Canada's Suncor Energy reviews mining safety after three workers killed (updated)

Canada Energy Partners

04/02/2021 16:22

(Adds details of accidents, CEO comments on deaths, 2021
spending plans)
    By Rod Nickel
    Feb 4 (Reuters) - Canada's second-biggest oil company,
Suncor Energy Inc  SU.TO , said on Thursday it had started a
third-party safety review, after three contract workers died in
two separate mining accidents.
    Chief Executive Mark Little said the review would focus on
mining operations, which are one of the ways the company
extracts crude from Alberta's oil sands. It is scheduled for
completion this quarter.
    "As devastating as this has been for all of us, I can't even
comprehend how difficult this is on the families," Little said,
before pausing the quarterly conference call to hold a moment of
silence for the workers.
    A man died last month when a bulldozer he was driving fell
through the ice of a tailings pond at Suncor's base mine near
Fort McMurray, Alberta.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2JP2CB
    In December, a bulldozer hit a truck at the Fort Hills,
Alberta, site, killing two workers. 
    Alberta's occupational health and safety department is
investigating both incidents.
    They follow accidents during construction of Trans Mountain
Corp's  TMC.UL  oil pipeline expansion, causing it to halt work
temporarily.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2IY14F
    Suncor on Wednesday said it narrowed its fourth-quarter loss
on cost-saving measures.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2KA039
    Even as oil prices rise, Little ruled out any increase to
2021 capital-spending plans, a range of C$3.8 billion ($2.96
billion) to C$4.5 billion. Suncor has restarted work on its
cogeneration project, which will replace coke-fired boilers with
natural gas units at its base operations, and its Forty Mile
wind farm in Alberta.
    Two-thirds of additional funds from rising prices will repay
debt, while one-third will buy back shares, Chief Financial
Officer Alister Cowan said.
    Suncor sold its 27% stake in the Golden Eagle fields for
$325 million to North Sea oil producer EnQuest  ENQ.L .
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2KA1C0
 ($1 = 1.2830 Canadian dollars)

 (Reporting by Rod Nickel in Winnipeg
Editing by Matthew Lewis)
 ((rod.nickel@tr.com; Twitter: @RodNickel_Rtrs;
1-204-230-6043;))