Last month, it unveiled plans to spin off its Canadian oil sands assets into a new publicly traded company, which surprised many industry watchers. McCrea expects the recent trend of takeovers of private Canadian oil companies by larger companies to continue rather than the IPO route. The last time a new Canadian energy listing appeared on the TSX was in January when Calgary-based Kiwetinohk Energy Corp (KEC.TO) shares started trading. read moreNow, energy stocks have become a refuge for investors facing a sell-off in high growth sectors. Some energy investors welcomed the idea of more Canadian oil and gas listings.

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