A new processing plant for sweet, liquid-rich gas is being built in the Rocky Mountain House area.
Ground is being broken for Devon Canada’s Ferrier gas processing facility, which is expected to produce 100 million cubic feet of gas a day when operational, and also process, in an adjacent facility, 5,000 barrels of oil daily.
Nadine Barber, public affairs officer for the Calgary-based company, said about 150 workers will be needed during this construction phase, which will also require additional pipeline installers from the region.
The new gas processing plant is expected to become operational in the greater Rocky Mountain House area in the second half of 2014 with a full-time staff of 10 to 12 people, said Barber.
Devon Canada, with offices in Red Deer and Rocky, is advertising for various positions, including electricians, field operators, mechanics and millwrights, pipefitters and instrumentation technicians.
An open house recently held in Rocky by Devon — which was selected by Fortune 100 as one of 2013’s Best Companies To Work For — was well attended.
Barber said, “With the interest of the local folks it was apparent there is lots of great talent in the area.”
The company did not release information about the cost of the new plant, but Barber said Devon finds it “economically expedient” to build it.
While dry gas production is not economically viable at this time, Barber said there are strong markets for liquid-rich gases, which are demanded by the chemical industry and other users. Liquid rich gases contain butane, propane and other organic compounds.
Devon Canada has been operating in the Rocky area since 1969.
The company already runs two other facilities in the region, most significantly, the 1-20 Ferrier gas plant, which predates Rocky’s National Historic Site and partially operates in the national park.
Anyone interested in learning more about job prospects at the new plant can visit jobs.dvn.com.
lmichelin@www.reddeeradvocate.com