Latest news with #RichKruger
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Suncor reports highest-ever Q1 production and refinery throughput
CALGARY — Oilsands giant Suncor Energy Inc. says said it had its strongest-ever first-quarter performance in its production, refining and refined product sales segments. It says production was 853,000 barrels of oil per day, refining throughput was 483,000 per day and refined product sales were 605,000 barrels per day. Net earnings for the first three months of 2025 were $1.69 billion, up from $1.61 billion during the same 2024 period. That amounted to $1.36 per share versus $1.25 per share. Gross revenues were $13.33 billion, compared to $13.31 billion a year earlier. Adjusted operating earnings, a measure Suncor says provides a better comparison between quarters, were $1.63 billion, down from $1.82 billion, which it says was due to lower crude oil sales. "Our strong first quarter financial and operating performance maintained the momentum established in 2024, as we remain laser-focused on continuing to deliver safe, reliable, and cost-effective operations," CEO Rich Kruger said in a news release Tuesday. "Our focus on the fundamentals, integrated business model, and continually improving cost structure enable us to deliver free funds flow and shareholder value despite the current volatile business environment." This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 6, 2025. Companies in this story: (TSX: SU) Lauren Krugel, The Canadian Press
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Suncor, MEG Energy CEOs strike confident note even as oil falls to US$50-range
Top executives at Canadian oil producers Suncor Energy ( and MEG Energy ( say 2025 is off to a strong start despite falling commodity prices. The Calgary-based companies reported first-quarter financial results after Tuesday's closing bell. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil averaged US$71.54 per barrel in the first three months of 2025. Since then, the U.S. benchmark price has tumbled into the US$50-range amid accelerated OPEC+ output hikes, and recession fears linked to U.S.-China trade disputes. WTI has fallen over 20 per cent since early April. Speaking on a post-earnings conference call on Wednesday, Suncor chief executive officer Rich Kruger boasted that Suncor is 'rebuilt for this business environment,' with a stronger balance sheet and lower breakeven costs, following his overhaul of the company beginning in 2023. 'There was obviously a lot of uncertainty around the impact of U.S. tariffs,' chief finance officer Kris Smith added. 'But in the end, commodity prices across the quarter remained constructive.' '2024 was a good year,' Kruger said. '2025 is off to a good start.' Suncor's first-quarter financial results topped analyst estimates, booking a nearly five per cent annualized increase in net earnings, and stronger upstream production. Toronto-listed shares closed 2.83 per cent lower at $46.99 on Wednesday. Meanwhile, MEG Energy reported its first-quarter profit more than doubled from a year earlier, after Tuesday's closing bell. CEO Darlene Gates says her company has the "agility" to navigate tough oil markets while continuing to reward shareholders. 'OPEC+ production management decisions and geopolitical tensions are driving market volatility, creating uncertainty, and exerting downward pressure on oil prices. We've successfully navigated these cycles before,' Gates told analysts on a conference call on Wednesday. 'With oil prices under pressure, we remain focused on maintaining flexibility and discipline. Our low breakeven price ensures we are well-positioned, and we have the ability to adjust spending as needed.' On Tuesday, TD Bank economist Marc Ercolao called for WTI to trade between US$55 and US$60 per barrel until there is more clarity around the tariff picture and OPEC supply plans for the second half of the year. TD Bank cut its 2025 WTI forecast to an average of US$62 per barrel, versus its US$67 per barrel prediction in March. The move tracks expectations of other observers lowering their price estimates for crude this year. 'Canada's energy sector is not immune to the current economic headwinds, but it is still decently positioned for continued output growth and increased capital spending, albeit at a more moderate pace,' Ercolao wrote in a research note. "Canadian producers will still face difficulties in production planning, especially if U.S. demand begins to ease, but a lower breakeven advantage – estimated at under US$50 per barrel – should keep activity moving in the oilpatch." Jeff Lagerquist is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter @jefflagerquist. Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android. Sign in to access your portfolio
