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Alberta Canada Economic Ft Mac

Cenovus Energy Announces Job Cuts, 440 Positions Affected

Cenovus Energy has announced job cuts, with 440 positions at the energy company affected. This means that the company has cut jobs by 31% in just the last two years. Since the end of 2014 Cenovus Energy has eliminated 1,600 positions in an effort to stay competitive in an environment where oil profits have declined and prices are very low. According to company spokesperson Brett Harris it was not possible for the company to specify an exact breakdown of which locations will be affected by the job cuts, but Harris did confirm that the positions being eliminated will affect contractors and full time employees both. Harris explained “These are really difficult decisions to make, but absolutely necessary to keep a workforce in line with the economic environment.”

Cenovus Energy is not the only oil and gas company to engage in job cuts in order to stay competitive, and lower oil prices mean leaner business models if a company wants to stay in business and avoid going under. Harris explained that around 190 workers have already been let go, and most of those affected were contractors. Cenovus plans to eliminate another 250 positions in various field offices and in Calgary later on in the month. Last year in 2015 Cenovus Energy responded to market conditions by cutting their staff by a whopping 24%. The company also plans on trying to cut costs by $200 million, and these cuts will impact almost every area of the company. Operating costs, administrative costs, general costs, and other expenses have been targeted for reduction.

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Alberta Economic Ft Mac

Cenovus Energy Announces Capital Spending Decrease, Cuts to Jobs and Dividends

Cenovus Energy recently announced that the company planned on a capital spending decrease as well as cuts to jobs and dividends as they struggle to stay competitive with low oil prices and an economy that is still struggling. The announcement by Cenovus made it clear that the oil company is still struggling to keep their share of the market and the cost cutting measures are an attempt to make the business leaner s that it is more competitive in the current environment. The capital spending decrease means that the company will spend between $1.2 billion and $1.3 billion, which is between $200 million and $300 million less than Cenovus Energy planned to spend. There are also job cuts and cuts to dividends planned as well so that Cenovus can weather the current economic downturn and very low market prices for oil.

Cenovus Energy made the announcement about the capital spending decrease and the cuts which will be made, but the exact number of jobs affected and the extent of the dividend cuts are still under wraps. Last year there was a 24 percent reduction in the staff employed by the company but this move was not enough. The first quarter dividend for Cenovus Energy stock was reduced by 69% and this is just the start. If the business can not stay competitive while the economy is poor then it may not be around to see the economic rebound which will happen sooner or later. A statement from Cenovus Energy explained “The company is undertaking a thorough evaluation of all its staffing costs to align total compensation with the current business environment. This includes reassessing benefits, allowances and contractor rates.”

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Economic Ft Mac

Employee Layoffs are Expected to Save Cenovus Energy Roughly $100 Million

Cenovus Energy, employee layoffs

Cenovus Energy has announced that their employee layoffs in the last year are starting to pay off due to cost savings in the amount of $400 million dollars and oilsands productivity that increased by 17%. These cost cutting savings have had a high price tough, and the company said that by the end of this year the number of staff layoffs will have reached 700. The percentage of workers lost will be around 24% of the entire workforce for the company. The 700 staff laid off is on top of the roughly 800 layoffs announced earlier in the year, and this round of layoffs mostly impacted contractors who worked with the energy company. A statement released by the business said that cuts to staff are largely complete.

Cenovus Energy President and CEO Brian Fergusn discussed the employee layoffs, saying “We’ve made difficult, but necessary decisions to help us remain financially resilient. It’s important that the size of our workforce matches our more moderate approach to oilsands growth and our reduced cash flow in a lower commodity price environment. We’ve realized substantial, substantial cost reductions, maintained capital discipline and strengthened our balance sheet. We will continue to look for additional opportunities to reduce costs, become more efficient and enhance shareholder value.” The entire Wood Buffalo area has been affected by declining oil prices and a slowing economy and Cenovus Energy is no different. The decision to lay off staff and contractors was a difficult but necessary choice if the company wants to stay competitive and control expenses.