Agat Laboratories world state of the art facilities provides the largest core handling capacity in today's industry. As the preferred lab for all major oil and gas producers in the Athabasca Oilsands, Agat's competitive advantages are;

• Over 40,000 square feet of laboratory space dedicated to oilsands operations.
• New Dean Stark rooms with a functional capacity of over a 1000 samples per day.

• Cryogenically prepared Teflon plug mounting for superior oilsands permeability and porosity measurement.
• 12 ventilated core-viewing rooms, furnished client offices with Internet access, boardrooms available for client use.
• Unique automatic slabbing saws, including the V-notch saw.

Data generated by the Oilsands and Heavy Oil Services Group is used by geologists, engineers and petrophysicists to calibrate wireline logs, identify potentially productive intervals, estimate reserves and evaluate reservoir quality and for description. The key reservoir parameters determined are porosity, permeability, fluid saturations and particle size distribution.

Porosity can be determined at net overburden pressure on cryogenically prepared samples encased in Teflon or lead sleeves. Porosity is an indication of the storage capacity of the reservoir. Core porosities are used to calibrate logs and for reserves calculation.

Permeability can be determined in both the horizontal and vertical directions on cryogenically prepared samples encased in Teflon or lead sleeves. Engineers can use horizontal permeability data to define flow capacity, permeability distribution and profile. Vertical permeability is used to define coning probability and gravity drainage potential. Fluid saturations (oil and water) can be determined by Dean Stark distillation. Saturation profile data help define the presence of hydrocarbons (net pay and contacts), relative richness and the type of hydrocarbon that may be produced. Saturation data, as a fraction of the bulk mass, helps identify preferred deposits to be exploited in surface mining operations such as Syncrude and Suncor in Fort McMurray.

Particle (grain) size distribution can be determined by laser diffraction or by the mechanical sieve shaker method. These data have engineering application in well completion programs in friable and unconsolidated sediments, geological application in assessing, sand heterogeneity, and depositional environment interpretation in both consolidated and unconsolidated clastic sediments, and petrophysical application in various phases of formation evaluation to effect an understanding of log responses. A key factor affecting the profitability of waterflooding heavy oil unconsolidated sand reservoirs is the ability to achieve effective sand control completions in response and injection wells. Effective sand control reduces line failures, simplifies individual well operating problems and protects expensive pumping equipment required for high producing rates. Particle size data are used to design an effective gravel flow pack, which is used to meet these objectives.

X-radiography techniques are used to examine the internal character of a core without cutting it. With this process it is possible to obtain two images (0° and 90°) of the same piece of core and display them side-by-side. The process enables detection and evaluation of internal geological structures such as bedding planes, fractures and nodules, lithological changes, porosity distribution (porous areas and tight streaks), areas of mining core and the depth of planar features. This technique is used for identifying sections of core recovered in plastic sleeve and for preservation for future engineering studies, prior to cutting and slabbing.

Digital Colour Photography provides a permanent recovery of the cored interval including hydrocarbon stained intervals. Digital capture of the image facilitates enhancement of the more subtle features in the core.