Marjorie Mallare at Imperial Oil’s Strathcona refinery. 

Fr0m the Canadian Energy Centre

By Cody Ciona

Mallare manages an all-female team of engineers helping keep operations smooth and safe

As the utilities and hydroprocessing technical lead for Imperial Oil’s Strathcona Refinery near Edmonton, 32-year-old Marjorie Mallare and her team help ensure operations run smoothly and safely at one of Canada’s largest industrial facilities.

The exciting part, she says, is that all four engineers she leads are female.

It’s part of the reason Mallare was named one of ten Young Women in Energy award winners for 2025.

“I hope they realize how important the work that they do is, inspiring and empowering women, connecting women and recognizing women in our industry,” she says.

“That can be very pivotal for young women, or really any young professional that is starting off their career.”

Born and raised in the Philippines, Mallare and her family moved to Edmonton near the end of junior high school.

Living in the industrial heartland of Alberta, it was hard not to see the opportunity present in the oil and gas industry.

When she started post-secondary studies at the University of Alberta in the early 2010s, the industry was booming.

“The amount of opportunities, at least when I started university, which was around 2011, was one of the high periods in our industry at the time. So, it was definitely very attractive,” Mallare says.

When choosing a discipline, engineering stood out.

“At the time, chemical engineering had the most number of females, so that was a contributing factor,” she says.

“Just looking at what’s available within the province, within the city, chemical engineering just seemed to offer a lot more opportunities, a lot more companies that I could potentially work for.”

Through work co-ops in oil and gas, her interest in a career in the industry continued to grow.

“It just kind of naturally happened. That drew my interest more and more, and it made it easier to find future opportunities,” Mallare says.

Following a work practicum with Imperial Oil and graduation, she started working with the company full time.

On the side, Mallare has also driven STEM outreach programs, encouraging young women to pursue careers in engineering.

In addition to supporting the Strathcona Refinery’s operations department, Mallare and her team work on sustainability-focused projects and reducing the refinery’s carbon footprint.

The 200,000 barrel per day facility represents about 30 per cent of Western Canada’s refining capacity.

“Eventually, our group will also be responsible for running the new renewable diesel unit that we’re planning to commission later this year,” says Mallare.

Once completed, the $720 million project will be the largest renewable diesel facility in Canada, producing more than one billion litres of biofuel annually.

Projects like these are why Mallare believes Canada will continue to be a global energy leader.

“We’re leading others already with regards to pursuing more sustainable alternatives and reducing our carbon footprints overall. That’s not something we should lose sight of.”

MxM News

Quick Hit:

Ontario has approved plans to build Canada’s first small modular nuclear reactors, positioning the province as a leader in next-generation nuclear energy. The Darlington project is expected to be the first SMR deployment among G7 countries.

Key Details:

• Ontario Power Generation received approval to construct the first of four planned small modular reactors (SMRs) at its Darlington site.
• Each reactor will cost billions, with construction led in partnership with GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy using the BWRX-300 design.
• The project marks the first SMR deployment in the developed world, as interest grows in nuclear as a clean, stable energy source.

Putting Ontario on the map as a leading clean energy superpower.

Starting today, our government is officially saying YES to build the G7’s first Small Modular Reactor, right here in Ontario. Literally leading the world.

🇨🇦 18,000 Canadian jobs
🇨🇦 80% of project from Ontario biz… pic.twitter.com/EFkAEDSkVe

— Stephen Lecce (@Sflecce) May 8, 2025

Diving Deeper:

Ontario’s provincial government has officially approved plans for a bold new phase in Canada’s energy strategy: the construction of four small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) — the first of their kind in the country. Ontario Power Generation (OPG) confirmed Thursday it has received the green light to begin work on the initial reactor at its Darlington New Nuclear Project site.

The reactors represent a significant bet on a new generation of nuclear technology aimed at producing reliable, zero-emissions energy more efficiently and at smaller scale. Unlike traditional nuclear plants that take decades and tens of billions of dollars to complete, SMRs are designed to be built in factories and shipped to installation sites — a method supporters claim will be faster and more cost-effective over time.

The Darlington SMR will utilize the BWRX-300 model, developed by GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, which delivers 300 megawatts of power — about one-third the output of traditional nuclear reactors. OPG signed an agreement with GE Hitachi in 2023 to deploy the technology at the Darlington site.

Last month, Canada’s nuclear regulator issued a construction license for the project, clearing a key hurdle. Now, with provincial support secured, the Darlington SMR is on track to become the first of its kind to go live in a G7 country — a milestone for both Canada’s energy ambitions and the broader international nuclear industry.

Only a handful of SMRs have been built to date, all in China and Russia.