A partnership between Suncor and Microsoft Canada will usher the oil company into an era of digital innovation.

On Tuesday, the oil giant announced a multi-year strategic alliance with the tech company that will see the two collaborate on several projects.

In a release, Suncor President and CEO Mark Little says they’re excited in the partnership – because Microsoft is a global leader in the digital technology space.

“They will bring value and insights into global innovation best practices,” Little said. “This is an example of how we are driving to improve our business in ways that were not possible before – to make our people safer, increase reliability and productivity, reduce costs and improve sustainability.”

The multi-year alliance will allow Suncor to take advantage of Microsoft’s full range of cloud solutions and move towards cloud-based computing with Microsoft Azure as a preferred platform.

This will help enable rapid deployment of new technologies to improve safety and productivity through artificial intelligence, machine learning, enhanced automation and Industrial IoT and visualization.

Little adds they still have much to learn in the digital department.

“Which is why we’re working with a number of organizations including Microsoft to challenge us,” said Little. “Similar to how we partner with and learn from innovators across our physical value chain, we’re choosing to partner with the experts in digital innovation.”

The collaboration will include Microsoft resources embedded at the core of innovation teams, working together to explore a wide range of business capabilities.

There will also be a value from accessing the innovation eco-system and real-world lessons from a curated community of global peers.

Microsoft Canada President Kevin Peesker says this agreement helps Suncor embark on a journey to transform the energy industry.

“They are creating new business value for their customers, empowering and upskilling their workforce, and innovating for a sustainable future,” Peesker said. “The world’s leading companies run on our cloud, and we look forward to helping Suncor accelerate their digital transformation with Azure, Dynamics 365, Surface and Microsoft 365.”

Through the alliance, the oil giant expects to better improve the employee and customer experiences across their business.

Suncor says this will open new ways to drive improved economic, social and environmental performance.