Premier Dalton McGuinty and the Honourable Roger Gallaway, MP for Sarnia-Lambton on behalf of the Honourable R. John Efford, Minister of Natural Resources Canada, today joined Suncor Energy Products” Tom Ryley and local dignitaries in St. Clair Township to celebrate the official groundbreaking for Suncor’s St. Clair Ethanol Plant.
The estimated $120-million ethanol plant, located at Highway 40 and Rokeby Line, is expected to employ up to 250 people during construction. The Government of Canada is contributing $22 million towards the construction of the facility through its Ethanol Expansion Program. Once the facility is operating, it is expected to create about 35 full time positions, and require approximately 20 million bushels of corn each year. The ethanol will be blended into Sunoco’s gasoline. Construction is expected to be completed in June 2006.
The groundbreaking ceremony featured remarks from Premier McGuinty and Roger Gallaway from the Government of Canada and the Township of St. Clair.
“Suncor is committed to finding solutions like ethanol that help meet today’s energy and environmental challenges,” said Tom Ryley, executive vice president of Suncor. “This project will benefit the Sarnia-Lambton community and will benefit Ontario by enabling Suncor to offer our environmentally-enhanced ethanolized gasolines.”
“Our government is moving ahead with our plan to reduce greenhouse gases and the harmful emissions that cause smog,” said Premier McGuinty. “That’s why we’re taking steps to ensure we’ve got the ethanol production facilities to help supply the growing demand.”
“As evidenced by the Ethanol Expansion Program’s contribution to this project, the Government of Canada is committed to expanding the production and use of renewable fuels,” said Roger Gallaway on behalf of Minister Efford. “Suncor’s ethanol plant is an excellent example of the partnership between the petrochemical/energy and agricultural sectors to create a new generation of fuels to reach that goal.”
Since 1996, Suncor has been blending ethanol into its retail-branded gasoline sold in Ontario. As a clean burning, renewable resource, ethanol helps reduce carbon monoxide emissions up to 30 per cent. Suncor’s new facility will produce approximately 200 million litres of ethanol annually.
Suncor Energy Products Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Suncor Energy Inc., an integrated energy company. In addition to a refinery in Sarnia, Suncor Energy Products has a network of 281 Sunoco-branded retail and Fleet Fuel cardlock sites and has a 50 per cent joint venture interest in over 200 Pioneer and UPI retail sites. Suncor Energy Products Inc. manufactures, distributes and markets transportation fuels, heating oils and petrochemicals primarily in Ontario. For more information, see the Sunoco website at www.sunoco.ca or www.suncor.com.
For more information call:
Jason Vaillant
Suncor Energy – Sarnia
519-383-3691 office
519-312-3829 mobile
Tom Ormsby
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister Natural Resources Canada
613-992-4447
Ghyslain Charron
Media Relations Natural Resources Canada – Ottawa
613-996-2007
Government of Ontario
Premier’s Media Office
416-314-8975