By OGJ editors
HOUSTON, Apr. 26 -- More than 70% of Ontarians polled want the Canadian government to keep its 19% publicly owned stake in Petro-Canada, according to a recent survey.
The Canadian government announced in late March its intention to sell its remaining 49 million Petro-Canada shares during the 2004-2005 fiscal year.
Timing and details of the share sale is to be at the government's discretion. Petro-Canada's interest in repurchasing any of those shares will be decided at the time of the sale, based on market conditions and competing priorities at that time, said company officials.
"We will work with the government to ensure an effective placement of the shares in the market," said Harry Roberts, Petro-Canada's chief financial officer. "The government has been a supportive shareholder all along, so this change will not affect Petro-Canada business strategies or daily operations."
Petro-Canada is one of Canada's largest oil and gas companies, operating in both the upstream and the downstream sectors of the industry in Canada and internationally.
However, in a poll by Canadian-based Ipsos-Reid Corp. for the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada (CEP) and the Council of Canadians, 71% of Ontarians said the Canadian government should keep its share of Petro-Canada in order to maintain Canadian influence and to ensure that country's future energy security.
"These poll results confirm that our members who work for Petro-Canada and Canadians as a whole want to keep control of this important resource," said Bob Huget, CEP administrative vice-president for Ontario.
"A previous Ipsos-Reid poll showed that 90% of Canadians want a real energy strategy, that will evaluate the current demand and foresee future needs for Canada," said Guy Caron of the Council of Canadians. "It's time for this government to start listening to its citizens."
The 150,000-member CEP has launched an online e-mail campaign to pressure the government not to sell the Petro-Canada shares. About a third of CEP members work in Canada's energy sector, including some 2,000 employees of Petro-Canada.