Canadian Natural Resources shares fall after fire

Shares in Calgary-based Canadian Natural Resources fell as much as seven per cent Friday, a day after a fire at its Horizon oilsands site in northern Alberta injured four workers and brought crude production to a halt.

The shares recovered some of that loss, but still closed down $2.35, or 5.5 per cent, at $40.60 on the Toronto Stock Exchange, on a volume of 14 million shares, almost seven times the daily average.

Horizon produced an average of 83,700 barrels a day in December. The company hasn't said how much the fire will affect production.

But in a release issued Friday afternoon, after markets closed, the company said its $2 billion US insurance policy on Horizon will cover repairs to damaged plant and equipment and will also provide business interruption insurance to cover operating costs incurred on the site after 90 days.

The company also said it plans an update next week with additional information on the impact of the fire on operations, the extent of the damage, and the estimated timing and costs of repairs.

John Stephenson, a portfolio manager at First Asset Investment Management, said the sell-off was a major over-reaction.

"We bought some today, so I guess that gives you an idea what we think of it," he said.

"We like the name a lot and we think it's overdone, I guess is the bottom line. We think it's overdone largely because our view is this will get up and running. It will be fine. It will get under control."

The fire broke out Thursday afternoon at an upgrader, the facility that converts molasses-thick bitumen into a higher-quality synthetic crude oil, which can then be processed into products like gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.