^^^Its been said on here before, THE PATCH IS ALWAYS HIRING BECAUSE THEY ARE ALWAYS FIRING. Yes its true that it can be relatively easy to get hired on in the Alberta oil patch but if you are a lazy cunt then you'll be skidded in no time, employers are quite lenient in the oil biz when it comes to things like drugs, alcohol, violence, crime, etc but if you are a dog fucker who won't get er done when its go time, you'll be sent home.

Ok well I do juggle multiple jobs and am trying to better myself. Without getting into too much detail, I do work hard at my jobs, I just don't feel that I get fairly compensated for my work. One of my minimum wage jobs will not give me a raise after working there for 2 years, despite doing the work of multiple coworkers that don't want to work. I'm NOT lazy and I am taking the initiative to get a bigger paycheck. There's a difference between laziness and simply not having enough time. I surely don't want to risk time and money going back to school just to get turned away.

I seem to have ticked off some respected posters and that's not my intention. I don't like to start off on the wrong foot and I'm sorry. I'll check out the SWAP program in the next coming days and I'll report back.

rig activity still seems to be fairly busy this year. I am no longer around but I just checked the numbers. Seems like it was gearing up to be a really really busy winter but the prices fucked it up, thus on a week to week basis it seems like the numbers are not taking off and going down; compared to last week sask 8 rigs down from 75 to 67, alberta down 14 from 294 to 280, BC actullay up 9 rigs) But in reality, the november numbers where still higher than the average december numbers from last year, meaning its still doing well for now.

Read some interesting stuff recently. So we all know we need about $75 a barrel in Canada to break even. Russia needs it at $100, they must be getting fucked now. Saudi only costs $30 a barrel. It just squirts from the ground there and the cheap Indian and Philipino labour must help.
They won't be worried for a while there but I'm sure Putin is sweating a bit. In a recent address to the people in Russia he asked people who have money abroad to bring it back to Russia. They won't even be questioned on how they made it or persecuted for it.

WOW - Oil about to break down through $60 bucks!! Been awhile since that happened. So what's that mean for the patch?

(12-08-2014 10:30 AM)oilbreh Wrote:  rig activity still seems to be fairly busy this year. I am no longer around but I just checked the numbers. Seems like it was gearing up to be a really really busy winter but the prices fucked it up, thus on a week to week basis it seems like the numbers are not taking off and going down; compared to last week sask 8 rigs down from 75 to 67, alberta down 14 from 294 to 280, BC actullay up 9 rigs) But in reality, the november numbers where still higher than the average december numbers from last year, meaning its still doing well for now.

I think we're in for a big downward spiral, this is just the beginning. Not good for me as I was planning on working the rigs around June.

thats not break even, oil has only been over 100 recently anyway. Thats budget balance. Calgary had a budget based on $100 oil also. There is no way oil can have that high of a break even number for production. The math does play into drilling cause wells are all about ROI really. Oil at $100 vs $65 means it will take twice as long to pay off and start making the company money. My driller worked through the last recession and he was working for a rig drilling for shell. IDK if thats the general case, but maybe try to get on a rig that works with one if the majors. They are usually have their own safety modifications so companies keep them working at the same company, and the bigger guys probably wont get starved out. Service side, wireline etc, while not 100% dependent on drilling still seems to slow down anyway.

There is still lots of work in drilling. Lots of companies nearly have to drill (lease expiration and to keep inventory up). Gas is still priced high and there is always service wells amongst other types of drilling. If prices remain low then yes some of the 'fat' will get trimmed which is good in the long run but right now there is still jobs for good, motivated workers.

(12-08-2014 02:04 PM)Kdog Wrote:  Read some interesting stuff recently. So we all know we need about $75 a barrel in Canada to break even. Russia needs it at $100, they must be getting fucked now. Saudi only costs $30 a barrel. It just squirts from the ground there and the cheap Indian and Philipino labour must help.
They won't be worried for a while there but I'm sure Putin is sweating a bit. In a recent address to the people in Russia he asked people who have money abroad to bring it back to Russia. They won't even be questioned on how they made it or persecuted for it.

