Petrospec: A Robust Sustainable Energy Portfolio Worth Watching

Canada is quickly returning to #1 in global technology development, and Petrospec is leading the charge in breakthrough technologies.

“Our sustainable energy portfolio is sixteen years in the making,” shares Gerry Chalifoux, President and CEO of Petrospec Engineering Inc.  “We aim to improve operational efficiency and performance for our customers, while we also focus on emissions reduction and, of course, abating climate change.”

Chalifoux has played a pivotal role in the industry since the late 80s, and worked for Amoco Canada in many roles including operations engineer on their first SAGD project back in its pioneering days. 

Over the last two decades, companies have been working on refining existing technologies, mainly because of economic constraints.  “In 2015, there were a whopping 43 companies operating SAGD projects.  Today, there are only 19.  The turn-around over the last few years has been really exciting though, and now we can break new ground again within the energy technology sphere,” Chalifoux said.

Petrospec’s portfolio includes a select group of products and services that reduce their customers’ greenhouse gas emissions while continuing to drive high performance, reliability, and efficiency.

These innovative technologies top the list:

• Dispersed Solvent Vapor Drainage (DSVD™) featuring Dimethyl Ether (DME)

DSVD™ is a new bitumen recovery technology that involves Petrospec’s patented electric in situ solvent vaporization tool with reservoir temperature maintenance (RTM) wells.  Compared to hydrocarbon solvents with steam, this technology provides superior economic, environmental, and operational performance improvements, resulting in a zero-emissions plant facility by virtue of the process utilizing CO₂. 

By blending DME with water, we can see a low-cost hydrogen future and the opportunities that offers us on a global scale.  For example, the hydrogen produced by our micro-reactor using a DME/water blend as fuel may be used to supply a fuel cell in an electric vehicle, or hydrogen-powered turbine engines in aircrafts.

• Power-Tube™

Petrospec’s Power-Tube™ is a coiled tubing-deployed system for electric submersible pumps (ESP’s) and electric submersible PC pumps (ES-PCP’s).  All power and sensor cables are pre-packaged within the coiled tubing at our facility and connected to any third-party vendor pump using our pump head assembly.  The result is rapid live well interventions in conventional and thermal wells and negating up to 80% of the emissions generated by conventional pump changes.

Power-Tube™ is engineered to suit specific well applications, and no modifications to vendor’s equipment are required.

These technologies enable novel methods of improving their customers’ overall operational performance today while creating a viable path towards a carbon-free economy tomorrow. That certainly makes the energy industry a sound investment for all.

Gerry Chalifoux will share more about innovations for cleaner production at the World Petroleum Congress on Sept.19, which takes place in Calgary this year.

About Petrospec Engineering

Established in 1997, Petrospec is proud to be a leading provider of turn-key reservoir monitoring systems for oil and gas operators.  We strive to improve efficiency, meet high safety standards, and provide equipment and software for harsh environments.  Our Edmonton-based company is a global innovator in downhole instrumentation, production optimization, and the accurate measurement of temperature, pressure, acoustics, and flow.