An out-of-control wildfire in northern Alberta forced Cenovus to shutter its Pelican Lake heavy oil facility.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the fire had come within one kilometre of project’s main complex, triggering an operational shut-down and a complete staff evacuation.
Company officials say the shut-down of Pelican Lake — located 300 km north of Edmonton — is precautionary, and no infrastructure has been damaged by the blaze.
“Just because of the proximity of the fire to our main complex, we decided to undertake the precautionary evacuation,” said company spokesperson Brett Harris.
“We just want to make sure everyone is safe.”
The 118 staff members, working on site when the evacuation began were transported to a temporary evacuation centre in Wabasca. Some were able to evacuate by emergency vehicle, others in the northern reaches of the project site had to be evacuated by helicopter.
The size of the fire has not been determined, but Cenovus is working emergency responders and regulatory officials to monitor the risks.
Pelican Lake produced 23,000 barrels per day of heavy oil in the first quarter of 2016.