Oil and gas producer Ovintiv formerly known as Encana slashes workforce by 25%

Oil and gas producer Ovintiv formerly known as Encana says it has slashed its workforce by 25 per centas it prepares for more modest growth in the energy sector.

The company said its workforce will now total 2,100, including 1,900 employees and 200 contractors. The decision affects roughly 650 jobs.

Details about where the reductionshave been made were not immediately available. The company said it is not providing regional breakdowns of anylayoffs.

But a spokesperson said Wednesdaythe workforce reductions were near equal percentages across the company's three corporate offices, which includeCalgary, Denver, Colo., and Woodlands, Texas.

It's the second major workforce reduction by the company in a little over a year.

In February, 2019, Encana announcedit had cut itstotal workforce by 15 per cent and reduced its ranks of executives by 35 per cent. It was estimated at the time that the move affected roughly 470 jobs.

Thursday's news comes amid reports of layoffs across the oil and gas sector.

The North Americanindustryhas beenhammeredby the economic impact of the COVID-19pandemic, withdemand for fuel plunging as an international price war floodedthe market with cheap crude.

The situation spurred oil and gas companies to slash both production and capital spending. It also led to job losses across North America, withRystad Energypegging the U.S. tally at over 100,000.

Earlier this spring, Ovintiv announced it wouldcut second-quarter spending by $300 millionand said it was prepared to further reduce capital investments throughout the year.

The company has cut thenumber of rigs it operatesin Canada and the U.S. to sevenfrom 23in a move it said reflected itsexpectation offuture activity levels.

Ovintiv announced last fall that it wasmoving its corporate headquarters from Calgary to the United States. It had been previously calledEncana, one of Canada's oldest and largest energy companies.

Ovintivstock was up more than eight per cent on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Thursday, climbing to $14.56 a share.