U.S. oil company ConocoPhillips is laying off employees at its Canadian operations, according to three sources and a company memo reviewed by Reuters, as it moves to cut up to a quarter of its global workforce by next year.
The memo did not specify how many layoffs would take place but said they would begin at the company’s Canadian operations in the first week of November.
Employees in Calgary will be notified virtually on Nov. 5 and those in the company’s Surmont oilsands operation in northern Alberta and its Montney shale play in British Columbia will be told in person the following day, the memo said.
“We will not be sharing area-specific workforce numbers for current or impacted employees and contractors,” ConocoPhillips spokesperson Dennis Nuss said in an email.
Fall in oil prices forces cuts
ConocoPhillips employed 950 people in Canada as of the end of 2024, according to the company’s website.
Its 2024 Canadian production was 164,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
A fall in oil prices has put ConocoPhillips and its U.S. rivals under pressure this year, forcing them to cut staff, curb capital spending and reduce drilling.
U.S. oil major Chevron announced it would lay off up to 20 per cent of its staff in February, and other energy companies, including SLB and BP, are also cutting their workforces.
In Canada, the major domestic oilsands players have remained relatively sheltered from the downturn, due to years of cost-cutting and the insulating effects of a lower Canadian dollar, which makes Canadian oil exports more attractive to foreign buyers.
But the U.S. industry’s pain has spread to Canada, with U.S.-owned companies beginning to cut their Canadian divisions as they consolidate operations and seek to become more efficient.
In September, Canada’s Imperial Oil, which is majority-owned by ExxonMobil and has reported strong profits this year, said it would cut its workforce by about 20 per cent by the end of 2027, part of a major restructuring that will eventually shutter most of its presence in Calgary.