Oil and Gas – Revenue Requirement
For 2024/25, the Government of Alberta approved a revenue requirement of $225.2 million to support the AER’s operations. The AER published the administration fees allocated according to the industry sectors based on the AER’s operational requirements for specific sectors.
2024/25 Administration Fees (Industry Levy)
The AER announced the following industry levy amounts for 2024/25 by sector:
| Sector | 2024 ($000) | 2023 ($000) |
| Oil and Gas | 155 397 | 154 346 |
| Oil Sands | 43 720 | 43 245 |
| Coal | 8 064 | 8 718 |
| Pipelines | 12 276 | 7 479 |
| Facilities (Directive 056) | 5 158 | 3 218 |
| Facilities (Directive 023) | 631 | 413 |
| Total | 225 246 | 217 419 |
Oil and Gas Sector
The administration fee in the conventional oil and gas sector is based on individual well production of oil and bitumen or gas and the number of inactive, in service, and production wells for 2023. Wells are classified in the classes set out in the Alberta Energy Regulator Administration Fees Rules (“AFR”). An adjustment factor is applied to ensure that the administration fee collected for each sector satisfies the AER’s revenue requirement. For the oil and gas sector, the AER will apply an adjustment factor of 3.890075. The fee is allocated as follows:
|
Fee Class |
Min. production (m3/yr) | Max. production (m3/yr) |
Base fee 2024/25 |
| 0 | Inactive wells | Not Applicable | $42.00 |
| 1 | Service wells | Not Applicable | $50.00 |
| 2 | 0.01 | 300 | $42.00 |
| 3 | 300.1 | 600 | $102.00 |
| 4 | 600.1 | 1 200 | $240.00 |
| 5 | 1 200.1 | 2 000 | $460.00 |
| 6 | 2 000.1 | 4 000 | $1 040.00 |
| 7 | 4 000.1 | 6 000 | $1 740.00 |
| 8 | 6 000.1 | 8 000 | $2 560.00 |
| 9 | 8 000. 1 | 10 000 | $3 500.00 |
| 10 | 10 | > | $3 800.00 |
Alberta Upstream Petroleum Research Fund
The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (“CAPP”) and the Explorers and Producers Association of Canada (“EPAC”) requested that the AER’s administration fee process be used to collect $5.3 million to fund the Alberta Upstream Petroleum Research Fund (“AUPRF”) in 2024. The AER granted the request and included an amount for this funding in the oil and gas well administration fee invoices, the payment of which is voluntary and not subject to penalties.
Oil Sands Sector
The fee for this sector is levied in five categories based on operating information for the 2023 year. One operator may have activities in more than one category. The fee is subject to an adjustment factor and is allocated as follows:
|
Category |
Allocation ($000) |
Adjustment factor |
| Primary ongoing | 5 312 | 2.777591 |
| Thermal ongoing | 14 489 | 2.594022 |
| Thermal growth | 2 488 | 10.609170 |
| Mining ongoing | 1 9940 | 2.898922 |
| Mining growth | 1 491 | 13.576640 |
| Total | 43 720 |
Coal Sector
The administration fee for coal is based on each mine’s share of total production volumes for 2023, and is set at $0.723644 per ton of coal, as specified in the AFR.
Pipelines Sector
The administration fee for pipelines is based on the segments of a pipeline in each class as of Dec 31, 2023. Pipelines subject to an administration fee are classified by pipe diameter with an adjustment factor of 2.234722.
|
Class |
Diameter (mm) |
Base fee ($) |
| A | <168.3 | 50.00 |
| A (Discontinued) | 25.00 | |
| B | ≥ 168.3 and <609.6 | 60.00 |
| B (Discontinued) | 30.00 | |
| C | ≥609.6 | 200.00 |
| C (Discontinued) | 100.00 |
Facilities (Directive 056) – Gas Plants
The administration fees are levied to gas plant facilities with an inlet rate greater than or equal to ten million cubic meters per day as of Dec 31, 2023, and an active, new or unknown activity status. The rate is set at $7.741826 for every thousand cubic meters per day and is applied based on the individual facility inlet rate, as specified in the AFR.
Facilities (Directive 023) – Processing Plants
The administration fees are levied to processing plant facilities approved under the Oil Sands Conservation Act with an operating status as of Dec 31, 2023. The rate is set at $9.248995 for each cubic meter per day and is applied based on the individual facility inlet rate, as specified in the AFR.
Payment
Payment of all invoices is required by May 1, 2024, regardless of whether an appeal has been filed. Following a decision on the appeal, adjustments will be applied, as needed.
