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