Petroleum Geology

Sedimentary Basins in

British Columbia ( 65KB)

A History of Exploration and Development

Oil and gas exploration interest and development began in the twentieth century in various areas of British Columbia.

The gas seeps in southeastern British Columbia, oil seeps on Queen Charlotte Islands, coal deposits, and sedimentary outcrops all gave indications that hydrocarbon riches might be found in the subsurface of British Columbia. Over the years, geological and geophysical exploration, and in some areas, exploratory drilling, have identified nine hydrocarbon basins and two geological troughs with hydrocarbon potential.

Major discoveries in the early 1950's in northeast British Columbia focused industry efforts on that area; the construction of pipelines to gather and transport gas to markets helped develop the resources that were discovered.

The Northeast and Beyond

The northeast area of British Columbia, a part of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin (WCSB), is the only area of British Columbia currently producing commercial quantities of oil and gas.  However, the province contains other sedimentary basins where oil and gas may be found.

Exploration programs and limited drilling have occurred in areas other than northeast British Columbia, including:

• The Bowser Basin of northern British Columbia;
• The lower Fraser Valley in southwestern British Columbia;
• The Nechako Basin of central British Columbia;
• The Queen Charlotte Basin (onshore and offshore areas) of western British Columbia;
• The southern portion of the Kootenays in southeast British Columbia;
• Vancouver Island, just southwest of mainland British Columbia.