Under the terms of the agreement, Fort McKay First Nation will pay 34.3% of the actual capital cost of the East Tank Farm Development once the assets become operational, which is currently anticipated to be in the second quarter of 2017.
The possible plant closure, which could cost around 2,000 jobs, is part of a global restructuring plan announced in September that could see CAT cutting as many as 10,000 jobs globally in the coming years.
The collapse of oil prices has ground shale drilling to a halt, but the one region where drilling is still active, and even increasing, is in West Texas.