That 75 dollar figure is incorrect. That figure is taking construction costs into factor. The pure oil production cost in Canada (without construction costs) is less. For example:

Quote:Since 1997 operating costs for Suncor and Syncrude have generally been in the range of $12-18 per barrel...

http://books.google.ca/books?id=dfb9rsh5...22&f=false

That 30 dollar a barrel for Saudi is also incorrect. Saudi oil only costs 4-6 dollars a barrel to dig up. As you move north towards the Caspian Sea, oil production becomes more expensive. So it starts at 4-6 in Saudi, increases to 10-15 in Iran and by the time you get to Azerbaijan you're looking at 15 and higher.

The 100 dollar figure you have for Russia is the price per barrel that they need to balance their budget for the year. They're still making a profit for the year on oil production. All OPEC countries, plus Russia, will continue to make profits on oil production. The issue is that all these countries did their budgets based on oil being a certain price and now that oil is falling, they're looking at large deficits for the year. But again, the oil that they're producing is still profitable. That's something people tend to forget. You also need to remember that OPEC nations have nationalized oil industries. They get 100% of the profits, so even at low margins, they're still making substantial amounts of money. It's just a matter of balancing budgets that were originally made up based on oil being at a much higher price. Many of these OPEC nations (Russia included) have massive savings funds that they can tap into in the case of an emergency. But even that isn't needed. They can run a deficit for the year and bank on higher oil prices for next year (which is probably what's gonna happen). They'll just balance the books next year.

Precision drilling is cutting their budget in half for next year. From 800m down to 400m.

Here's a calculation someone did on how many jobs are going to be lost:
"I have a capex cut tabulation going from my morning news readings.

Capex cuts in alberta since last monday have totalled 4.7 billion so far. Even at a million dollars of capex to create a job thats 4700 people that were working this year that wont be working in 2015. That is just one week of cutting and chewing, the start of the cuts. I bet it will get really bad after xmass, the more urgent need to cut will go right out and cut but jobs probably start getting the hatchet after the holidays. "
http://www.outdoorsmenforum.ca/showthread.php?p=2650467

There is other things about to come in to play here soon or not the speculative is why the price is dropping. Just wait and it will go back up

There's several guys here on company bound work visas. If they get laid off then it's pretty much over for them.

Its's slowed down pretty crazy. Last 2 days we've been working 3 hours and sitting around the rest of the time, rest of the week is looking even worse.

(12-09-2014 06:20 PM)Tresdus Wrote:  There's several guys here on company bound work visas. If they get laid off then it's pretty much over for them.

Its's slowed down pretty crazy. Last 2 days we've been working 3 hours and sitting around the rest of the time, rest of the week is looking even worse.

There's no doubt that there will be a slow down in the Alberta oil biz if oil prices stay where they are. Its always slow this time of year and that's why I always fuck off for a few months, so that part is normal anyway but if prices slide down to the thirty dollar a barrel range, as some have forecasted, then we'll be sweating. We'll see what happens in March/April when the big oil refineries, upgraders and oil sands sites are usually very busy with maintenance shut downs, if companies begin mothballing major construction projects, as they did back in 08', then there will be excess labour available and it may be more difficult to find shut down work. I'm optimistic that I'll be working in the spring, actually I have a few solid leads lined up for shit downs in either Fort McMurray or in Saskatchewan, until them I"m chilling down south and not stressing. One particular project that I"m interested in is the NW upgrader being built in Redwater, apparently the contractors aren't working there in big numbers yet and the sub-contractors will be bidding on it in April or May, that could be a decent project to ride out the cheap oil.

Guys, I've said this since day one and have repeated in a million times on here and you all know this, the oil biz is cyclical and there will be ups and downs, if you can't handle that then maybe you should find another industry to work in. For those of you who are willing to tough it out, you know the drill:

-Save your money for a rainy day, or a rainy year!
-Don't blow your money on shit that you can't afford, especially major debts like a huge house or big truck. Don't finance anything assuming that you'll be working eighty hours a week, if you must finance (which I don't recommend) then do it based on what you earn on forty hours.
-Get tickets and certifications, you don't need to rush this and become over-certified but under experienced, but pick up a few tickets to put yourself above the competition.
-Work hard, show up on time, do a good job and make sure that your direct supervisors see and know that you're a hard worker and you won't get cut. Its the dog fuckers who get sent home first, make sure you're not one of them.
-Now isn't the best time to switch employers, you can jump around when oil is at $100 but in times like these companies will generally take care of their guys who show them loyalty. Of course this isn't always the case and some companies suck and you'll have to bail but make sure you have solid leads before doing so.
-Don't fuck up at work, in tough times when companies are looking to trim the fat, a slip up could see you shit canned.

