Canadian Wildfires Threaten Oil Output, Prompt Evacuations

Wildfires in Canada’s energy-producing Alberta province are threatening almost 10% of the region’s oil production and forcing the evacuation of one of the country’s largest national parks during the peak summer tourist season.

Hot weather has contributed to a wildfire outbreak in Western Canada, with 170 burning in Alberta alone — 53 of them out of control. The equivalent of about 388,000 barrels a day of oil output and 13,400 barrels a day of natural gas are within 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) of blazes that are at least 10 hectares (25 acres) in size, according to Alberta Wildfire geographic data and Alberta Energy Regulator June production data.

The situation also endangers tourism in the Canadian Rockies, with a fire prompting the evacuation of the scenic Jasper National Park late Monday, a place that attracts millions of tourists a year who come to see the mountains, glaciers and abundant wildlife. Several other rural communities in Alberta are also under evacuation orders for a total of about 17,500 people who have left their homes due to blazes, Mike Ellis, Alberta’s minister of public safety and emergency services, said in a video update.

Earlier this month, Suncor Energy Inc. curtailed output from its Firebag oil sands well site northeast of Fort McMurray, which produced more than 230,000 barrels of crude a day in June. Junior oil and gas producer Altair Energy was forced to shut and evacuate its Charlie site north of Grande Prairie, when a wildfire overran the facility.

MEG Energy Corp. has evacuated some workers from its Christina Lake oil sands site and Cenovus Energy Inc. has removed some workers from its Sunrise facility. Imperial Oil Ltd. has also evacuated some staff from its Kearl oil sands mine.