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In its application, Suncor said the project would contribute almost $3.4 billion to Alberta’s GDP and employ an average of 580 construction workers per year and 1,000 construction workers at its peak it 2027 and 2028.

The permit will help Suncor plan its next projects to replace the production that will end in the 2030s, according to one analyst.

“The life of mine plans show production ending. It’s so far away that nobody really thinks about it, but it’s probably a decade of planning,” GMP FirstEnergy analyst Michael Dunn said of the mine retirement.

He said Suncor is looking at ways to boost production so that its oilsands upgrading facilities — vital for the company to get a higher price for its bitumen — will continue to be fully utilized.

“All these things go into the decision-making,” Dunn said, adding that Suncor will need to look at replacing its production from its base mine potentially through lease swaps with Syncrude or through new projects.

The Lewis project’s timeframe aligns with Suncor’s efforts to boost production ahead of the anticipated closure of the company’s main mining operation north of Fort McMurray in the early 2030s. Suncor’s detailed mine plans, and the AER’s tailings plans, show the company’s primary mining operations will wrap up in 2033.

“With Suncor’s Oil Sands Base Plant approaching end of mine life (2033), the AER is concerned with the length of time remaining to resolve Suncor’s site-specific issues,” an AER report from Oct. 2017 states. The AER approved Suncor’s plan to address those issues the regulator had identified.