Iqaluit (May 17/04) - It's a little-known fact that English royalty and the stars of Hollywood regularly make stops in Iqaluit. Kings and queens and movie stars such as Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen, as well as Clint Eastwood have all graced the tarmac at Iqaluit's airport.

"Robin Williams got off the plane once and when his feet hit the tarmac he clenched his fists and in a rage called out to the sky, 'I thought hell was cold,'" reports Scott Cooper, general manager for Uqsuq.

Uqsuq is a small, but mighty fuel resupplier based out of Iqaluit.

Uqsuq is a joint venture between Nunasi Petroleum, owned by Nunasi Corporation (26 per cent), Qikiqtaaluk Corporation (25 per cent) and AtcoFrontec (49 per cent).

The literal translation for Uqsuq is seal oil, which is what the Inuit have traditionally used for heat and lighting their lamps.

The joint venture came into play in 1996 when Uqsuq took over from Shell, which had been doing the job of bulk fuel supply for the 17 years prior.

The company handles 110 million litres a year, with 55 million litres distributed to aircraft while the rest is provided to other companies in the region.

Amongst all the millionaires and billionaires cycling through Iqaluit, there are also medevacs and the occasional 747 that touches down. Cooper reminisces that Madonna once signed a poster and a CD for the boys on the tarmac.

But why you ask, is such an unusual event so little known in Iqaluit? According to Cooper, the flights are usually directed from Europe to the States or in the opposite direction, and the touchdown at Iqaluit is very late, around midnight.

Employee stability

When Uqsuq started into business six years ago they had a complement of six employees. Their staff is now at 17 -- all full-time and 100 per cent locally hired, with 82 per cent of them being Inuit.

The company has a reputation for having a very low turnover rate for employees with even other companies in the region often asking Cooper what his secret is.

"Not to pat myself on the back, but I've been here for 23 years and I've got a good feel for what the people and the community can do," says Cooper.

Uqsuq makes it a priority to integrate the Inuit culture.

"If they've used up their holiday time and they still want to go hunting, we realize it's a desire, a need. It's a part of their life and their upbringing and we work around it," he says.

That makes for happy employees.

"They get to go on their polar bear, beluga or caribou hunt and they're happy. We hunt together and we boat together. It's a combination of a lot of things," says Cooper.

One of those things includes wages. When Uqsuq took over from Shell they doubled wages for their employees.

"When we took over, the ground crew was only making $11.25 an hour in 1996. We doubled that in the last six years to bring it up to par. No one can live on that. It's an important job, sometimes involving life and death."