Operations Engineering Student (Conventional and Thermal

Operations Engineering Student (Conventional and Thermal)

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The Opportunity:

Looking for an opportunity that combines hands‑on field experience with real‑world engineering projects? Join Canadian Natural and gain firsthand exposure to how our assets are operated, maintained, and optimized.

This 16‑month student opportunity begins with a four‑month placement at one of our Conventional operations, where you'll relocate to a field location and gain practical experience through relief operating and field engineering assignments. Working alongside Operations and Engineering teams, you'll develop an understanding of facility processes, equipment, production operations, and the day‑to‑day challenges of running safe and reliable assets.

Following the field term, you will transition to our Calgary office, where you will spend the remainder of your work term supporting either a Facilities Engineering team or a Production/Exploitation Engineering team within our Conventional or Thermal operations. Depending on your assignment, you will contribute to projects focused on facility performance and reliability, production optimisation, asset development, reservoir management, and continuous improvement initiatives.

This unique combination of field and office experience provides valuable insight into the full lifecycle of our operations, allowing you to connect practical field knowledge with engineering principles. Whether supporting Facilities, Production, or Exploitation Engineering, you will gain exposure to the technical and operational decisions that drive safe, reliable, and efficient asset performance.

If you are adaptable, eager to learn, and excited by the opportunity to gain both field and engineering experience, this role is for you.

• Job location:One of our various field locations throughout Alberta, Northern BC, or Saskatchewan followed by Calgary, AB - head office
• Term length:16 months
• Term start:May 2027
• Safety sensitive position:Yes

Key Accountabilities:

As a Field Operations Student:

• Contribute to a strong safety culture by completing hazard assessments, conducting worksite safety observations, and identifying opportunities to improve safe operations.
• Gain hands‑on experience supporting conventional oil and gas operations, including light oil, heavy oil, gas, gas plant, thermal, and battery facilities.
• Monitor, inspect, troubleshoot, and optimise equipment and production systems to support safe, reliable, and efficient operations.
• Develop practical knowledge of production equipment and recovery methods, including water floods, Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), pump jacks, and progressive cavity (PC) pumps.
• Perform well testing, production reporting, and field data collection to support operational performance and engineering decision‑making.
• Collaborate with Operations and Engineering teams to identify and implement continuous improvement opportunities that enhance production, reliability, and efficiency.

As a Facilities Engineering Student:

• Support Facilities Engineering teams in delivering safe, reliable, and efficient operations.
• Participate in Process Hazard Assessments (PHAs), risk assessments, and other safety reviews to help identify and mitigate operational risks.
• Assist with the planning and execution of operational and capital projects.
• Participate in Management of Change (MOC) and project gate processes to support the safe and effective execution of engineering projects.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to improve facility performance, enhance reliability, and support continuous improvement initiatives.
• Apply engineering principles to analyse technical challenges and develop practical solutions that create business value.

As a Production/Exploitation Engineering Student:

• Support Production and Exploitation Engineering teams in delivering safe, reliable, and efficient operations.
• Analyse production, drilling, completion, geological, reservoir, and operational data to support asset evaluations and development opportunities.
• Monitor production performance, investigate operational issues, and identify opportunities to optimise recovery and maximise asset value.
• Assist with technical…