Oil leak near Cold Lake almost cleaned up, says company

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. (CNRL)executives tried to reassure shareholders Thursdaythat an oil spill at their Primrose oilsands operation near Cold Lake is mostly under control.

• Bitumen leak cleanup underway near Cold Lake, Alta

Since last May, 1,277 cubic metres of oil have leaked to the surface at the Primrose operation. Dozens of animals have been killed.

The company uses high-pressure steam in the area to extract bitumen from underground.

CNRL President Steve Laut said three of the four sites have been cleaned up at a cost of $60 million.

"At this point in time there is no oil leaking to the surface," he said.

"I suspect this cold weather has sealed it off for now. We'll see what happens in the spring when it warms up, but the leaks were very small before the freeze-up."

The Alberta Energy Regulator is investigating the cause of the leaks.

The company says it appears to be a mechanical problem with faulty wells. However, environmentalgroups are not so sure.

There was an underground blowout at the site in 2009 and they question whether that indicatesa bigger problem.