Suncor Energy Inc. is moving its PetroCanada head office to Calgary from two offices in Mississauga and Oakville next year, affecting about 700 workers.
A company spokesman says the shift is part of efforts by the oilsands and retail fuel giant to remain competitive by integrating the downstream business with the rest of Suncor to be more efficient.
Premier Doug Ford was asked about the jobs moving from Ontario to Alberta, "I have not had an opportunity to speak with the people at Suncor but I will speak to them. The good news is we're seeing a lot of jobs coming from Alberta and other regions around the world into Ontario. Roche is a perfect example. We competed against 13 countries around the world and they chose Ontario; they chose Mississauga to open up and create 500 new, great paying jobs, and expand their facilities here."
The downstream operations are largely PetroCanada refineries through to retail and wholesale sales, PetroCanada and Petro-Pass.
Not all positions will move as some need to remain close to customers or businesses, while some employees may choose not to move, says Sneh Seetal, Suncor's director of communications
This announcement comes about three weeks after Suncor said it will eliminate 10 to 15 per cent of its workforce or as many as 1,930 jobs over the next 18 months as a result of cost-cutting to deal with low oil prices and market volatility.
The Calgary-based company had 12,889 staff at the end of 2019. Five per cent would equate to 644 positions and 15 per cent would equal 1,933.