Canadian Natural Resources surpassed expectations for second-quarter profit on Thursday, as a rise in oil and natural gas production helped offset a decline in crude prices.
Oil producers in the country have been benefiting from the commencement of operations at the expanded Trans Mountain pipeline (TMX) that has nearly tripled the flow of oil to Canada’s Pacific Coast from the landlocked Alberta.
Canadian Natural, the country’s largest oil and gas producer, said its total output rose to 1.42 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) during the second quarter, from 1.29 million boepd a year earlier.
Production got a boost from growth across its asset base on the back of deals completed in late 2024 and 2025.
“On our recently acquired Duvernay assets, we continue to see reductions on both capital and operating costs supporting execution of organic growth opportunities. We are realizing more value than we planned at the time of the acquisition,” said President Scott Stauth in a statement.
Canadian Natural aims to produce between 1.51 million and 1.55 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in 2025, representing a production jump of about 170,000 boepd, or 12%, from 2024 levels, based on the midpoint of the forecast.
The upbeat production helped the Canadian energy producer cushion the impact of lower crude prices.
WTI crude prices averaged $63.71 per barrel in the April-June quarter, down $7.71 from the previous quarter and $16.84 from a year earlier, Canadian Natural said.
The decline was driven by a weaker global demand outlook, ongoing trade and tariff uncertainty, and larger-than-expected OPEC+ output hikes.
The Calgary, Alberta-based company posted an adjusted profit of 71 Canadian cents per share for the three months ended June 30, compared with analysts’ average estimate of 65 Canadian cents, according to data compiled by LSEG.
(Reporting by Sumit Saha in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Devika Syamnath)