(Calgary) Imperial reported record production at its Kearl oil sands facility in its first quarter as it continues to ramp up the pace to bring the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion into service .
The company produced an average of 277,000 barrels per day at Kearl, up about 7% from the same quarter last year.
“I am very pleased to report that we have maintained the strong operational momentum of recent quarters,” President and CEO Brad Corson told analysts Friday during a conference call about the company’s latest results. Company.
Overall, Imperial’s production rose a more modest 2% from last year to an average of 421,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in its latest quarter, Cold Lake and Syncrude having seen their production decline.
Imperial, majority owned by US giant Exxon Mobil, has been working for some time to improve productivity and reduce costs at Kearl, located north of Fort McMurray, Alberta.
A major component was the conversion of its entire fleet of heavy mining trucks at Kearl to fully autonomous operation. The company announced the completion of the initiative last fall.
This acceleration comes as the planned date of 1er May for the Trans Mountain expansion, which helps reduce the discount on Canadian crude, underlined Mr. Corson.
The narrowing spread between the U.S. benchmark WTI crude price and Western Canada Select (WCS) has helped offset the slowdown in oil prices, he said.
“A key factor is the imminent start of the TMX (Trans Mountain) project, which will provide significant additional capacity for the Western Canadian Basin exit,” Mr. Corson said.
Movements in production and prices led to a profit of 1.20 billion in the first quarter, down from last year’s record first quarter of 1.25 billion.
The Calgary-based oil company says earnings were $2.23 per share for the quarter ended March 31, compared with $2.13 per share in the first quarter of last year, when it had more of shares outstanding.
Total revenue and other income stood at 12.28 billion, up from 12.12 billion in the first quarter of 2023.
Refinery throughput for the quarter averaged 407,000 barrels per day, down from 417,000 barrels per day in the first quarter of 2023.
Refinery capacity utilization was 94%, up from 96%.