CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) – The debate between cowboy tradition and animal rights at the Calgary Stampede was reignited late Thursday when three horses were killed and a fourth seriously injured during a chuckwagon race at the huge annual rodeo and exhibition of Western Canadian culture

Chuckwagon racing, the marquee event of Calgary’s famous 10-day festival, is inspired by pioneering cowboys’ practice of breaking camp and racing away. The thrilling sport is a Stampede symbol but it has claimed dozens of animals over the years.

CALGARY, Alberta, July 12 (Reuters) – Talisman Energy Inc
said on Thursday it has no immediate plan to put 140
workers back on the platform at its Yme oil project in the
Norwegian North Sea after evacuating them this week in the
latest in a series of problems at the troubled development.

Talisman, Canada’s No. 5 independent oil explorer, said it
removed the staff as a precaution on Tuesday, citing a lack of
safety documentation from the contractor, SBM Offshore NV
, pertaining to the jack-up portion of the platform.
Yme is now well over a year behind its initial start-up
schedule.

CALGARY/TORONTO (Reuters) – Malaysia’s state oil company launched a C$4.8 billion ($4.7 billion) takeover of its Canadian joint-venture partner, Progress Energy Resources Corp (PRQ.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), on Thursday to gain control of vast shale gas reserves and advance plans to ship gas to Asia.

The bid by Petronas for Progress, at C$20.45 a share, represents a hefty 77 percent premium on the stock’s Wednesday closing price. It spurred investors to drive up the shares of other Canadian producers with shale gas assets at a time when they had been languishing due to depressed gas prices.

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) – Encana Corp (ECA.TO: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) shares fell on Thursday after saying it will spend more than it generates in cash flow for the next year and a half as the company, weighed down by depressed natural gas markets, accelerates a transition to oil just as its price is falling too.

Encana, which has rushed to shift its focus away from extensive North American unconventional dry gas operations, said spending could hit $5 billion next year, up 42 percent from this year’s budget, while cash flow is forecast at $2.5 billion to $3.5 billion.