CALGARY�Imperial Oil Ltd., Toronto, and Mobil Oil Canada Ltd., Calgary, may combine some upstream operations to achieve economies of scale and reduce costs. The two companies are both units of ExxonMobil Corp.
Imperial and Mobil Oil Canada have begun a detailed study to examine cooperation in conventional oil and gas operations in western and northern Canada, the East Coast offshore, and upstream business services across the country. The cooperative effort would not involve downstream refining and marketing.
An Imperial spokesman said teams from both companies will review operation and service agreements that would capitalize on economies of scale, eliminate duplicate systems, and implement best practices. The study is scheduled for completion in about 3 months.
There has been speculation that a combination of the two companies is likely as a result of the ExxonMobil merger. Some analysts also expect ExxonMobil to buy the 30% of publicly traded Imperial stock that it doesn�t now hold. The US firm already owns 100% of Mobil Canada.
Hart Searle, a spokesman for Imperial, said the current study is focusing on areas that do not require a change in ownership or corporate entities.
A merger of Imperial and Mobil Canada would create a company with more than $20 billion (Can.) in assets. Imperial has 6,500 employees and Mobil Canada has 950 workers.