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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery lost 62 cents to $56.82 on the New York Merc, while Brent for February lost 56 cents to $60.56 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $12.40 to WTI, up from a discount of $13.40. Natural gas for January lost 10 cents to $4.01. The TSX energy index lost 4.33 points to close at 299.03.

The Alberta- and Texas-focused Baytex Energy Corp. (BTE) added eight cents to $4.27 on 9.49 million shares, as it narrowed down its timing to remove "Texas" from that description. The company previously announced in November that it would sell all of its Texas Eagle Ford assets (exiting the United States altogether) to an undisclosed buyer for $2.3-billion (U.S.), with a targeted closing date of late 2025 to early 2026. Today it pegged the expected closing date at Dec. 19.

This suggests smooth sailing for the sale, whose completion, Baytex has promised, will trigger the unveiling of a new three-year outlook devoted to a "streamlined, high-return Canadian energy platform." The dose of patriotism should help soothe the sting of losing more than half of the company's production in one go. Following the sale of its 85,000-barrel-a-day Eagle Ford assets, Baytex will have about 65,000 barrels a day of production from its remaining all-Canadian asset base, comprising heavy oil from the Peace River and Lloydminster areas and light oil from the Duvernay and the Viking. A preliminary plan (as outlined in a presentation on Baytex's website) is to pursue 3- to 5-per-cent annual production increases while staying alert for tuck-in acquisitions. Investors should get more specifics, including detailed 2026 guidance, once the U.S. sale is done.

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