Chinese firm takes over Canadian oil producer

Canadian company, OPTI Canada Inc., have announced that it has been taken over by Chinese oil giants, CNOOC. The take-over is set to be worth US$2.1 billion (£1.3bn). CNOOC is […]

Canadian company, OPTI Canada Inc., have announced that it has been taken over by Chinese oil giants, CNOOC. The take-over is set to be worth US$2.1 billion (£1.3bn). CNOOC is China’s largest producer of offshore crude oil and natural gas and one of the largest independent oil and gas exploration and production companies in the world.

OPTI possess an estimated 195 million barrels of proved reserves, 534 million barrels of probable reserves, 1,100 million barrels of contingent resources and 335 million barrels of prospective resources. These resources are estimated to support approximately 430,000 barrels per day of bitumen production.

Mr. Yang Hua, Chief Executive Officer of CNOOC Limited said: “The transaction strengthens our Canadian presence in the oil sands business. We believe that upside potential of the assets will facilitate local energy supply and our production growth in the long term.”

The principal assets of OPTI Canada are a 35% working interest in the Long Lake oil sands reserve and three other projects located in Alberta. China, the world’s second-largest oil consumer after the U.S., have recently ramped up investment in Canadian energy.

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