Sulphur costs rise at Syncrude
Herald News Services
September 20, 2008
Oilsands - Syncrude Canada Ltd.'s cost for installing equipment to cut emissions of deadly sulphur dioxide has more than doubled to $1.6 billion, the joint-venture's biggest shareholder said Friday.
Canadian Oil Sands Trust, which owns 36.7 per cent of Syncrude, said the cost of the project to retrofit two upgraders with equipment to cut output of sulphur and other particles by 60 per cent had risen from its previous $772-million estimate because of delays and rising labour and material costs.
Syncrude announced the project in 2003, saying then it expected the retrofit to cost $400 million. However, costs have spiraled in the oilsands as firms compete for labour and costs for steel and other commodities have skyrocketed.
The trust's partners in the project include Imperial Oil Ltd., Petro-Canada, ConocoPhillips, Nexen Inc., Nippon Oil Corp. unit Mocal Energy Ltd. and Murphy Oil Corp.
© The Calgary Herald 2008
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