Two oil and gas stocks: two levels of risk

Article Excerpt

BIRCHCLIFF ENERGY $7.63 (Toronto symbol BIR; SI Rating: Speculative) (403-261-6401; www.birchcliffenergy.com; Units outstanding: 123.3 million; Market cap: $940.5 million) develops, produces and explores for oil and natural gas in northwestern Alberta’s Peace River Arch area. Birchcliff owns oil production and drilling prospects at Worsely, Alberta. The company’s oil assets complement its gas assets. That lets Birchcliff pursue either oil or natural-gas opportunities at Worsely, depending on market conditions. Birchcliff’s other main project is its Montney/Doig horizontal gas drilling program at Pouce Coupe, British Columbia. This involves drilling wells sideways, or at an angle, to reach isolated pockets of oil and gas. Drillers also use this technique to follow reservoirs that are spread out in narrow layers. Horizontal drilling works well in situations where conventional drilling is either impossible or too costly. In the three months ended September 30, 2009, Birchcliff’s cash flow per share was $0.10. That’s down sharply from $0.34 a year earlier. Lower oil and gas prices caused the drop. Birchcliff’s production…