Geoscience BC announces the creation of a Technical Advisory Committee to oversee oil and gas projects in British Columbia

March 14, 2007 -Twenty percent of Geoscience BC's funding is targeted at encouraging oil and gas exploration in British Columbia, in particular the Nechako region west of Williams Lake and Quesnel. The subsurface geology of the Nechako basin is poorly understood due to the limited exploration that has taken place over the last 50 years, and the difficulty in seismic imaging beneath the volcanic rocks that cover most of the basin. Solving these challenges requires the integration of the surface and subsurface geology with results from a wide variety of geophysical techniques that have the potential to image beneath volcanic cover. To date, Geoscience BC has committed $1.0M to these projects in central British Columbia, and these projects are supported by an additional $1.0M from many other partners.

Geoscience BC has recently established an Oil & Gas Technical Advisory Committee to provide advice on the wide range of projects underway, and to evaluate project proposals for an additional commitment of $4M to oil and gas exploration in British Columbia over the next 2 years. The committee has a wide range of experience of oil and gas exploration in challenging environments and familiarity with a broad range of methodologies. Geoscience BC is pleased to announce the members of its Oil & Gas Technical Advisory Committee:

Chair:
Andrew Calvert, Simon Fraser University

Industry:
Brad Hayes, Petrel Robertson
Brian Hoffe, Fugro-Jason
John Hogg, Conoco-Phillips
Richard Kellett, Pioneer Natural Resources
Grant Knowles, EnCana
Peter Kowalczyk, Consultant (PK Geophysics, formerly Placer Dome)
Lavern Stasiuk, Shell Canada

Academia:
Don Lawton, University of Calgary
Rob Stevens, BCIT (and co-chair)

Non-Voting Gov’t Reps:
Filippo Ferri, BC Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources
Carmel Lowe, Geological Survey of Canada

Geoscience BC Reps:
‘Lyn Anglin, President and CEO
David James, GBC Director and Consultant (formerly Anadarko Canada)