Ovintiv Inc. is exploring options to increase the exposure of its multi-basin upstream portfolio to a dynamic global natural gas market, CEO Brendan McCracken said. 

The Denver-based independent works in numerous onshore plays throughout North America, including in the Montney Shale, Anadarko Basin, Permian Basin, Bakken Shale and Uinta Basin.

On a call to discuss first-quarter earnings, McCracken highlighted Ovintiv’s “huge inventory of high-return gas,” and said the management team is “quite encouraged by the long-term gas fundamentals.”

He cited Ovintiv’s strategy of natural gas price diversification, explaining that about 80% of the firm’s Permian production is priced outside of the Waha hub and about 50% of its Canadian output is priced outside the...