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CANADIAN INDUSTRY ONLINE - DECEMBER 2015Suncormuch the oil sands have evolved over the last 50 years. Today, Suncor is Can- ada’s leading integrated energy com- pany, the fth largest energy company in North America, and has been ce- mented as one of the largest indepen- dent energy companies in the world. Suncor’s original plant north of Fort McMurray produced just 45,000 barrels a day--now Suncor produces more than 374,000 barrels a day at its oil sands operations.“This is a red letter day.”novator in Canada’s oil sands was the opening of Suncor’s original facility in Fort McMurray on September 30, 1967, under the original name of the com- pany: Great Canadian Oil Sands. It was the largest single private investment in the country’s history, dubbed as “the biggest gamble in history.”Of the historic opening, then Al- berta Premier Ernest Manning said, “This is a red letter day, not only for Canada but for all North America. No other event in Canada’s centennial year is more important or signi cant.” This is certainly the case considering howTHE EVOLUTION OF SUNCOR’S OIL SANDS TECHNOLOGYIn Suncor’s early days in the oil sands, especially during the indus- try downturn in the late 80’s and early 90s, it seemed as though the company would never get to a level of success, with the challenging economics of an oil sands operation—as oil was at just $15 a barrel. According to Suncor reps, the Globe & Mail even referred to Sun- cor as ‘the unluckiest oil company in Canada’, because problems with tech- nology, natural disasters and wild res had become commonplace.However, Suncor and its employ- ees were resilient, constantly working on oil sands technologies behind the strong core leadership team, and “Sun- cor was able to overcome those chal- lenges and become the company it is10 |Canadian Industry Online | Aug/Sept, 2017