Globe and Mail
08-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Suncor breaks production records amid economic uncertainty, cold snap
Oil sands producer Suncor Energy Inc. has reported quarterly production and refining records, despite Alberta's February deep freeze and an uncertain global economic environment. Production for the Calgary-based oil giant hit 853,000 barrels a day in the first quarter of 2025 – the company's highest-ever first quarter and the second-highest quarter in its history, chief executive officer Rich Kruger told analysts on an earnings call Wednesday. Suncor's net earnings for the first three months of 2025 were $1.69-billion, or $1.36 per share, up from $1.61-billion or $1.25 per share in the same period last year. Gross revenues were $13.33-billion, up from $13.31-billion. Refining throughput was 483,000 barrels a day, 'far and away the highest first quarter in our history,' Mr. Kruger said, with every refinery producing more than at the same time last year. Refined product sales hit 605,000 barrels a day. 'The bottom line: One year into our three-year plan, we've exceeded every single target. We've essentially achieved two years of our planned improvements in the first year,' Mr. Kruger said. 'In 1954 a gentleman named Roger Bannister, the world's first four-minute miler, said, 'Records are meant to be broken.' And that is exactly what Suncor teams continue to do.' Like other oil sands producers, Suncor's production slowed in February when Alberta was hit with a brutal, record-breaking cold snap. Mr. Kruger said the key to avoiding a complete slowdown is learning from past winters and making sure equipment is resilient – whether it's the fuel in haul trucks or the winterization of refineries. 'The last time I checked, it's always cold in Canada in the first quarter,' he said. 'We face this uncertainty, this variability, every year. The last two years, we have been very focused on, 'How do we engineer or design out the risk of that variability?'' Amid strong production, Suncor continues to assess its 1,800 Petro-Canada gas stations. It is upgrading those in major markets with the highest margins and selling those on the other end of the spectrum, with the goal of transforming 20 per cent of its network by the end of 2026. The company's retail portfolio was a point of contention for activist investor Elliott Investment Management LP, which in 2022 pushed for a shakeup of Suncor and launched a campaign to oust several directors and explore a sale of the Petro-Canada chain. Then-CEO Mark Little resigned, and Mr. Kruger took the reins of the company in 2023. People close to Elliott in 2024 said the fund was pleased with the improvement in Suncor's fiscal fortunes under the new CEO and happy to let the retail strategy play out. Asked how Suncor views its Petro-Canada assets these days, Mr. Kruger said Wednesday, 'The only thing I unconditionally love are my kids and my grandkids. Everybody else has to earn their seat at the table.' That doesn't mean he's keen to sell off the gas stations. 'I never say never, but right now that is a very, very valuable part of the company's operations,' he said. 'We look at all of our assets for their ongoing contribution and their value to us,' and the sites are a boon, he said, allowing Suncor to integrate its operations all the way from production to sales. Suncor's retail volumes were up 6 per cent in the first quarter, and its truck stop business was up 9 per cent. But even with record throughput at refineries, the company's exports were down 25 per cent in the quarter. Mr. Kruger said keeping more products in the domestic market played a big role in driving margin improvement. Menno Hulshof, with TD Cowan Equity Research, wrote in a note Wednesday that the first-quarter results continued Suncor's 'trend of outperformance,' despite the February cold snap. He added that the company's 2025 production guidance is likely conservative and should slowly increase to capture its new normal. 'Given a much improved cost structure, strong balance sheet' and significant operational momentum, Mr. Hulshof wrote, Suncor is likely well-positioned to weather the current market volatility.
