Sun Rise: Suncor, the Oil Sands and the Future of Energy

Over its twenty years with president and CEO Rick George at the helm, Suncor Energy went from being Canada’s “unluckiest oil company” to a stock market darling and the second-largest publicly traded corporation in the country. Both a contrarian and an optimist, George often made multibillion-dollar moves despite deep skepticism within the industry. His $2.8-billion expansion into the oil sands ignited massive growth in Canada’s most valuable, and controversial, natural resource. And his $19-billion merger with Petro-Canada in 2009 made Suncor a true global player in the rough, big-stakes game of international oil.

All of this from a guy who grew up in a small Colorado ranching town to become one of Canadian business’s most transformative figures in a sector fraught with controversy. Rick George is a man of contradictions—both a conservationist and a leading proponent of sustainable development of the oil sands.

Sun Rise is about leadership, strategy, environmental concerns and boardroom drama; it’s also about the future of oil sands development. This is the story of an optimist whose faith in people and innovation leads him to believe that we can overcome today’s challenges and continue to advance.