Canadian Natural Resources Reports Record Thermal and Conventional Liquids Production
The company achieved thermal in situ production of approximately 300,000 bbl/d in the third quarter of 2026
Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNQ), a senior crude oil and natural gas production company, reported total production of approximately 1,652,000 BOE/d for the third quarter of 2026. This total included approximately 1,217,000 bbl/d of liquids and 2.6 Bcf/d of natural gas, results that included a planned turnaround at the Horizon facility.
Thermal in situ operations reached record quarterly production of approximately 300,000 bbl/d, which was an increase of 25,000 bbl/d from the third quarter of 2025. The company attributed this growth to strong performance from new pads in Primrose and Pike. Similarly, North American Conventional E&P assets, excluding thermal in situ, reached record quarterly liquids production of approximately 358,000 bbl/d. This represented an increase of 49,000 bbl/d over the third quarter of 2025, driven by strong well performance and accretive acquisitions.
International E&P crude oil production averaged 15,973 bbl/d in the third quarter of 2026, a 62% increase compared to the third quarter of 2025. The company said the rise reflected the return of production at Baobab in Offshore Africa in June 2026 following the refurbishment of a floating production storage and offloading vessel, though this was partially offset by planned North Sea abandonments.
North American natural gas production averaged 2,602 MMcf/d in the third quarter of 2026, a 2% decrease from the third quarter of 2025. The company said natural field declines were partially offset by strong liquids-rich natural gas drilling results and accretive acquisitions completed in 2026.
Drilling activity accelerated in the first nine months of 2026, with the company drilling 443 net crude oil and natural gas wells, 140 more than in the same period in 2025.
Subsequent to quarter end, the company completed a planned turnaround at the Horizon facility in 28 days, which was seven days earlier than budgeted. Following the turnaround, Oil Sands Mining and Upgrading production rates averaged approximately 640,000 bbl/d. Based on verified analysis from the 2026 turnaround and a previous reliability project, the company is now targeting turnaround intervals at Horizon once every three years, compared to the previous annual or biennial schedules. This change is expected to increase Horizon's three-year average production capacity by an additional 5,000 bbl/d of high margin Synthetic Crude Oil, bringing total Oil Sands Mining and Upgrading capacity to approximately 597,000 bbl/d.
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