Calgary Herald
07-05-2025
- Business
- Calgary Herald
Varcoe: 'You've seen this movie': Canadian oil companies adjust to new reality of prices below US$60
Canadian petroleum producers are busy updating action plans and examining options to withstand the stress of oil prices marooned in the mid-US$50-a-barrel range and mounting economic turmoil. Article content Article content Companies have been rolling out first-quarter results this week and detailing how they'll navigate choppy waters created by lower oil prices, a tariff war, uncertain federal policies and a slowing global economy. Article content Article content Some are starting to trim their capital programs or review discretionary spending, trends already underway in the United States. Article content Article content Others are leaning on past efforts to pay down debt and lower operating costs to bolster their resiliency in anticipation of a future dip in a volatile commodity. Article content 'If you've been in this business long enough, you've seen this movie, it's not new,' Suncor Energy CEO Rich Kruger told analysts on an earnings call Wednesday. Article content 'You do get more judicious on your economic spend . . . Do we need to spend it today? Or can we let the dust settle and see where we are six months or a year from now? Those are the prudent things we're doing and looking at.' Article content Suncor reported net earnings of $1.7 billion during the January-to-March period, up five per cent from a year earlier. Article content On Wednesday, the U.S. Energy Information Administration's short-term energy outlook forecast that West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude prices will average about US$62 a barrel this year — below $59 during the second half — before averaging $55 in 2026. Article content Article content It cited higher oil production outpacing demand growth for the price drop. Article content Article content Other experts have reduced their oil price forecast below $60 a barrel after OPEC+ announced plans last weekend to bring additional supplies back onto the market in June. Article content Prices for U.S. benchmark crude, which traded above $80 a barrel in mid-January, closed at $58.07 on Wednesday. Article content South of the border, independent shale producer Diamondback Energy chopped its annual spending earlier this week by about US$400 million. In a letter to investors, its CEO said the American industry is at a tipping point with current commodity prices, adding that U.S. onshore oil production has peaked and will begin to drop this quarter. Article content In Canada, a report by TD Cowen this month noted the petroleum producers that it covers are 'overwhelmingly living within their means' at $60 a barrel, with capital spending and dividend expectations below projected cash flow levels.
Calgary Herald
07-05-2025
- Business
- Calgary Herald
Suncor production hits record high, but sales volumes slow as inventory builds
A strong performance from Suncor Energy Inc.'s downstream operations, including record refinery throughputs and refined product sales, helped it beat analysts' first-quarter earnings expectations. Article content Article content The Calgary-based oilsands major 's adjusted operating earnings of $1.6 billion in the three months ending March 31 were down from $1.8 billion a year ago, but still beat analysts' expectations. Article content Article content Boasting about Suncor's ability to capture margin opportunities in the refining business relative to its peers, chief executive Rich Kruger said the company has emphasized running facilities at full capacity, driving down unit costs and trusting marketing teams to sell the product rather than throttling throughputs to meet anticipated demand. Article content Article content 'Last time I checked, I can never sell a barrel that I don't produce or refine,' he said on a conference call on Wednesday. 'We've turned that around and said, 'Get after it and we'll find valuable homes.' And I think our teams have risen to that opportunity.' Article content Suncor achieved record refined product sales of 604,900 bbls/day in the first quarter, compared to 581,000 bbls/d in the same period last year, driven by higher refinery throughputs and fuel sales across the company's retail Petro-Canada network. Article content For the third consecutive quarter, the company's refining utilization was above 100 per cent, with Suncor's refineries processing a record 483,000 bbl/d during the quarter, compared to 455,300 bbls/d a year ago, equating to a 104 per cent utilization rate. Article content Article content The company also had record upstream production of 853,200 barrels per day (bbls/d), marking a new high for the company, in part due to record-setting bitumen production at its Firebag in-situ mining facility and the resumption of offshore production at its White Rose facility in Newfoundland and Labrador. Article content Article content Capital spending was $1.09 billion, which was below analysts' estimates for the first quarter, but in line with Suncor's 2025 guidance that targeted a midpoint capital spending program of $6.2 billion, according to RBC Capital Markets. Article content Despite the upbeat tone on Wednesday's earnings call with investors, the company acknowledged there are headwinds on the horizon, with prices currently bouncing around US$60 per barrel for benchmark West Texas Intermediate. Suncor said WTI averaged around US$71.40/bbl during the first quarter of 2025. Article content 'I'm very pleased that the significant strides we've made over the last two years to improve our operational and financial performance significantly reduce our WTI break-even and strengthen our balance sheet,' chief financial officer Kris Smith said on the call.
