Reuters: Shell Canada adds to Alberta, B.C. land position: “Shell Canada Ltd paid more than C$185 million ($158 million) for acreage at recent government land sales to bolster its natural gas drilling and oil sands prospects, the company said on Monday.”: Posted Tuesday 20 December 2005

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Shell Canada Ltd (SHC.TO: Quote) paid more than C$185 million ($158 million) for acreage at recent government land sales to bolster its natural gas drilling and oil sands prospects, the company said on Monday.

Shell Canada, the country's No. 2 oil producer and refiner, said it picked up a 100 percent interest in 66,400 acres

near Hinton, Alberta, just across the Alberta-British Columbia border from gas exploration lands it acquired in June.

The company also said it acquired an interest in about 20,000 acres in northeast British Columbia, that have gas prospects in the Triassic, Permian and other deep structures.

Shell Canada, majority-owned by oil major Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSa.L: Quote), said it bought three leases in the Athabasca region of northeastern Alberta that have oil sands mining potential, paying a total of C$86 million.

That acquisition is in addition to four other oil sands leases the company picked up in the third quarter, it said.

The new land purchases bring the company's total this year to more than C$350 million, Chief Executive Clive Mather said in a statement.

Shell Canada shares rose 51 Canadian cents to C$37.70 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Monday. 

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