Oil Sands Mining Operations
At a Glance
How we live and work around Horizon and Albian
Local Economy
Supporting jobs, companies and public services (health, safety and education)
- Local direct and indirect (suppliers) jobs
- Revenues to governments in royalties
and corporate taxes - Property taxes to municipal governments
Local Employment
- 4,955 full-time staff including contractors
- 156 post-secondary students in cooperative work terms in 2024
Investing in Communities
Inside Education
“It’s important to see the diverse job opportunities and sustainable efforts they’re putting into the energy sector, and bring that knowledge back to our school.”
– Allison Somers, from Clarenville High School in Newfoundland, was one of the 30 teachers who participated in a tour of our Albian site.
Fort McMurray Children’s Centre
The Children’s Centre in Fort McMurray provides programs and services that assist families in need. We continue to support this non-profit through donations and employee volunteering, such as the “Stuff the Bus” campaign.
Waypoints Community Services Association
Canadian Natural was excited to donate an Adult Media Lounge to the Waypoints Community Services Association. This room allows women in the association’s Emergency Shelter to have a space to unwind and take some time to themselves.
Keyano College
We were proud to fund the Bouchier Indigenous Student Centre at Keyano College. This space provides one-on-one engagement with students, staff, elders, and the community to help their campus honour its legacy through an Indigenous lens.
Local Community Highlights
Employee volunteering
Employees from our Horizon and Albian United Way campaign continue to support local charities. They lent a helping hand to the Centre of Hope during the cold winter months by organizing a clothing drive.
34+ community organizations supported
Athabasca Tribal Council’s Cultural Festival, Northern Lights Health Foundation, Arts Council Wood Buffalo, Fort McMurray Chamber of Commerce, Canadian Mental Health Association Wood Buffalo, and local food banks.
Supporting education
“What I like about working here is definitely the people. Canadian Natural has a really great Engineer in Training (EIT) program for new grads…and that gives you a chance to get that experience you need for your professional engineering.”
Megha Desai,
Mechanical Engineer Student at our Horizon operations
Watch this video to hear Megha’s full testimonial.
Supporting Indigenous communities
We sponsored the Resource Room at the Therese Tuccaro Secondary School in Fort Chipewyan. This room runs programs that support high school students daily, such as well-being classes and mental health programs.
Across our Operations
Employment Creation
- ~83,827 full-time equivalent jobs including direct, indirect (suppliers), and induced (economy at large) supported by operational and capital spending
- 10,640 direct employees across operations
- 524 post-secondary students hired for summer/cooperative work terms across all operations in 2023.
- Indigenous business development
We work with Indigenous companies and contractors, and support local training and capacity building
Community Facts
- ~$42.4 million invested in local communities
- 18,500+ hours of employee volunteering across operations
- ~$855 million in contracts with Indigenous businesses
- ~1,050 community activities supported
- 156 scholarships & bursaries awarded to post-secondary students across our operations, in addition to undergraduate students from Lakeland College
Improving Safety
Our local teams follow a frontline driven safety management system and action plans focused on meeting our ultimate goal of “No harm to people, No safety incidents.” We have reduced corporate total recordable injury frequency by 37% since 2020.
Technology and Innovation
~$572 million invested in technology development and deployment in 2024.
