Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. and Shell Canada Ltd. agreed to an asset swap in Canada pursuant to a deal signed in 2017.
The two companies agreed to swap assets related to the Athabasca Oil Sands Project (AOSP) (OGJ Online, Mar. 19, 2017), Canadian Natural Resources said in a release Jan. 29 and mentioned by Shell in its fourth-quarter 2024 earnings Jan. 30.
Effectively, Canadian Natural will swap 10% of its working interest in the Scotford Upgrader and Quest Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) infrastructure for Shell’s remaining 10% working interest in the AOSP mines, associated reserves, and additional various working interests in a number of other non-producing oil sands leases.
As a result, and at close of the transaction, Canadian Natural will increase its working interest in the AOSP mines to 100%, subsequently increasing the company's production by about 31,000 b/d and will own an 80% working interest in the Scotford Upgrader and Quest.
The transaction does not include any exchange of cash, except for regular closing adjustments and is targeted to close by the end of this year’s first quarter, subject to regulatory approvals.
Canadian Natural Resources said its 2025 production guidance will be revised upon closing of the asset swap.
