Canadian Natural Resources Ltd posted a quarterly loss on Thursday from a year-ago profit, hurt by a significant decline in crude oil prices caused by the COVID-19 outbreak and a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia.
The Alberta-based oil and gas producer has said it is removing its 2020 production outlook due to the current uncertainty around the COVID-19 pandemic.
Average realized prices for crude and natural gas liquids more than halved to C$25.90 per barrel in the first quarter, before risk management.
Alberta's hopes of a rebound this year for its long-struggling oil industry have been dashed by a crash in global crude prices that has forced companies to adopt cost-cutting strategies, with Canadian Natural slashing management pay and spending budget.
Production, however, rose nearly 14% in the quarter as the company took advantage of the Alberta government's special production allowance, which permits additional oil output if it moves by rail.
The company's net loss stood at C$1.28 billion ($908.90 million), or C$1.08 per share, in the first quarter ended March 31, from a profit of C$961 million, or 80 Canadian cents per share, in the year-ago period.
($1 = 1.4083 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by Arundhati Sarkar in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri) ((Arundhati.Sarkar@thomsonreuters.com; +1 646 223 8780 Ext: 2776; Reuters Messaging: arundhati.sarkar.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
