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Proceeding ID 397
Canadian Natural Resources Limited
Kirby North In Situ Oil Sands

The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) will hold a public hearing for a regulatory appeal of Canadian Natural Resources Limited's (Canadian Natural) application 1909395 and amended approval 11475EE. If the request for the regulatory appeal is withdrawn, the hearing will be cancelled.

Description of the Proceeding

On February 21, 2019, the AER received a request for a regulatory appeal, under Division 3 of the Responsible Energy Development Act and Part 3 of the Alberta Energy Regulator Rules of Practice (Rules of Practice), of the AER's decision to approve Canadian Natural's application 1909395 under the Oil Sands Conservation Act to amend scheme approval 11475. The amended approval, 11475EE dated January 24, 2019, permits Canadian Natural to add a seventh steam assisted gravity drainage box at Section 1, Township 75, Range 9, West of the 4th Meridian in Canadian Natural's Kirby North in situ oil sands development located approximately 135 kilometres south of Fort McMurray.

The AER granted the request on February 11, 2020.

The purpose of the hearing is to determine whether the AER should confirm, vary, suspend, or revoke its decision to issue approval amendment 11475EE.

Where can I find information about the hearing?

To view or receive a copy of the hearing materials, or for information on AER procedures, contact

Tammy Turner, Hearing Coordinator
Alberta Energy Regulator
Suite 1000, 250 – 5 Street SW
Calgary, Alberta T2P 0R4
E-mail: @email
Phone: 403-297-3232

How can I apply to participate in the hearing?

Canadian Natural, ISH Energy Ltd., and AER Regulatory Applications are parties to this regulatory appeal. As parties, they may participate in the hearing and do not need to submit a request to participate. However, they must confirm their intention to participate in the hearing and the nature and scope of their participation to the hearing coordinator by noon on April 14, 2020.

If you are not already a party to the regulatory appeal and want to participate in the hearing, you must submit a written request to participate. Requests to participate are placed on the public record of this proceeding.

Your request to participate must contain

  1. a copy of your statement of concern, if applicable;
  2. a concise statement indicating
    1. why you may be directly and adversely affected by a decision of the AER on the regulatory appeal, or
    2. if you will not be directly and adversely affected by a decision of the AER on the regulatory appeal, explain
  • what the nature of your interest in the matter is and why you should be permitted to participate,
  • how your participation will materially assist the AER in deciding the subject matter of the regulatory appeal,
  • how you have a tangible interest in the subject matter of the regulatory appeal,
  • how your participation will not unnecessarily delay the regulatory appeal, and
  • how you will not repeat or duplicate the evidence presented by the other parties in the regulatory appeal;
  • the outcome of the regulatory appeal that you advocate;
  • the nature and scope of your intended participation;
  • your contact information;
  • if you have a representative, their contact information;
  • if you are acting on behalf of a group or association of persons, the nature of your membership in the group or association; and
  • your efforts, if any, to resolve issues associated with the proceeding directly with the party requesting the appeal or the approval holder, as the case may be.

Send the request to the hearing coordinator. Submissions should be PDF documents with bookmarks, page numbers, and optical character recognition.

Filing deadlines

April 14, 2020 Final date to file a request to participate.
April 28, 2020 Final date for Canadian Natural to submit a response to any request to participate.

Is this a public process?

Yes. Section 49 of the Rules of Practice requires that all documents and information filed for a proceeding be placed on the public record. You must not include any personal information that you do not want to appear on or are not authorized to put on the public record. You should assume that anything you submit will be available online to the public. Section 49(2) of the Rules of Practice states how to apply to the AER for an order to keep information confidential.

What falls outside of the AER’s jurisdiction?

Compensation for land use is not dealt with by the AER and should be referred to the Alberta Surface Rights Board.

Consultation with Alberta's First Nations and Métis settlements and assessment of its adequacy are managed by the Aboriginal Consultation Office.

Issued at Calgary, Alberta, on March 20, 2020.
ALBERTA ENERGY REGULATOR