Steveville helium plant

RESOURCE CONTEXT

No provincial reserve estimate; ~3,000 gas analyses above 0.4 % He; Worsley 15-25 contingent 323 MMcf He

Basement-sourced helium in nitrogen-rich gas over the Peace River and Sweetgrass arches.

Official reserve statements for this commodity (1)

• Worsley 15-25 contingent helium323 MMcf He · Resource estimate · 2025First Helium (Sproule) ↗

GEOLOGICAL SETTING

Prospectivity envelopes for Helium

• Peace River Arch / Worsley helium fairwayHighly favourable
  Basement-sourced helium trapped in Devonian / Cambrian reservoirs on a basement high
• Sweetgrass Arch / Steveville–KnappenFavourable
  Helium in Cambrian–Devonian traps over a basement high (Montana–Saskatchewan analogue)

Development regime

Tenure

Helium is produced under petroleum & natural gas agreements (exact statutory wording unverified); AER licenses helium wells.

Royalty

4.25 % (5 % less a 0.75 % adjustment, IL 2020-22) under the Natural Gas Royalty Regulation; five-year review due 2025 (outcome unverified).

DATASETS TO STACK HERE

Public layers that cover this site

• Bedrock geology polygons (DIG 2013-0018, queryable)Alberta Geological SurveyAttribute-level bedrock mapping for screening host lithologies; heavy, so it loads only when zoomed in.
• Bedrock structures: faults, thrusts, fold axesAlberta Geological SurveyFault corridors focus brines, helium and MVT fluids and control Foothills coal geometry.
• Geology of Canada compilation (GSC raster)Natural Resources Canada – GSCHarmonizes Alberta units with Saskatchewan, BC and NWT geology for cross-border play continuity.
• 3D Provincial Geological Framework: Precambrian subcrop zonesAlberta Geological SurveyEntry point to the provincial 3D framework: which Paleozoic zone sits on basement controls helium traps, brine aquifers and storage seals.
• Precambrian magnetic basement domains (AGS)Alberta Geological SurveyCraton architecture for diamonds (thick cold lithosphere), radiogenic basement for helium, and shear zones for uranium and gold.
• Lithoprobe seismic transects (ABT, SALT, PRAISE)Alberta Geological SurveyThe only public deep-seismic imaging; constrains basement architecture, Snowbird Tectonic Zone and the Peace River Arch.
• Helium concentrations in natural gas analysesAlberta Geological SurveyDirect helium show map: filter above 0.3 % to find economic-interest wells.
• Subsurface temperature points (BHT-derived)Alberta Geological SurveyThermal gradient for geothermal doublets and for DLE kinetics in lithium brines; basement temperature grids exist as LERC tiles.

NEARBY OPERATIONS

Within reach

• Sheerness (humalite)Coal mine · Westmoreland · ≈81 kmOperating
• Korite ammolite mines (St. Mary River)Industrial mineral · Korite International (Buffalo Rock Mining) · ≈173 kmOperating
• Metiskow / Horseshoe Lake sodium sulphateIndustrial mineral · Alberta Sulphate (historic) · ≈195 kmClosed (recent)
• Avanti Helium — Greater Knappen (Alberta)Helium · Avanti Helium · ≈195 kmExploration
• E3 Lithium — Clearwater (Bashaw District)Lithium brine · E3 Lithium · ≈196 kmPilot / demonstration
• E3 Lithium — GarringtonLithium brine · E3 Lithium · ≈225 kmExploration