I think that most of you guys have followed the advice above and will be fine, especially those who've been in Alberta and are established. It may be tough for some of the new guys but trust me, there is still work in the province, it may not be ideal but when times are tough you just gotta hustle more, do whatever you gotta do to make money. If you're only working a few hours a week then start looking elsewhere or at least working after hours doing whatever, during the last recession I waited tables and washed dishes at a local restaurant as I was only working about thirty hours a week.

I came across this article in the Slop and Pail and it's reassuring, although I don't agree with the high number of TFWs that will be on site during the three year construction phase, at least there will be work for for thousands of Canadians.....you guys may see me relocating to coastal BC one of these days, its a lot easier living over there than in Edmonton or Fort McMurray!

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on...e22016165/

(11-29-2014 07:54 PM)DjembaDjemba Wrote:  How's everyone's eating habits in camps?

I find I eat like shit. The daily buffet is tempting. And it's not your typical cafeterias either. I just had prime rib, stuffed salmon with shrimp, risotto with mushrooms, and asparagus...followed by a deadly serving of chocolate cake. I've paid far more for far less.

And then there's the options I didn't couldn't find place in my stomach...

Greek Chicken Salad
Chicken Fingers
Farmer's sausage
Chicken breast

and myriad of salad options.

I'm dealing with the same issue myself, I'm currently staying in a camp on a 20/10 rotation that's looking more like 30 days, currently in day 22. I haven't stayed in many camps (two to be precise) so I can't give a comment on general industry standard of the quality of food. But in the two camps I've stayed in it's been good. Probably similar to your setup a cafeteria lunch line type of setup.

An example of tonight's dinner:
-Roast Beef
-Stuffed chicken
-Coconut Shrimp
-Lobster Ravioli
-Potatoes
-Rice
-Brussel Sprouts
-Carrots

From this you can take three items:
-Roast Beef
-Carrots
-Brussel Sprouts

And boom there you have it a high protein/low carbohydrate meal with some greens to help the digestive tract. Or maybe you want a higher carbohydrate meal to put on some mass, add in rice and/or potatoes. Simple right? Yes it would be if it wasn't for the fact that there is an endless choice of desserts and I'm not sure about the rest of you but I'm human. And that piece of apple tart looks a whole lot better after a 12 hour shift of tripping pipe than in does when your back in civilization in your local starbucks.

I went on a bit of a binge myself for a few days having dessert after ever dinner and not just one piece of cake I'm talking about raping all assortments of sugary shit with my face for an hour then dragging myself to bed where I promptly fall into a sugar coma. So after about five days of stuffing my fat pathetic face I decided enough was enough.

There is no point in leaving the world for 20 days and returning a bloated mess with loads of cash. I'd be better off staying in the city broke and and at least fuckable looking. So the last five days I have only eaten one meal a day at dinner where I end up eating three stacked plates of meat and veg soaked in butter and Sriracha (got to have the Sriracha) and I can say I'm returning to base line fast.

Some people would say your crazy to not eat for an entire day but I honestly find no dip whatsoever in physical or mental performance. I just drink water and black coffee and carry on I actually find that when I eat breakfast I'm missing a step for the first few hours of the day. This is by no means diet advice or a back-hander towards the IF movement I'm simply sharing my own experience.

-Don't blow your money on shit that you can't afford
[/quote]

Does this imply that if I can afford a cocaine habit I can have one? Honestly though is it just me or does everyone in Edmonton do cocaine? I haven't lived in many cities but I've lived in a enough places to know that there is a disproportionately high amount of cocaine users in Edmonton compared to average 'Western' city. It's the only place I've ever been where the same person who scoffs at the idea of smoking weed will offer you a line. Not that I'm one to judge, lord knows I enjoy my fair share of vices. I just find it interesting how the work environment has influenced the drug scene

^^People in Edmonton have been sniffing way before the oil boom.

