OIL SANDS INVESTING

Did you know there are over 150 different skilled trades needed on a drilled oil well? Do you know how important skilled trades people are to the petroleum industry? The need for skilled trades in the oil and gas industry means there are many profitable career opportunities waiting for you in the oil fields of the world, especially now since there is a worldwide shortage of skilled trades people in the oil industry. Alberta Canada is one of those places.

You may be a hands-on sort of person who likes to:
• work with instruments and machinery, tools, and/or computers,
• do physical work outdoors,
• be able to move on whenever you want, and
• earn while you learn.

If any of the above appeal to you, working in one of the trades needed by the petroleum industry may be just the career you’re looking for. Among the trades necessary to keep the industry running are all sorts of people involved in designing, building, maintenance, fabrication, transportation, etc. as well as those needed to build, operate and maintain all the oil facilities and pipelines around the world.

With so many options available, recruiters are looking for trained people to fill the enormous opportunities in construction, manufacturing, and subcontracting work.

What Are Some of the Skilled Trades in the Oil and Gas Industry and What Do They Do?

Among the many options available, people can choose to be:

Rig Technicians

Rig technicians operate oil and gas rig drilling equipment. They are responsible for the maintenance of mechanical equipment such as engines and motors, transmissions, generators, etc. on the oil and gas drilling rigs.

Steamfitters & Pipefitters

Steamfitters and pipefitters are responsible for building and maintenance of piping systems used in the production and/or transportation of oil and gas.

Welders

Welders, using welding equipment and welding processes, weld various metals on rigs, pipelines, facilities, equipment, and plants.

Crane Operators

Crane operators work with cranes or draglines to move, lift and put large objects, machinery and equipment wherever they are needed. Crane operators are also responsible for rigging, setting up the cranes, as well as performing equipment inspection and maintenance.

Insulators

Insulators are involved with the application of insulating materials for plumbing, heating and cooling, pressure vessels, refrigeration systems and pipelines.

Machinists

Machinists deal with machine tools for cutting and grinding metal or plastic and various other materials for the production or modification of products.

Industrial Electricians

Industrial electricians are responsible for the installation, maintenance and repair of industrial systems for lighting, wiring for heating and other equipment, standby and emergency electrical systems, and industrial power distribution systems.

Industrial Instrument Mechanics

Industrial instrument mechanics deal with program monitoring, measuring and control instrumentation – installation, maintenance, calibration and repair.

Heavy Duty Equipment Mechanics/Technicians

Heavy duty equipment mechanics/technicians are responsible for the maintenance and repair of hydraulic and pneumatic systems, heavy-duty engines and support systems, as well as suspension and brake systems.

Industrial Millwrights & Mechanics Industrial millwrights and mechanics deal with the installation, dismantling, rebuilding or moving of mechanical equipment such as compressors, pumps, and turbines as well as other industrial machinery.

How do I Join the of Ranks Skilled Trades People?

The requirements for academic training and experience vary considerably, by your trade and your location.
• A high school diploma or its equivalent is usually required.
• For certification as a journey-person, you will need to pass an examination once you have completed your apprenticeship.

You will have to select a trade to begin this process, then arrange for your apprenticeship to be sponsored by an employer. If you live in Canada (each province has slightly different rules), you will need to register your apprenticeship with the provincial office. You can then start to earn while you learn!

What Sort of Working Conditions Am I likely to Encounter?

People in skilled trades work in every kind of environment – among others, industrial sites, offices, construction sites, fabrication shops, oil fields and oil rig drilling platforms offshore or in remote locations.

You job might be physically demanding or not, you might work at dizzying heights or in confined spaces. You may have to put up with severe weather conditions, dirt, fumes, dust and/or noise.

You may need to provide a clean driver’s license and your own transportation and probably your own tools. Depending on the job you do, you may work an 8 or 12 hour day, day or night shift, an ordinary 40-hour week, a 5 or 7-day work week, with or without overtime, and you may be required to be on-call at times.

Whatever the individual circumstances of your job, being part of the skilled trades in the oil and gas industry gives you flexibility, mobility and a certain level of security because if you get tired of any particular place or company, you can always go to another location taking your trade with you.

 

Skilled Trades in the Oil and Gas Industry

Canadian oil sands jobs are now a significant part of the employment picture, since we now have the technology to extract oil from the geological formations called shale formations, oil sands or tar sands. When we think about oil, the Middle East or the USA come to mind but with oil reserves second only to Saudi Arabia, Canada is the place, especially for Alberta and Saskatchewan oil field jobs. Canada actually has sufficient reserves to produce an estimated 2.5 million barrels of oil per day for the next 200 years!

Located in northeastern Alberta, Canada, the Athabasca oil sands are the world’s largest oil tar deposit. The same shale formation runs south into the USA, primarily in North Dakota, although  oil sands deposits have been found in Alabama, Alaska, California, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Southwest Texas and Utah.  In addition to Canada and the USA, oil sand deposits can also be found in Albania, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Indonesia, Jordan, Madagascar, Nigeria, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Tobago, Trinidad and Venezuela and 52 other countries.

Oil sands are extracted from open-pit mines by operations involving digging the oil-filled sand with huge shovels, transporting them to processing plants and separating the bitumen from the sand.  Most of the deposits, however, are located under at least 75 m of soil, shale and rock and must be extracted in-situ by some sort of steam assisted process.

Over the next 5 years, it is estimated that 340,000+ new jobs will be created from oil sands production. The jobs involved in the extraction of oil from sand or shale include (but are certainly not limited to) people working in the areas of the environment, engineering, geology, mining, construction, transportation, accounting and administration, and the support services for all of these.

The expected growth of oil sands production means that many more specialists will also be needed.  Depending on whether surface or in-situ mining is used, mine and subsurface geologists will be needed, plus reservoir engineers, geophysicists, computer modelers, policy specialists, reclamation specialists, environmental specialists, economists and many others.

With the exception of the specialists, oil sands jobs are a bit different from others in the oil industry because oil sands companies typically hire certified trades people, such as pipefitters, welders and rig welders, scaffolders, process and heavy equipment operators, etc. all of whom have their safety training tickets already.

Generally people filling oil sands jobs are employed either directly by the oil sands mining companies or by contractors which are often in construction. With oil sands, it is your skills, experience and education that will determine the job you will get, although people can work their way up through apprenticeship programs or by gaining their certifications through additional training. As mentioned earlier, mining companies and contractors will also need many skilled people as well.

Salaries for Canadian oil sands jobs depend on the person’s experience and the type of work being done.  This could mean an entry level laborer looking at available Fort McMurray jobs will start at $17/$18/hour.  If you are looking for such an entry level job, a word of warning – housing is very limited and expensive around Fort MacMurray, so as part of your search for jobs, be sure to research housing options as well or try to get housing included as part of the jobs package.

Canadian Oil Sands Jobs – Athabasca – Fort McMurray – Athabasca Oil Sands

The “mining” of Canada oil sands, as well as US oil sands offers significant job opportunities. The Alberta Oil Sands are described by the Canadians as deposits of a semi-solid, thick and sticky crude oil that must be heated so it will flow more easily. Otherwise, it is very thick, somewhat like molasses, when it is cold. It’s similar to what is called extra heavy oil in Venezuela where the oil there flows better due to the heat.

Right now, Canada is the only country that has a large-scale operation in collecting and refining oil from the oil sands. They are leading the way in the technology that will be used by other countries such as Russia, Venezuela, the Republic of the Congo, Tsimiroro (Madagascar) to produce oil from their oil sands as well. Read the rest of this entry »