UPDATE 2-Enerplus Resources Q1 profit drops 57 percent

* Q1 EPS C$0.31 vs C$0.82 year ago

* Q1 oil and gas rev down 40 pct

* Says could shift spending to oil from gas for 2009 (Adds details, analyst comment, updates share movement)

By Ashutosh Joshi

BANGALORE, May 8 (Reuters) - Canada's Enerplus Resources Fund (ERF_u.TO: Quote, Profile, Research) posted quarterly profit that fell nearly 57 percent on weak commodity prices and said it could shift some capital spending to oil-related projects from natural gas if gas prices remain at low levels.

The company said its C$300 million 2009 capital budget remains sensitive to the current pricing environment, and if weak natural gas prices continue it might shift more of its capital program into oil projects throughout the remainder of the year.

"They (oil prices) are up substantially from their bottom where as gas prices are sort of near their low and they could stay weak for next several months through the summer. People are more worried about the gas prices than the oil prices," said BMO Capital Markets analyst Gordon Tait.

The analyst has an "outperform" rating on the stock.

During the quarter, the company's average selling price of natural gas went down by 32 percent, while selling price of crude oil was down by 51 percent.