- Acquisition of TotalEnergies assets adds bitumen supply
- It’s unclear that government would allow extension of old mine
According to Bloomberg article published on April 28, 2023, Suncor Energy Inc.’s acquisition of TotalEnergies SE’s Canadian oil assets is a signal that the company is likely to give up on a project to extend the life of its decades-old Base Plant mine, according to Eight Capital.
Suncor’s C$5.5 billion ($4 billion) purchase of the French company’s 31% interest in the Fort Hills oil sands mine and 50% interest in the Surmont oil site will provide Suncor with as much as 135,000 barrels a day of bitumen production. The assets will replace half of the current Base Plant’s bitumen production when the mine’s life runs out, Suncor said in a release Thursday.
The Base Plant mine, which has been operating for more than 50 years, could reach the end of its life within the next decade. Suncor submitted a plan to the federal government to extend its life, to feed bitmen into two upgraders that turn the ultra-heavy crude into lighter, higher-value synthetic oil.
But last year, Canadian Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault signaled he may not approve the project, saying its emissions “may not align” with Canada’s climate targets.
While Suncor would probably prefer that Canada approve its mine life extension, the risks of cost overruns and labor shortfalls mean the company probably won’t proceed with the project, Phil Skolnick, an analyst at Eight Capital, said by phone. “That’s basically what they are implying,” he said. “It would be a very costly effort if they got approval for” the mine life extension.
The TotalEnergies deal is a “major step in securing long-term bitumen supply to our Base Plant upgraders at a competitive supply cost,” Chief Executive Officer Rich Kruger said in a release.
Suncor and other Canadian oil sands producers have shifted focus in recent years from growing production to trying to cut emissions, as the government has increased its carbon tax and may decide to place a cap on emissions in the future. The industry has rolled out a plan that will cost tens of billions of dollars to deploy carbon capture and storage facilities in the next decade, in an effort to cut emissions to zero by 2050.
Suncor will continue with its regulatory application for the Base Plant mine, which remains an option for supplying its upgraders, Suncor spokeswoman Sneh Seetal said by phone.
