Former Suncor exec’s book shines light on oil sands CARRIE KELLY


From people who don’t know the first thing about the oil sands to those who’ve worked in the industry for decades, Rick George’s book Sun Rise: Suncor, the Oils Sands and the Future of Energy is a book all can learn from and enjoy.


The former CEO of Suncor wrote the book as a celebration of success and an optimistic view of what is possible. Anyone, even from humble roots, has the potential to make a difference, he says.


Now a Canadian citizen and even an officer of the Order of Canada, George was born in the U.S., growing up in Brush, Colorado, with a population of about 5,000. He got his start in the energy industry through an oil patch job at the age of 18. Seeing almost everyone in the industry driving a new pick up truck was enticing for a teenager.


He earned his engineering degree and after several job offers, chose Texaco.


“It helped me a lot that I started in the field,” George says of his later success as Suncor’s CEO.


While employed at Texaco, he enrolled at the University of Houston Law School, spending his days working as an engineer and his evenings as a law student. He never intended to practice law, but knew it could change his career.


“It broadened my capabilities by opening up a whole different approach to solving problems,” he writes in his book.


George began working for Sun Oil in 1980 and was posted in London, Toronto and eventually Calgary.


When he took on the oil sands division in 1991, accepting the job wasn’t an easy decision. At that time, the oil sands operation was undergoing difficulties due to fires, freeze-ups and high production costs. George knew that leading the operation would be a challenge and ultimately that’s why he said yes.


When he first started as Suncor’s CEO, it was costing the company about $20 to produce a barrel of crude that was often selling between $12 and $15.


RICK GEORGE


To cut costs, he got rid of the massive bucket wheels used to mine bitumen and replaced them with power shovels and a fleet of trucks. There was no guarantee that this would be the perfect answer, but in addition to a consultant’s report, George based the decision on his gut. He knew he had to be able to make brave decisions, even if others didn’t agree, in order to get the balance sheet turned around.


And it did make a huge difference, as did going public in order to give Suncor its own cash flow for growth.


“We grew from a very underperforming company to become the largest in the industry and the second largest company in Canada,” says George.


Although Suncor’s finances drastically improved, the public’s


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THE WESTERN CANADIAN PIPELINE | WINTER 2013


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