Edmonton has always been a blue collar type city with a very seedy underbelly. Tattoos, drugs, and hoes. Calgary is classy, Edmonton is ashy.

(12-10-2014 10:03 PM)Seanchaí Wrote:  

(12-09-2014 07:23 PM)scotian Wrote:  

-Don't blow your money on shit that you can't afford

Does this imply that if I can afford a cocaine habit I can have one? Honestly though is it just me or does everyone in Edmonton do cocaine? I haven't lived in many cities but I've lived in a enough places to know that there is a disproportionately high amount of cocaine users in Edmonton compared to average 'Western' city. It's the only place I've ever been where the same person who scoffs at the idea of smoking weed will offer you a line. Not that I'm one to judge, lord knows I enjoy my fair share of vices. I just find it interesting how the work environment has influenced the drug scene
[/quote]

I've never seen coke in my life and the first 2 weeks I got to Edmonton I saw coke and someone doing coke in front of me.

Just wanted to throw out some thanks to Scotian and the other guys early in this thread who provided the helpful info. I stumbled upon the thread almost 3 years ago, lurked for a bit, and it sparked my interest in working in Alberta. I've since gone back to school, and now I'm working a pretty decent gig up north. Crazy how clicking on a random web page can start a new career... Anyway, thanks again boys!

(12-11-2014 01:54 AM)Tubthumper Wrote:  Just wanted to throw out some thanks to Scotian and the other guys early in this thread who provided the helpful info. I stumbled upon the thread almost 3 years ago, lurked for a bit, and it sparked my interest in working in Alberta. I've since gone back to school, and now I'm working a pretty decent gig up north. Crazy how clicking on a random web page can start a new career... Anyway, thanks again boys!

What do you do and what did you study?

(12-11-2014 04:06 AM)Nima Wrote:  

(12-11-2014 01:54 AM)Tubthumper Wrote:  Just wanted to throw out some thanks to Scotian and the other guys early in this thread who provided the helpful info. I stumbled upon the thread almost 3 years ago, lurked for a bit, and it sparked my interest in working in Alberta. I've since gone back to school, and now I'm working a pretty decent gig up north. Crazy how clicking on a random web page can start a new career... Anyway, thanks again boys!

What do you do and what did you study?

I took a Construction Management program and now I'm working as a field engineer for a construction contractor at one of the larger oil sands projects.

Good stuff man!
How long was the construction management programme? Where did you take it?
Do you also have an engineering degree to do your work?

(12-11-2014 01:12 PM)Tubthumper Wrote:  

(12-11-2014 04:06 AM)Nima Wrote:  

(12-11-2014 01:54 AM)Tubthumper Wrote:  Just wanted to throw out some thanks to Scotian and the other guys early in this thread who provided the helpful info. I stumbled upon the thread almost 3 years ago, lurked for a bit, and it sparked my interest in working in Alberta. I've since gone back to school, and now I'm working a pretty decent gig up north. Crazy how clicking on a random web page can start a new career... Anyway, thanks again boys!

What do you do and what did you study?

I took a Construction Management program and now I'm working as a field engineer for a construction contractor at one of the larger oil sands projects.

I have read almost all of this post in the last week and realized something horrible. Apparently if you have a DUI as an American you can't get into Canada.

I have two of them. Do any of you know Americans working in the Oil Sands with criminal records. Apparently there are plenty of cons but what about from other countries? Do I still have a chance? I have not read anything so far on this post.

Is that only DUI s or any type of arrest record?

(12-11-2014 10:23 PM)Natural Nomad Wrote:  I have read almost all of this post in the last week and realized something horrible. Apparently if you have a DUI as an American you can't get into Canada.

I have two of them. Do any of you know Americans working in the Oil Sands with criminal records. Apparently there are plenty of cons but what about from other countries? Do I still have a chance? I have not read anything so far on this post.

It will be tough, I wouldn't say that its entirely impossible but you'd have to look into it, maybe call an immigration lawyer in Canada. I know that they were thinking of easing the rules for tourists but I"m not sure about workers, I have heard of workers driving a company truck from Houston to Edmonton being turned around at the border for DUI charges.