Tag: Nexen Energy

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Alberta Economic Ft Mac

Nexen Energy Announces Job Cuts, 120 Employees Laid Off

Nexen Energy has announced more job cuts and the company has laid off another 120 employees as the oil industry in Alberta tries to stay profitable and competitive with lower market prices and an economy that has not yet fully recovered. Nexen is not the only company who is scaling back and letting some employees go. Earlier last year Nexen cut around 400 jobs, 40 of these in Fort McMurray and Wood Buffalo, and then in November of 2015 the company laid off another 60 employees. The latest round of job cuts is just the last issue in a long line of problems that Nexen Energy has faced in the last few years. As the energy giant fights to stay competitive and cope with the current economy and oil market there may be even more job cuts announced in the future.

Nexen Energy spokesperson Brittney Price released a statement about the job cuts and other moves the company has made in the last year or so, stating “Given the current economic reality, we have made the difficult decision to reduce our workforce. These changes impact approximately 120 Canadian employees. We take these decisions seriously, and all impacted employees have been treated fairly and with respect.” An explosion at the hydrocracker at the Long Lake facility operated by Nexen in January has added to the company problems, and two workers were killed because of the explosion. There is still an investigation being conducted about the explosion but the Wood Buffalo RCMP have not found anything suspicious about the accident so far.

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Alberta Economic Ft Mac

Nexen Energy Long Lake Facility Will Remain Open

Nexen Energy, Long Lake facility

The Nexen Energy Long Lake facility will remain open and some of the pipelines that were shut down are being restarted now that the suspension on 40 pipelines has been lifted by the Alberta Energy Regulator. 55 additional pipelines are still not in operation because these are still under suspension until Nexen can show the regulator that these additional pipelines can be responsibly and safely operated by the company. A recent announcement by the regulator expressed confidence that there was a low public safety and environmental risk, and this conclusion was reached once documentation and proposed company initiatives were reviewed. The facility and pipelines were inspected on August 31 an September 1. The pipelines which are still under suspension carry emulsion, fresh water, crude oil, salt water, and natural gas.

The Alberta Energy Regulator released a statement about the Nexen Energy Long Lake facility. The statement read in part “Nexen has demonstrated to the AER that these utility lines can be operated safely and within all regulatory requirements. Nexen is required to implement its action plan for improved operations including a rigorous inspection plan and daily and weekly inspections of the affected lines. Nexen is also required to provide the AER with regular updates on inspection results.” Neither the regulator or the company would name the initiatives which will be taken to ensure pipeline safety, maintenance, and safe operation. The review of the pipeline operation suspensions at the Long Lake facility was not influenced in any way by the plan to shut the facility down, and the AER stated “The AER recognizes the impact regulatory decisions can have, however we must ensure that all areas of concern are addressed.”

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Alberta Economic Ft Mac Health Politics

Pipeline Operations Suspension for Nexen Energy at Long Lake Facility

Nexen Energy, pipeline operations suspension

The Alberta Energy Regulator recently ordered a pipeline operations suspension for the Nexen Energy Long Lake facility, halting 95 pipelines and preventing operations from continuing. The agency issued the suspension and cited “noncompliant activities” regarding pipeline monitoring and maintenance the reason for the suspension. An emulsion spill that allowed 5 million litres of emulsion to leak into the environment last month caused the agency to investigate the site and the operations. AER CEO and president Jim Ellis stated “Protection of public safety and the environment are the AER’s top priority. Given that this company has already had a pipeline failure at this site, the AER will not lift this suspension until Nexen can demonstrate that they can be operated safely and within all regulatory requirements. We will accept no less than concrete evidence. The AER investigation into Nexen’s Long Lake pipeline incident is ongoing. Once the investigation is complete, the AER will publish its findings.”

The Nexen Energy pipeline operations suspension came about after the regulator reviewed information and documents that the company submitted after the emulsion spill. The regulator said that indicated noncompliance with Pipeline Act and Pipeline Rules for Alberta caused the suspension to be issued. Nexen Energy can not resume operations with the suspended pipelines until they provide the regulator with sufficient documentation that can convince the regulator that the company can operate the pipelines safely and in compliance with all applicable laws. The specific cause of the emulsion spill has not been determined yet and the investigation will continue.

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Alberta Economic Ft Mac

Nexen Energy Announces 400 Job Cuts Due to Recent Oil Price Drops

Nexen Energy, job cuts

Nexen Energy has announced job cuts due to the recent drop in the global price of oil. According to the company 400 jobs will be slashed in the cost cutting effort. According to Nexen Energy 340 jobs will be cut from the North America operations, and 60 jobs will be cut from the North Sea UK operations. The job cuts represent almost 15% of the Canadian staff that the business has. While there are layoffs and terminations planned Nexen Energy does not plan on instituting a hiring freeze at the moment, and active recruiting is still going on for almost 90 different jobs in the safety and production categories. Some of the positions being recruited require very special skill sets, so transferring some of the laid off employees into these positions is not an option because of this. According to one source “You can’t, for instance, take an accountant and make him a firefighter. Unfortunately the skill set does need to come close.”

The job cuts announced by Nexen Energy are just the latest cuts in the energy industry. Many oil companies have been cutting back as oil prices continue to decline. It is very unlikely that the previous high prices will return anytime soon, and that means the energy industry has to be more cautious about expenses and exploration costs to offset lower profits and lower crude oil prices. Fang Zhi, the CEO of Nexen Energy, wrote “Our long-term perspective continues to be fundamental to how we make decisions for our organization. CNOOC Limited’s rationale for acquiring Nexen remains the same – it was not made with a short-term view, but rather to acquire, and responsibly develop long-term, quality resources.”