Tourmaline Signs Two Acquisition Deals for NEBC Montney Assets

Tourmaline Oil Corp. has signed two deals to continue its consolidation in Northeast British Columbia’s Montney gas play.

Tourmaline said it entered into an agreement to acquire the balance of the jointly-owned Laprise-Conroy assets through the acquisition of Saguaro Resources Ltd., as well as a separate agreement to acquire assets located in the Greater Septimus area of the South Montney.

The Calgary, Alberta-based company said in a news release it expects the acquisitions to close in the second quarter.

The two transactions will add approximately 20,000 barrels of oil equivalent (boepd) of current production, an estimated 369.4 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) of current 2P reserves, and approximately 410 primarily Tier 1 future net drilling locations, according to the release.

Production and reserves from these assets are expected to experience significant future growth as each asset is systematically developed as part of the company’s Northeast British Columbia Montney buildout, the company said.

Tourmaline noted that the Laprise-Conroy asset is the key component of the North Montney Phase 2 project, and the Greater Septimus asset is complementary and adjacent to Tourmaline’s planned Groundbirch two-phase gas plant development project with a capacity of 400 million cubic feet per day / 20,000 barrels per day (bpd).

As part of these transactions, Tourmaline said it will also acquire 9 net sections and an estimated 54 net drilling locations in the Resthaven area of the Alberta Deep Basin.

Tourmaline said it will issue a total of approximately 13 million common shares as consideration for the two transactions, “leaving the balance sheet in a very strong position for potential further asset acquisitions going forward”.

The final number of shares to be issued pursuant to these acquisitions will be determined at the closing of the transactions based on the price of Tourmaline common shares leading up to the respective closing dates, the company said.

Production Updates and Outlook

Meanwhile, Tourmaline reported first-quarter average production of 637,867 boepd, slightly ahead of the previous guidance and up 8 percent from the first quarter of the previous year, with March average production at 645,036 boepd.

First-quarter average liquids production, consisting of oil, condensate, and natural gas liquids (NGLs), was 147,438 bpd, up 2 percent compared with the first-quarter 2024 average liquids production of 145,016 bpd, the company said.

Tourmaline’s 2025 forecast production range of 635,000 – 665,000 boepd remains unchanged. Production averaged 660,000 boepd in the first half of April, according to the release. The company expects second quarter average production in the 615,000 – 625,000 boepd range, “reflecting increased maintenance now scheduled given the anticipated weaker gas prices during that time period, particularly at Station 2 where pricing and volume in April was impacted by maintenance at the third party-operated Aitken storage facility”.

Given the weak Station 2 gas prices, Tourmaline said it intends to defer some planned second-quarter hydraulic fracturing activity into the third quarter. The company said it continues to expect stronger prices at both the Station 2 and AECO hubs during the second half as gas volumes start flowing west to the LNG Canada liquefication facility. The company stated that it would continue to match the planned production growth to the anticipated increasing natural gas price curve.

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