Edmontonians - Economy

Economy

Edmonton is the major economic centre for northern and central Alberta and a major centre for the oil and gas industry. In its autumn 2007 Metropolitan Outlook, the Conference Board of Canada forecast that Edmonton's GDP for 2007 will be $44.1-billion (2007 dollars), a 3.6% increase over 2006. The Edmonton Economic Development Corporation estimated that as of January 2005, the total value of major projects under construction in northern Alberta was $81.5-billion, with $18.2-billion occurring within Greater Edmonton.

Edmonton traditionally has been a hub for Albertan petrochemical industries, earning it the nickname "Oil Capital of Canada" in the 1940s. Supply and service industries drive the energy extraction engine, while research develops new technologies and supports expanded value-added processing of Alberta's massive oil, gas, and oil sands reserves. These are reported to be the second-largest in the world, after Saudi Arabia.

Despite the apparent focus on oil and gas, Edmonton's economy is one of the most diverse in Canada. Major industrial sectors include a strong technology sector anchored by major employers such as IBM, Telus, Intuit Canada, Canadian Western Bank, BioWare, Matrikon, General Electric, and Stantec Inc. The associated biotech sector, with companies such as Afexa Life Sciences Inc. (formerly CV Technologies).

Much of the growth in technology sectors is due to Edmonton's reputation as one of Canada’s premier research and education centres. Research initiatives are anchored by educational institutions such as the University of Alberta as well as government initiatives underway at the Alberta Research Council and Edmonton Research Park. Recently, the National Institute for Nanotechnology was constructed on the University of Alberta campus.

During the 1970s and 1980s, Edmonton started to become a major financial centre, with both regional offices of Canada's major banks and locally based institutions opening. However, the turmoil of the late-1980s economy radically changed the situation. Locally based operations such as Principal Trust and Canadian Commercial Bank would fail, and some regional offices were moved to other cities. The 1990s saw a solidification of the economy, and Edmonton is now home to Canadian Western Bank, the only publicly traded Schedule I chartered bank headquarters west of Toronto. Other major financial centres include ATB Financial, Servus Credit Union (formerly Capital City Savings), TD Canada Trust and Manulife Financial.

Edmonton has been the birthplace of several companies that have grown to international stature, such as PCL Construction, Stantec Inc. and more recently, Capital Power Corporation. The local retail market has also seen the creation of many successful store concepts, such as The Brick, Katz Group, AutoCanada, Boston Pizza, Pizza 73, Liquor Stores GP (which includes Liquor Depot, Liquor Barn, OK Liquor, and Grapes & Grains), Planet Organic, Empire Design, Running Room, Booster Juice, Earl's, Fountain Tire and XS Cargo.

Edmonton's geographical location has made it an ideal spot for distribution and logistics. CN Rail's North American operational facility is located in the city, as well as a major intermodal facility that handles all incoming freight from the port of Prince Rupert in British Columbia.

Edmonton was judged to have the "best economic potential" of any North American city by the Financial Times publication, FDi magazine. In a 2007 study, FDI placed Edmonton immediately ahead of Mississauga, Ontario; Charlotte, North Carolina; Tijuana, Mexico and Calgary among cities with populations between 500,000 and two million. Edmonton's economic potential, expanding infrastructure, human resources, cost effectiveness, and high standard of living place it in the No. 4 spot on FDi’s list of top-ten North American large cities. The survey also named Edmonton in the top-five large North American cities for business development and investment promotion. Edmonton is known for its exceptional environmental stewardship, strong life-science sector, and burgeoning high-tech industry economy.