Drillers say sentiment toward oilpatch nearing 'all-time' lows

Canada's oil well drillers are calling on Ottawa to scrap regulatory changes the federal government introduced this year as the sector is forecastinganother difficult year ahead.

The Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors says the government should repeal legislation overhauling the approval process for major infrastructure, like oil pipelines, andbanning oil tanker traffic on a stretch of Canada's West Coast.

The industry group also called for a guarantee from the federal government that it will complete the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project "using all available tools and resources."

"Following the Canadian federal election in October, the sentiment toward Canadian oil and gas is nearing all-time lows," the association said in a new release on Wednesday.

The group says industryhas lost out on billions in foreign capital.It sayslayoffs continue while some companies are relocatingto the United States, taking jobs and equipment with them.

• 'It's the smart thing to do': Canadian oil driller moves all its rigs to the U.S.

The association made the remarks as it released its drilling forecast for the coming year.

It projects 4,905 wells to be drilled across western Canadain 2020, an increase of nine from 2019.

The rig fleet, meanwhile, is expected to decrease by 48 to497 drilling rigs.

The number of jobs in the drilling sector is expected to be around 22,313 next year aboutthe same as this year but 13,731 fewer jobs than there were in 2018.

Canada's oil and gas industry is at a critical turning point, the group said.

"If we do not create an environment where the oil and gas industry can compete internationally, we won't have an industry left in this country,"Mark Scholz, the organization'spresident, said in a statement.