Canadian oil and gas CEOs avoiding 'rash' decisions during price rout

Amanda Stephenson

Tue, Apr 8, 2025, 8:17 AM 2 min read

By Amanda Stephenson

TORONTO (Reuters) - The CEOs of 2 Canadian lipid and state producers said connected Tuesday they are seeking to debar making rash decisions, arsenic planetary lipid prices hover astir four-year lows and recession fears grow.

Doug Bartole, CEO of Calgary-based InPlay Oil, said his institution does not foresee reducing accumulation oregon superior spending successful the abbreviated term, contempt the caller tariff-related autumn successful lipid prices.

"Don't marque immoderate rash decisions. Let's instrumentality a longer presumption of things and spot wherever it each settles out," Bartole said successful an interrogation successful Toronto.

But helium said that could alteration if lipid continues its slide.

"I deliberation $50 lipid would alteration things a spot more, obviously," Bartole said. "We tin easy propulsion backmost capital. We're a tiny company, we're nimble. We marque decisions quick."

Brent futures and West Texas Intermediate crude futures person slumped since U.S. President Donald Trump's April 2 announcement of wide tariffs.

Oil prices steadied connected Tuesday arsenic a betterment successful equity markets was outweighed by recession fears exacerbated by commercialized struggle betwixt the United States and China, the world's 2 biggest economies.

Brent futures were up 33 cents, oregon 0.5%, astatine $64.54 a tube astatine 1400 GMT. WTI crude futures roseate 41 cents, oregon 0.7%, to $61.11.

Chris Carlsen, CEO of Canadian earthy state shaper Birchcliff Energy, said the assemblage is acrophobic astir the imaginable for a planetary recession, though helium said galore Canadian companies are well-positioned to grip a $60 lipid terms environment.

He said the descent successful lipid prices could payment earthy state producers successful the agelong word if it leads to an wide simplification successful North American drilling.

"When they're drilling little oil, there's little associated state with that, which means we could beryllium abbreviated connected the earthy state accumulation side," Carlsen said.

(Reporting by Amanda Stephenson; Editing by Rod Nickel)