ConocoPhillips will lay off Canada employees by November, a company memo shows

According to three sources, and according to a memo from the company, ConocoPhillips will be laying off workers at its Canadian operations as part of its plan to reduce its global workforce to up to one quarter by next year. The memo didn't specify how many layoffs were to take place, but it said that they would start at the Canadian operations of the company in the first week November. The memo stated that employees in Calgary would be notified in a virtual manner on November 5, and those at the company's Surmont Oil Sands operation in northern Alberta, and Montney Shale Play in British Columbia in person the next day.

Dennis Nuss, ConocoPhillips' spokesperson, said in an email that "we will not share area-specific numbers of workforce for current or affected employees and contractors."

A DROP IN OIL PRICES RESULTS IN STAFF CUTTING AND SPENDING REDUCES

According to its website, ConocoPhillips will employ 950 Canadians by the end of 2024. Its Canadian production in 2024 is 164,000 barrels equivalent per day.

ConocoPhillips, and its U.S. competitors, have been under pressure from the fall in oil prices this year. They were forced to reduce staff, cut capital expenditures, and reduce drilling. In February, U.S. energy giant Chevron announced that it would cut up to 20% from its workforce. Other energy companies such as SLB and BP are also cutting staff. The major oil sands producers in Canada have been relatively protected from the recession due to cost-cutting measures and a weaker Canadian dollar that makes Canadian oil exports attractive to foreign buyers. The U.S. oil industry's problems have spread to Canada. U.S. owned companies are cutting their Canadian divisions to consolidate operations and become more efficient. Canada's Imperial Oil, majority owned by ExxonMobil, has announced that it will cut its workforce by 20% by 2027. This is part of a major reorganization which will ultimately shut down most of the company's presence in Calgary, an oil and gas city. (Reporting from Amanda Stephenson, Calgary; Georgina McCartney and Arathy Sommesekhar, Houston; Editing done by Franklin Paul and Edmund Klamann.)

(source: Reuters)