On June 3, Suncor Energy Inc. and Fort McKay First Nation celebrated the launch of the Fort McKay business incubator, an integrated one-stop centre for entrepreneurs to develop business ideas from concept to implementation stage with the assistance of experienced professionals.

Fort McKay First Nation community members, Suncor representatives and government and industry officials helped to officially open the facility.

Located in the Dorothy McDonald Centre in the Fort McKay First Nation in northeastern Alberta, the business incubator mandate will be to offer local, relevant, small business incubator services to community members of Fort McKay and to champion and nurture entrepreneurs by facilitating business planning and start-up activities. Examples of businesses range from catering, courier and support services to the Caribou Energy Park, Fort McKay, and the region's oil sands plants. "We're pleased to celebrate the opening of this facility," said Chief Jim Boucher of the Fort McKay First Nation. "The business incubator will be a significant factor in our community's economic development efforts. Not only will it encourage entrepreneurial activities in the area, it will also help develop our members' knowledge of core business fundamentals and encourage the development of early stage businesses."