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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery added $1.14 to $49.51 on the New York Merc, while Brent for May added $1.09 to $52.42 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $12.45 to WTI ($37.06), unchanged. Natural gas for April added eight cents to $3.18. The TSX energy index added 4.42 points to close at 205.05.

Producers in Saskatchewan raised their eyebrows after Whitecap Resources Inc. (WCP), up 25 cents to $10.55 on 3.86 million shares, reportedly received a letter from Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall, inviting the company to move its headquarters to Saskatchewan from Calgary. Whitecap has assets in both Saskatchewan and Alberta, but is focusing more on Saskatchewan these days. Of the 187 wells it plans to drill this year, 137 will be in Saskatchewan. Mr. Wall evidently smells an opportunity. In his letter, a copy of which was received by The Canadian Press, he offers to subsidize relocation costs, cut taxes and royalties, and help find space in unused government buildings if Whitecap moves to Saskatchewan. Mr. Wall also points out that, unlike Alberta, Saskatchewan has no intention of implementing a carbon tax. (Such a tax is just one of the ideological issues separating Mr. Wall and his Alberta counterpart, Rachel Notley. Their differences have come into even sharper focus lately, as they have been engaged in a public spat over their respective provincial budgets. Ms. Notley has said she would avoid doing "almost everything" that Saskatchewan has chosen to do, while Mr. Wall has made veiled and not-so-veiled criticisms of governments that are "choosing to run perpetual deficits.")

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