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Connacher Oil and Gas Limited 手上的油砂产区主要是位于Fort McMurray 市区西南面50里处的 Great Divide project，待建的有Algar project（15日已宣布搁置停建）。同时在Marten Creek 和Three Hills 也有油砂项目，，在美国蒙大那州拥有炼油厂。9 E& u) V+ B4 A) d
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CALGARY, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Connacher Oil and Gas Ltd said on Monday it will cut bitumen production at its Alberta oil sands project because prices are sinking below costs, making it the first Canadian producer to take such action in the wake of falling oil prices.. [& `0 S$ }- t" O8 g2 g- D' V" {
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Connacher said it will restrict output from its Great Divide project to 5,000 barrels a day for an undetermined period, down from recent rates of about 9,000 barrels a day.) B" A! w! C3 H' _1 w0 M1 [ A
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"It recently became evident we could not secure adequate pricing for our bitumen sufficient to cover operating costs and royalties," Richard Gusella, Connacher's chief executive, said on a conference call. "Frankly, it does not make sense for us to produce away our reserves ... at a loss." 3 f; j# V) r$ O. q! m
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The company is the first Canadian producer to announce it will slash output because of low oil prices but others may follow if the discount, or differential, to light crude for the tar-like bitumen produced in Alberta's oil sands region doesn't narrow, an analyst said.
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6 R$ Q9 w- i' G/ j- }. I"Should oil prices continue to trade in the $40 to $50 range and differentials remain wide then we will start to see more companies make a hard decision," said Menno Hulshof, an analyst at Dundee Securities. "I think it's inevitable."
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Bitumen's discount to lighter crudes typically gets deeper in the winter when the paving season ends, since much of the heavy oil is used to produce asphalt. But the seasonal drop has been exacerbated as demand for oil wanes because of the North American recession.
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' G% v* m i3 l' D"The differential certainly has widened out with the pull-back in crude," said Martin King, an analyst at FirstEnergy Capital. "Some of the bitumen prices are certainly under $20 a barrel right now ... They've been pulled into the downdraft in the broader market for crude."" W+ b n( e; y* {
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Crude prices fell on Monday despite hopes that OPEC would make its biggest ever supply cuts when it meets on Wednesday.$ w+ i5 e$ D5 `; Z: X
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Some of the cartel's members are calling for cuts of up to 2 million barrels a day to boost oil prices, which have slumped by nearly $100 a barrel since July.* q& f( B6 [; T' i: K
M, ?6 m8 t% PIndeed, Connacher said in a statement it was looking to supply cuts to restore prices., _" A1 ]9 G) X
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"We anticipate (higher prices) will emerge from the probability of an excess of supply destruction, with production cutbacks arising from very low crude oil prices," the company said./ L7 i8 P3 P' b3 ?5 o+ ]7 a
V3 |7 F6 J/ P/ r; K+ V: kGreat Divide is a steam-assisted gravity drainage project, in which the company pumps steam into the ground to loosen the bitumen, allowing it to be pumped to the surface in wells.6 q i% D0 h2 g5 Z- L- g2 \5 y8 \
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Connacher also said it will suspend construction at its C$345 million ($278 million) Algar project, its second steam-driven project in the oil sands.
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The company has already spent C$110 million on Algar and said suspending construction for six months would add C$18 million in costs. It said the halt would last "until there is more clarity and certainty to the economics of the project".) a; Y! K4 P( A! W' C G% ]4 C
" B! S5 F s/ i5 T/ M1 p: Y[ 本帖最后由 PEW 于 2008-12-16 02:35 编辑 ] |
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发表于 2008-12-16 02:29
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