Thank you, Mr. Chair, Hon. Mr. McKay, and distinguished members of Parliament.
I thank you for inviting me to make a presentation on Gradek Energy Inc.'s technology.
Imagine if we had the technology to clean up tailings ponds. Imagine if Canada could extract oil sands without creating a tailings pond. What if we had a new technology?
Gradek Energy Inc. is an innovative cleantech company that has designed an energy-efficient, reusable, environmentally responsible, hydrocarbon separation technology that can be used to assist the Canadian oil sands industry achieve its ultimate goal, which is sustainable production growth, together with reclamation and restoration of operating sites in a timely and cost-efficient manner.
Gradek Energy Inc.'s pilot plant has proven that its proprietary RHS process is capable of treating tailings by separating hydrocarbons from solids while recovering valuable bitumen and recycling warm process water.
According to an independent study conducted in July 2010, the Oil Sands Research and Information Network estimated that in 2008, about 750 million cubic metres of tailings existed within Alberta's tailings ponds. The study predicts that if there is no change in tailings management, the inventory of fluid tailings is forecast to reach one billion cubic metres in 2014 and two billion cubic metres in 2034. The growth in tailings volumes attest that current technologies have not been successful in meeting the criteria and objectives as outlined by directive 074 of the Energy Resources Conservation Board and by the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency.
The criteria and objectives can be summarized as follows: to minimize and eventually eliminate long-term storage of fluid tailings in the reclamation landscape; to maximize intermediate process water, recycling it to increase energy efficiency and to reduce freshwater import; to minimize loss of valuable resource associated with tailings ponds; to create a trafficable landscape at the earliest opportunity to facilitate progressive reclamation; to eliminate or reduce containment of fluid tailings in an external tailings disposal area during operations; to reduce stored process-affected waste water volumes on site; and to ensure that the liability for tailings is managed through reclamation of tailings ponds.
The Pembina Institute and the Water Matters Society of Alberta conducted a review of the submitted tailings plans. They found that only two of the nine mine projects would meet the requirements for the regulations to reduce toxic tailings starting in 2011. The proposals for the other seven projects would not meet the targets for reducing tailings by 2011. Furthermore, a number of project proposals indicated that they would not meet reductions until 2023, and would not meet rules for developing solid surfaces for over 40 years.
This reality will have a direct negative impact on the perception of sustainable energy development in the Canadian oil sands. Gradek Energy Inc. can mitigate this by deployment of its technology to help Canadian oil sands operators meet criteria and objectives as outlined by directive 074, the Energy Resources Conservation Board, and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency.
The reusable hydrocarbon sorbent technology is an organic bipolymer bead that allows instantaneous hydrocarbon recovery upon direct physical contact without the need for any catalyst or chemical reaction. I have brought with me some samples in order to show you the process. The attraction of hydrocarbons to the RHS beads is strictly a physical attraction, causing no alteration to the absorbed hydrocarbons, thereby providing the perfect transport medium to extract hydrocarbons from any stream with minimal energy requirements.
In June 2010 Gradek Energy Inc. commissioned, in collaboration with a major Canadian oil sands operator, a three-and-a-half tonne per hour pilot plant to test the proprietary bitumen recovery process using RHS bipolymer beads. The pilot plant is located in the heart of the Montreal East petrochemical refinery district. The pilot plant benefits from access to qualified petrochemical expertise and a full-scale bitumen laboratory, including monitored security and established best safety practices. The facility currently employs seven full-time specialized workers and carries out research and development for advanced testing and process improvement.
The pilot plant is currently processing over 300 cubic metres of Alberta oil sands tailings. Based on pilot plant test results to date, Gradek Energy Inc.'s bitumen recovery process has achieved the following results: greater than 98% bitumen and total petroleum hydrocarbon recovery; 95% naphthenic acid reduction; over 60% of process-affected water is recyclable, and at a high temperature; high confidence of the economic viability of the business model; and feasible scale-up designs and performance.
On conclusion of the pilot test protocol, Gradek Energy Inc. will build a 500-ton-per-hour commercial prototype of the RHS bitumen recovery process in Alberta. Gradek Energy Inc. has attracted international recognition, and, in pursuit of a bold vision, has formed a strategic collaboration with Veolia Water Solutions and Technologies North America and BASF Global, which are keen to contribute their extensive expertise in engineering, testing and design, project management, and construction and operating experience to ensure operational success of the commercial prototype.
BASF is the world’s leading chemical company, employing over 111,000 employees in 370 production sites worldwide and serving customers and partners in almost all countries of the world. Veolia is a wholly owned subsidiary of Veolia Environnement, a publicly listed company on the New York and Paris stock exchanges with a $5 billion capital market, operating in 69 countries with 96,650 employees.
In summary, Gradek strives to become the partner of choice to the Canadian oil sands industry for the provision of tailings management services. The near-term objective is to offer a sustainable solution for tailings management that will favourably position the Canadian oil sands on the international scene. Gradek’s hydrocarbon recovery process translates into significant value added by allowing Canadian oil sands operators to increase bitumen production in an environmentally sustainable manner by transforming tailing stream waste into a clean and alternative energy source.
The main challenges and barriers to innovation, development, and deployment of Gradek technology have been determined to be access to necessary financial and human resources to bridge technology from development stage to commercial deployment, collaboration and alignment between industry operators and technology providers, and timely access to tailing ponds. As well, the Canadian renewable and conservation expenses program has not evolved to consider the growing importance and visibility of the Canadian oil sands industry and does not encourage innovation regarding waste heat recovery, water conservation, and resource maximization.
The role of the federal government to foster innovation and deployment would be to adapt the CRCE to incorporate investments in innovation regarding Canadian oil sands tailings reclamation; to formulate policy and metrics to recognize the transformation of extracted bitumen from Canadian oil sands waste tailings into a clean alternative energy source; to play a proactive role in promoting the adoption of innovation to achieve internationally recognized low carbon fuel standards; to level the playing field for the competitive benefit of the Canadian oil sands industry by permitting the expansion of production in an environmentally sustainable manner without increasing the carbon footprint, using Gradek’s technology; and to facilitate the collaboration from a Canadian oil sands operator by providing incentives to implement the commercial prototype on a small-scale settling pond and conduct temporary and/or permanent reclamation testing.
Thank you very much.