Cenovus Energy Inc. is an integrated oil company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. Cenovus was formed on December 1, 2009 when Encana Corporation split into two distinct companies, with Cenovus becoming a focused integrated oil company. Some of Cenovus's assets formerly belonged to PanCanadian Energy Corp. and Alberta Energy Company, the two Canadian oil and gas companies that merged to form Encana in 2002. In 2017, Cenovus purchased ConocoPhillips' 50% share of their FCCL oil sands projects and most of their Deep Basin conventional assets in Alberta and British Columbia, "doubling its production and reserves in Canada". Cenovus shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol CVE. They are headquartered at The Bow in Calgary.
Cenovus once held conventional oil and natural gas operations across Alberta and Saskatchewan, including the Weyburn oilfield in Saskatchewan, which is the largest CO2 enhanced oil recovery operation in Canada. It's also the site of the largest geological greenhouse gas storage project in the world, with about 30 million tonnes of CO2 safely stored underground and extensively studied by researchers as part of the International Energy AgencyGreenhouse Gas Weyburn-Midale CO2 Monitoring and Storage Project. In May 2017, Cenovus assumed ownership of ConocoPhillips' Deep Basin assets in Alberta and British Columbia. This liquids-rich acquisition includes more than 3 million net acres of land. Subsequently, the Company announced the sale of its Pelican Lake and Suffield properties, its southeastern Alberta oil and natural gas operations, and its Weyburn property.
Part of the Deep Basin acquisition included natural-gas processing facilities, many of which are now majority owned and operated by Cenovus. The plants process produced natural gas to make it pipeline-ready.
Transportation
Cenovus owns a crude-by-rail loading facility near Edmonton, Alberta – the Bruderheim Energy Terminal. The company was recognized for its rail safety performance in 2016, and for safe transportation of chemical products in 2017.
Technology
The primary technology Cenovus uses at its Foster Creek and Christina Lake projects is called steam-assisted gravity drainage. Cenovus also applies different associated technologies to enhance the SAGD process, such as electric submersible pumps at Foster Creek and solvent aided process at Christina Lake. In 2011, the company began applying its blowdown boiler technology to improve the efficiency of water use at its oil sands operations. In 2013, Cenovus developed its SkyStrat™ drilling rig that allows an exploratory rig to be flown into remote areas by helicopter piece-by-piece, set up to drill a test well, dismantled and airlifted away. The process requires no roads, meaning little disturbance to the boreal forest. The company received an Environmental Performance award for the SkyStrat™ program.
Environment
Cenovus has been recognized for its efforts in environmental stewardship. Cenovus is focusing on reducing its impact on wildlife habitats particularly to help protect declining woodland caribou. Cenovus is a member of Canada's Oil Sands Innovation Alliance.
Worker housing
Cenovus provides housing for staff and other contract workers, commonly known as "camps", who work at their Christina Lake and Foster Creek projects and other locations in northern Alberta. A few of the bigger camps house up to 800 people when operations are at peak capacity. The camps employ housekeeping, kitchen, janitorial and technical support staff, as well as electricians and paramedics who work and live for a short time on-site as part of a shift rotation.
