Mark Little prepares to speak at the company’s annual meeting in Calgary on May 2, 2019. Mr. Little has stepped down as president and CEO of the company. Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press
The CEO of Suncor Energy Inc. resigned one day after the latest fatal accident at one of the company’s oil sands facilities.
The Calgary-based company announced Friday evening that Mark Little will step down as president and CEO and resign from the board of directors effective immediately. Chris Smith, currently executive vice president of downstream operations, has been named interim CEO.
The move comes just months after activist investor Elliott Investment Management LP, a hedge fund, cited the company’s safety in a turnaround bid at the pioneering oil sands producer, including an overhaul of the board and management.
The death Thursday of a contractor at the Base Mine north of Fort McMurray, Alta., was the second this year at a Suncor facility. At least 12 people have died at Suncor sites since 2014, more than all of the company’s oil sands competitors combined.
After the incident, Suncor canceled a planned oil sands operations presentation next week, which was intended in part to showcase its actions and plans to improve efficiency and safety.
Mr Little said in May that the company had made a number of changes, including a third-party safety review, introducing new guidance and incorporating new fatigue management and collision avoidance technology at its oil sands sites to reduce the risk to workers and contractors.
It is also introducing collision mitigation technology commonly used in the global mining industry across its oil sands operations after one worker was killed and two others injured in January when two heavy trucks collided while climbing a ramp in a mine.
Earlier this year, analysts expressed concern that the death and other operational incidents that have affected production since the start of winter are highlighting the company’s bottom line problems. The operational incidents — one at the Syncrude mine, the other at the Firebag operation — reduced output by about 195,000 barrels per day in the second half of December.
As a result of the cut, total annual production in 2021 is about 1% below the company’s target of 740,000 barrels per gulf.
Suncor said Friday that its board has formed a CEO search committee and has engaged a global executive recruiting firm to assist in the process.
“Suncor is committed to achieving safety and operational excellence in our business, and we must recognize where we have fallen short and recognize the critical need for change,” board chairman Michael Wilson said in a statement Friday.
“We commend Mark for his professionalism and the outstanding work he has done to lead Suncor through the pandemic and lead our sector’s progressive approach to the energy transition.” We thank him for his years of service to the company and wish him every success.”
Mr. Little joined Suncor in 2008 as its Senior Vice President of Strategic Growth and Energy Trading before becoming Senior Vice President of Integration following Suncor’s merger with Petro‑Canada.
He was appointed CEO in 2019.
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