Operations Review
First Quarter 2012 Operations Review
- First quarter production was a record 94,970 boe per day, 29 per cent higher than the first quarter of 2011 and three per cent higher than the fourth quarter of 2011;
- Liquids production increased to 36,136 barrels per day, 10 per cent higher relative to both the first quarter of 2011 and the fourth quarter of 2011;
- First quarter production comprised 62 per cent natural gas and 38 per cent crude oil and liquids while crude oil and liquids contributed 74 per cent of first quarter revenue on the strength of crude oil prices;
- ARC commissioned the new 30 mmcf per day Ante Creek gas processing facility in late February. The increased gas processing capacity will facilitate production growth for both oil and liquids at Ante Creek as liquids production from the field was previously constrained by solution gas processing capacity;
- First quarter capital expenditures totaled $186.9 million, and included the drilling of 59 gross operated wells with a 100 per cent success rate;
- Oil and liquids wells represented 98 per cent of totals wells drilled in the quarter;
- ARC will continue to focus on oil and liquids-rich opportunities at Ante Creek, Pembina, Goodlands, southeast Saskatchewan, and Tower in 2012;
|
Q1 2012 Production (Three Months Ended March 31, 2012) |
2012 | 2011 |
| Crude Oil (bbl/d) | 31,305 | 28,108 |
| Condensate (bbl/d) | 2,399 | 1,872 |
| Natural gas (mmcf/d) | 353.0 | 246.4 |
| Natural Gas Liquids (bbl/d) | 2,432 | 2,834 |
| Total Production (boe/d) | 94,970 | 73,880 |
Property Summary
The following table summarizes the companies production by core area for three months ended March 31, 2012:
| Core Area (1) | Total (boe/d) | Oil (bbl/d) | Condensate (bbl/d) | Gas (mmcf/d) | NGL (bbl/d) |
| NE BC & NW AB | 45,157 | 642 | 1,392 | 252.9 | 973 |
| Northern AB | 13,460 | 6,011 | 637 | 37.4 | 576 |
| Pembina | 10,816 | 7,641 | 270 | 13.9 | 589 |
| Redwater | 4,250 | 3,976 | - | 1.1 | 87 |
| South AB & SW SK (2) | 9,827 | 1,786 | 89 | 46.9 | 142 |
| SE SK & MB | 11,460 | 11,249 | 11 | 0.8 | 65 |
| Total | 94,970 | 31,305 | 2,399 | 353.0 | 2,432 |
(1) Provincial and directional references: AB is Alberta, BC is British Columbia, SK is Saskatchewan, MB is Manitoba, NE is northeast, NW is northwest, SE is southeast and SW is southwest.
(2) In prior years, the volumes produced in central Alberta were reported separately from SE AB and SW SK. With the disposition of the majority of the properties within central Alberta in the first quarter of 2011, production from these areas has been consolidated.
