Judging by attendance, investors seemed lukewarm toward the Canadian subsidiaries of prominent U.S. E&P firms. At the recent investment symposium sponsored by the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), it was standing room only for the Calgary large-caps, many of which are also listed on U.S. exchanges. But only 20 or 30 people listened to the American cousins. Perhaps one reason is that for most U.S. large-cap E&P firms, their Canadian subsidiaries represent less than 25% of total reserves or production. It will be intriguing to see what they do with their Maple Leaf assets next-should they grow them into something more substantial, or sell them off? So mused Raymond James & Associates' Wayne Andrews, Bob Gillon with John S. Herold Inc., and other E&P analysts attending CAPP. This summer 12 rigs are drilling for the Calgary subsidiary of Anadarko Petroleum, but the company expects to have 20 rigs working this winter. Of the Houston-based company's 2.2 billion barrels of oil equivalent of reserves worldwide, 10% is in Canada, including those of recently acquired Berkley Petroleum Co. Currently, Anadarko hopes to produce about 110,000 BOE per day in Canada by year-end 2001. The company has high hopes of growing its Canadian assets, which include those of the old Norcen Energy Resources, which was acquired by Union Pacific Resources in 1998, well before UPR was in turn absorbed by Anadarko. The company now has 4.7 million net acres in Canada, with 3.5 million undeveloped, leaving plenty of upside. Today, Anadarko owns 20 prospects in the Northwest Territories that target at least 50 billion cubic feet of gas per well. In north-central Alberta, the company holds heavy-oil assets in a play that is heating up. And, it owns 400,00 net acres in the Mackenzie Delta, on- and offshore, that should see the first Anadarko drillbit in 2002. This is an area where Canada's National Energy Board estimates there is a whopping 60 trillion cubic feet of gas potential-some 9 Tcf has already been found. "A lot of what Berkley brought to us was 'greenfield' projects where the discovery had been made but additional capital was needed to bring it to production," an Anadarko spokesman said. "We kept 96% of Berkley's petrotech staff so there is continuity to work on these projects." That follows the model set by Devon Energy Co., when the Oklahoma City firm acquired Northstar Petroleum in 1998. At the time, Devon retained the Calgary management and senior technical team and today, most of those people still run Northstar, keeping their experience and contacts alive. Northstar represents about 12% of Devon's worldwide reserves, about equal to the Gulf of Mexico proportion, said Northstar chief executive John Richels. This year Devon will spend 15% of its US$1-billion budget in Canada. As the fourth-largest holder of gas reserves in North America, Burlington Resources also finds Canada to be a key place for growth, said Burlington Resources Canada Ltd. president Mark Ellis. In late 1999 the company acquired Calgary's Poco Petroleums. Those assets now account for about 25% of Burlington's worldwide production. The company drilled 87 wells in Canada in this year's first quarter, a record for its Calgary team. Canadian gas production was 479 million cubic feet per day in the first quarter, up 19% from fourth-quarter 2000. Burlington plans to spend C$5- to C$10 million this year on acquiring coalbed-methane data , as it holds 1 million coalbed acres in Canada, Ellis said. It will be shooting seismic this year in the Beaufort Sea as well, where it owns 100% of two licenses and shares a third with BP and Chevron. An estimated 3- to 4 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves may be there. "Canadians love to explore and keep the focus on acquiring new lands," noted Burlington's Houston-based investor relations chief, John Carrera. What Burlington adds to the mix is its focus on development and exploitation, and a greater sense of urgency, he added. Houston-based Apache Corp. also is enthused about Canada because it makes so much sense strategically, due to the company's North American gas goals. Apache has 1.2 trillion cubic feet equivalent of gas and 130 million barrels of oil in Canada, following large acquisitions it recently made from Shell Canada, Phillips Petroleum Canada and Canadian Fletcher Challenge. "But the main reason we are here is for the exploration potential," a spokesman said. With partner Murphy Oil, the company holds a key interest in the recent gas discoveries around Ladyfern in British Columbia, which are estimated to have tapped into at least 1Tcf of gas. Apache has budgeted C$562.5 million for Canadian drilling, with the bulk of that mostly in Alberta. One key asset to be tapped will be Zama, a pinnacle reef complex in a remote corner of northwestern Alberta, where there are an estimated1 billion barrels of oil in place. This past winter Apache drilled 77 wells there, reporting a 72% success rate. Apache also owns the gas processing plant there, which has a capacity of 150 million cubic feet per day.