Canadian Oil Producer Enerplus to Leave Home Turf for U.S. Shale

(Bloomberg) -- Canadian energy company Enerplus Corp. announced plans to sell all its assets in the country to focus on U.S. shale plays in the latest departure from the country's oil and gas industry.

The Calgary-based oil and gas producer aims to conclude the sale process by the middle of 2022, according to a statement on Wednesday. The company, which currently only gets about 7% of its output from the Canadian assets, plans to retain a Canadian head office. 

Enerplus follows a number of oil companies including giants such as Shell Plc and ConocoPhillips in selling positions in Canada in recent years to shift investment to U.S. shale plays and elsewhere. In 2019, Ovintiv Inc., formerly Encana, moved its head office to Denver in a blow to Canada's then beleaguered oil patch, which was plagued by a lack of pipelines and divestment by international funds.  

Enerplus will continue to focus its attention on its Bakken positions in North Dakota, the company said. The Canadian properties, which include a handful of mature fields in Alberta and Saskatchewan, produce about 9,100 barrels of oil equivalent a day. 

The company also plans to change its reporting currency from Canadian dollars to U.S. dollars since the majority of its oil and gas properties are south of the border. 

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