This Devon drilling operation in the Horn River Basin is excluded in the $3.1-billion deal reached with Canadian Natural Resources.
Canada's main stock index jumped sharply higher at the open on Thursday buoyed by a rally in resource stocks, as higher oil prices and an upbeat assessment of the U.S. economy by the Federal Reserve pushed investors back toward riskier assets.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index jumped 200.06 points, or 1.41 per cent, at 14,414.55. Eight of the index's 10 main groups were stronger, including a 4.2 per cent surge in energy stocks.
The Canadian dollar was up 0.13 of a cent to 86.05 cents (U.S.).
New York markets were also sharply higher, a day after the Fed edged closer to raising interest rates from record lows amid a strengthening U.S. economy. The central bank said it will be "patient" in deciding when to hike rates, with chair Janet Yellen adding that she foresaw no raise in the first quarter of 2015.
The Dow Jones industrials jumped 225.31 to 17,582.18, the Nasdaq gained 59.63 points to 4,703.94 while the S&P 500 index gained 27.13 points to 2,040.02.
The latest word from the Fed on rate hikes helped send North American markets sharply higher Wednesday with the TSX ahead 352 points and the Dow surging 288 points.
It was the second, straight triple-digit move by the TSX as bargain hunters also moved in to pick up stocks oversold during the course of a steep recent sell-off triggered by plunging oil prices. At its worst earlier this week, the TSX was less than 100 points away from where it started at the beginning of the year.
The energy sector has seen the biggest recovery, rising eight per cent Tuesday and another seven per cent Wednesday as oil prices finally started to revive after plunging 50 per cent from summertime highs to five-year lows amid a huge supply and demand imbalance. On Thursday, the January crude contract in New York was ahead 59 cents to $57.06 (U.S.) a barrel and the energy sector rose a further 4.25 per cent with Canadian Natural Resources ahead 96 cents $35.49 (Canadian).
Investors have also responded largely positively to a number of energy producers and oilfield service companies that have cut their capital expenditure budgets or cut dividends or both in response to the fall in oil prices.
Gains have also spread to other areas such as financials, which is up about 2.5 per cent over the last two sessions and up a further 0.8 per cent Thursday. The sector had sold off on concerns about the impact of falling oil prices on the Canadian economy and the exposure of banks to high-cost producers that took on debt to finance expansion.
The gold sector climbed 2.55 per cent while February gold was up $8.10 to $1,203.60 (U.S.).
March copper was off a cent at $2.86 a pound and the base metals sector was 2.9 points higher.
The telecom sector was the only decliner with Telus down 59 cents to $42.05 (Canadian).
Major acquisition activity in the consumer staples space also helped lift the TSX.
Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. has a friendly deal to buy The Pantry Inc., which will add more than 1,500 locations to the Quebec-based company's U.S. network of convenience stores and fuel stops. The deal values The Pantry at $1.7-billion (U.S.), with Couche-Tard paying $36.75 cash per share. Couche-Tard stock rose $2.10 to $44.64 (Canadian).
Meanwhile, Canada Bread Company has agreed to pay $120-million cash to buy Saputo Inc.'s bakery division. Canada Bread is a former subsidiary of Maple Leaf Foods, now owned by Grupo Bimbo S.A.B of Mexico. Saputo shares gained six cents to $32.73.
With files from Reuters