About this opportunity:
The Staff Drilling Engineer is responsible for supporting technical excellence across all aspects of well delivery in support of DCI MODU program planning, with secondary support to platform well delivery as required. This role leads the development and optimization of well designs and manages critical project interfaces to ensure alignment with regulatory, safety, and operational objectives. The position provides specialized expertise in well integrity, risk mitigation, and contractor oversight to enable safe, compliant, and efficient project design and execution. The Staff Drilling Engineer would also support offshore operations, drives cross-functional technical integration, and mentors’ junior staff to promote continuous improvement and knowledge development.
Through effective project execution, technology advancement, and strong technical leadership, this role contributes meaningfully to overall drilling performance and organizational value creation.
This position is located at our St. John, NL office.
What you’ll do:
Develop and optimize well designs and trajectories to meet technical, safety, and operational objectives.
Prepare well programs, risk assessments, and key technical documentation to support drilling execution.
Lead well planning activities for subsea developments and delineation well designs
Ensure compliance with C-NLOER regulations, company standards, and industry best practices.
Integrate drilling designs with subsea, topsides, and subsurface teams to ensure seamless project delivery.
Provide shore-based technical support to offshore drilling operations, including periodic offshore travel as required.
Oversee third-party drilling service providers to ensure safe, efficient, and compliant performance.
Develop time and cost estimates, monitor KPIs, and drive performance optimization across well delivery.
Identify and implement technical improvements, new technologies, and lessons learned to enhance future well delivery performance.
Who you are:
Our ideal candidate will have the following minimum qualifications:
Legally authorized to work in Canada
Undergraduate degree in a relevant engineering discipline and eligibility for registration as a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) with PEGNL.
Minimum 12 years of oil and gas engineering experience with deep expertise in well design and planning, including trajectory and survey programming, casing, cementing, fluids, and well integrity.
Experience with Barrier and Well Control/Pressure Control Verifications, Bowties, Shut-in Procedures
Strong working knowledge of well planning and engineering software, including hydraulics, tubing design, stress analysis, and probabilistic time and cost estimation
Proven experience supporting offshore drilling operations, including subsea and platform developments in harsh or complex operating environments.
Demonstrated capability in managing well construction risks, contractor oversight, and operational execution to ensure safe and compliant delivery.
Experience in evaluation and execution of DCI contract services and oversight including MODU intake requirements
Experience in offshore wellsite engineering and/or offshore drilling supervisory roles
Willingness and ability to travel offshore periodically, including meeting medical and training requirements; preference given to qualified residents of Newfoundland and Labrador and Canada in accordance with the Accord Acts.
We acknowledge the value of transferrable skills and may consider equivalent combinations of experience and education should you not meet a specific requirement.
This is a safety sensitive position and will be subject to offshore pre-placement Fitness for Work assessments, which includes drug and alcohol screening, a CAPP medical and BST/HUEBA testing.
You must be able to travel via helicopter and boat. This position requires the successful candidate travel offshore, there you will be required to obtain and maintain medical clearance and obtain all required training necessary for offshore travel.
Note: The application deadline for this position is 11:59 PM MT March 15, 2026
Cenovus was ranked one of Canada’s Best Employers in 2025. We’re committed to being an employer of choice in our industry by offering a competitive total rewards package and employee programs and rewarding career development opportunities. Learn more.
If you require accessibility assistance to complete the on-line application or otherwise apply for an open position with Cenovus, its subsidiaries and affiliates, please email careeropportunities@cenovus.com.
Consistent with the Accords Act, residents of Newfoundland and Labrador specifically and Canada generally, who are qualified, will be given first consideration for training and employment.
Who we are:
Ranked as one of Canada’s Best Employers in 2025, Cenovus is an integrated energy company headquartered in Calgary. We’re committed to maximizing value by developing our assets in a safe, responsible and cost-efficient manner. We operate in Canada, the United States and the Asia Pacific region. Our operations include oil sands projects in northern Alberta, thermal and conventional crude oil and natural gas projects across Western Canada, crude oil production offshore Newfoundland and Labrador and natural gas and liquids production offshore China and Indonesia. Cenovus’s downstream operations include upgrading, refining and marketing operations in Canada and the United States.
We are the operator and majority owner of the West White Rose field and extensions, located approximately 350 kilometres offshore Newfoundland and Labrador. West White Rose is a concrete based drilling platform, which will access resources in the western part of the existing White Rose field and use the SeaRose floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel for processing within our Atlantic Region Operations.
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The Cenovus experience
Total rewards
We’re committed to being an employer of choice through competitive compensation and our comprehensive total rewards package, including:
Paid vacation (including a flex day program for eligible staff)
Health & dental benefits
Substantial mental health coverage
Life insurance
Disability benefits
Employee family assistance
Virtual healthcare coverage
Our development philosophy
We foster a culture of continuous learning and development to support employees as they build meaningful careers. We offer a variety of employee development initiatives, including:
Internal course offerings
Education assistance for additional development
Opportunities to work on special projects
Leadership development programs for emerging and established leaders
We actively promote internal job movement, recognizing the value of gaining new perspectives, building connections across teams, and applying expertise in new ways. As a fully integrated energy company, we believe that sharing knowledge across our business and operations creates stronger outcomes — for employees and for the company as a whole.
Our culture
Our purpose: We energize the world to make people’s lives better.
Our values:
Protect what matters
Do it right
Make it better
Do it together
Cenovus Cares: We believe in the power of purpose-driven work. Our Employee Giving and Volunteering Program, Cenovus Cares, connects our people to our purpose, inspiring action and elevating impact year-round.
Support causes you care about with volunteer opportunities in and outside of work.
Earn donation grants while volunteering (up to $1,000 per event).
Receive donation matching up to $25,000 annually.
Staff resource groups: We have various staff resource groups to help ensure our people feel a sense of belonging and can grow and do their best work. These voluntary groups are employee-led and all groups are open to all staff in all locations.
Equal opportunity employer
We believe a workplace where everyone has merit-based opportunities to grow, achieve career aspirations and feel a sense of belonging benefits our people, our company and the regions where we live and work. We embrace and encourage different perspectives and approaches, which help us make better business decisions. We believe that through this approach, we can solve challenges, seize opportunities and unlock innovative solutions.
To achieve an unbiased and respectful workplace, individuals are evaluated based on qualifications, merit and abilities, and we encourage applications from all qualified candidates. We also acknowledge the value of transferrable skills and may consider equivalent combinations of experience and education should you not meet a specific requirement.
For more information about working at Cenovus, visit cenovus.com.
The requirements of this posting may be modified to support business needs. Title and compensation administration will be based on the skills and capabilities of the successful incumbent.
Interested in this opportunity? Click the Apply link.
If you are a CURRENT EMPLOYEE, please apply by going to our Internal Career Site.