Cenovus Energy
Public | |
Traded as |
TSX: CVE NYSE: CVE S&P/TSX 60 component |
Industry | Oil and Natural Gas |
Founded | 2009 |
Headquarters | Calgary, Alberta, Canada |
Key people |
Brian Ferguson (CEO), Patrick D. Daniel (Board Chair) |
Products | Oil, Natural Gas |
Revenue | $20 billion CAD net before royalties (2015) |
Number of employees | ~3,500 (2016) |
Website | Cenovus.com |
Cenovus Energy Inc. (pronounced se-nō-vus) is an integrated oil company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta.
Cenovus was formed on December 1, 2009 when Encana Corporation split into two distinct companies,[1] with Cenovus becoming a focused integrated oil company. Some of Cenovus’s assets formerly belonged to PanCanadian Energy Corp. and Alberta Energy Company (AEC), the two Canadian oil and gas companies that merged to form Encana in 2002.
In March 2017, Cenovus reached an agreement to purchase ConocoPhillips’ 50% share of their FCCL oil sands projects, as well as most of their Deep Basin conventional assets in Alberta and British Columbia.[2] That deal closed on May 17.[3]
Cenovus is known for being a responsible developer of Canada’s oil sands, with an emphasis on innovation, safety and environmental stewardship.[4] The company’s business strategy focuses on creating value through the development its oil sands assets, achieving predictable, reliable performance and maintaining financial resilience.[5] Cenovus shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol CVE.
Operations
Oil sands
Cenovus has two producing projects in the Alberta oil sands – Foster Creek and Christina Lake (Alberta). On May 17, 2017, Foster Creek and Christina Lake became 100 percent owned and operated by Cenovus.[3]
Conventional oil and gas
Cenovus also has conventional oil and natural gas operations across Alberta and Saskatchewan, including the Weyburn oilfield in Saskatchewan, which is the largest CO2 enhanced oil recovery operation in Canada. It’s also the site of the largest geological greenhouse gas storage project in the world, with about 27 million tonnes of CO2 safely stored underground. This has been extensively studied by researchers as part of the International Energy Agency Greenhouse Gas Weyburn-Midale CO2 Monitoring and Storage Project.[6]
In May 2017, Cenovus assumed ownership of ConocoPhillips’ Deep Basin assets in Alberta and British Columbia.[3] This liquids-rich acquisition includes more than 3 million net acres of land.
Refining
Cenovus has 50 percent ownership in two refineries in the United States: the Wood River Refinery (Illinois) and Borger, Texas refinery. Phillips 66 is the co-owner and operator.[7]
Natural gas processing
Part of the Deep Basin acquisition included natural-gas processing facilities, many of which are now majority owned and operated by Cenovus. The plants process produced natural gas to make it pipeline-ready.
Transportation
Cenovus owns a crude-by-rail loading facility near Edmonton, Alberta – the Bruderheim Energy Terminal. The company was recognized for its rail safety performance in 2016.[8]
Technology
The primary technology Cenovus uses at its Foster Creek and Christina Lake projects is called steam-assisted gravity drainage (SAGD). Cenovus also applies different associated technologies to enhance the SAGD process, such as electric submersible pumps at Foster Creek and solvent aided process (SAP) at Christina Lake.
In 2011, the company began applying its blowdown boiler technology to improve the efficiency of water use at its oil sands operations.[9] In 2013, Cenovus developed its SkyStrat™ drilling rig that allows an exploratory rig to be flown into remote areas by helicopter piece-by-piece, set up to drill a test well, dismantled and airlifted away. The process requires no roads, meaning little disturbance to the boreal forest.[10] The company received an Environmental Performance award for the SkyStrat™ program.[11]
Environment
Cenovus has been recognized for its efforts in environmental stewardship.[12] The company continues to work at improving its environmental performance for air,[13] land[14] and water.[15] Cenovus is focusing on reducing its impact on wildlife habitats particularly to help protect declining woodland caribou.[16]
Cenovus is a member of Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance (COSIA).
Safety
Employees, suppliers, contractors and consultants are required to understand and work by the company’s policies and practices.[17] There’s a strong emphasis on the importance of safe driving. Cenovus is an alcohol- and drug-free workplace.
Community investment
Cenovus is an Imagine Canada Caring company.[18] This means the company gives one percent of its pre-tax profits to charitable or non-profit organizations. Since 2009, the company has also invested $1.8 billion on goods and services supplied by Aboriginal businesses near its operations.[19]
Worker housing
Cenovus provides housing for staff and other contract workers, commonly known as "camps", who work at their Christina Lake and Foster Creek projects and other locations in northern Alberta.[20] A few of the bigger camps house up to 800 people when operations are at peak capacity. The camps employ housekeeping, kitchen, janitorial and technical support staff, as well as electricians and paramedics who work and live for a short time on-site as part of a shift rotation.
See also
References
- ↑ EnCana proceeds with plan to split into two distinct and independent energy companies Encana
- ↑ Cenovus to double production and reserves in Canada
- 1 2 3 Cenovus completes acquisition of assets in Western Canada from ConocoPhillips
- ↑ Cenovus recognized as a leader in corporate responsibility
- ↑ 3 Things Cenovus Energy Inc. Wants Investors to Know
- ↑ Weyburn-Midale published by Petroleum Technology Research Centre
- ↑ Refining Marketing Phillips 66
- ↑ Rail
- ↑ Technologies lower in situ bitumen recovery costs
- ↑ Flying drilling rig
- ↑ "Celebrating industry initiative", Financial Post, 22 April 2013, retrieved 2 May 2016
- ↑ Cenovus recognized as a leader in corporate responsibility
- ↑ Cenovus corporate responsibility report – air
- ↑ Cenovus corporate responsibility report – land
- ↑ Cenovus corporate responsibility report – water
- ↑ Caribou habitat restoration
- ↑ Cenovus contractor policies and practices
- ↑ Imagine Canada Caring Company program
- ↑ Cenovus corporate responsibility report – Aboriginal relations
- ↑ Oilsands camps weathering lower oil prices, report finds Archived July 3, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.