Suncor has made a successful bid to merge the operations of Petro-Canada with its own, bringing to the fore a globally competitive Canadian energy company.

The new group will trade under the Suncor brand but will retain Petro-Canada's line of refined products, Suncor announced earlier this week.

As a result of the move, the new company has an expanded resource base of 7.5 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) of proved and probable reserves and a contingency resource base of around 19 billion boe.

"The combined portfolio boasts the largest oil sands resource position, a strong Canadian downstream brand, solid conventional exploration and production assets and low-cost production from Canada's east coast and internationally," said Rick George, who will retain his position as president and chief executive officer in the new company.

Speaking at an internal event praising the work of the firm's staff, Mr George said that Suncor's most experienced and well-trained staff are a guiding light for the rest of the workforce and help to maintain its exceptional safety record.

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