it moves the dial for Canada's economy

From 1925 to 1958 there was a

whole science experiment going on there

figuring out how could we separate this

oil from the sand and make something

useful for society

The Bitumount site is where it all started

it's where we perfected the separation

and where the first

real commercial scale operation existed

Where it started a hundred years ago is now a

massive project across the street

So when you look at the start up of the

Fort Hills operation with its 50-year future ahead

you actually have to go back and look 50, 60, 70 years

back to see the starting point

This is a project that will literally generate economic

benefits across this country, for decades to come

And the amount of work that went in

to imagine this thing engineered, build it

and then see it to actually make oil

it's amazing

One of keys to success for Fort Hills has been

the willingness to innovate in terms of the design

to innovate in terms of construction techniques

to innovate in terms of the product quality

and to innovate in the way we work with our Aboriginal neighbors

all of those have been a great success

For my proudest moment has been just being a part

of the project and the successes it's had

it's an amazing accomplishment

I feel proud of any part that I've contributed to the

growth out here and my little part that I do,

I'm very proud of it

It's a future for me, for my family

it's a stable income

Success for me 25 years from now at Fort Hills

will look like a site that still cares for the environment

We have an opportunity

here to write our own history, to write that record

this is about us coming

together in a world-class way

and showing what can Canadians do with

Canada's resource to strengthen this

country for the next several decades

This project will have an impact for years to come

it's probably one of the best, most safely executed

mega projects in the Canadian oil sands

so we should all feel really proud