ALBERTA IS THE HEADQUARTERS FOR BOLD THINKERS AND CREATIVE INNOVATORS
As one of North America’s premier investment attraction organizations, Invest Alberta expedites business operations, fosters collaboration, and goes the extra mile to ensure long-term success for businesses.
With a robust entrepreneurial culture and team members strategically positioned worldwide, Invest Alberta breaks down barriers and offers tailored assistance to enable global investors to start up, scale up, and achieve unlimited success. Since its establishment in 2020, Invest Alberta has worked with economic development agencies, educational institutions, and various industries, to successfully attract nearly $20 billion in investments and create more than 25,000 jobs.
Known as one of Canada’s fastest-growing provinces and a prime business destination, Alberta has established itself as a place where bright talent across a wide range of industries thinks boldly and moves quickly to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges.
Alberta has a propensity for problem solving that has gained notability in the energy and agriculture sector. The province is actively diversifying its economy by capitalizing on growth in sectors including cleantech, technology, aviation, and more.
With a strong economy, alongside a collaborative and business-friendly environment, young and educated talent pool, and easy access to global markets, Alberta is the ideal location for business expansion plans with many prominent companies having already discovered Alberta’s benefits.
ALBERTA’S LEADING ROLE POWERING THE ENERGY TRANSITION
As one of the world’s largest oil and gas producers, Alberta has embraced its role in the energy transition.
The province is taking concrete steps toward a low carbon future by reducing the carbon intensity of its electricity grid and oil and gas sector. It has transitioned away from coal, developed world-scale renewable energy projects, and invested in carbon capture, use, and storage (CCUS) technology. This commitment to sustainability has attracted interest and investment from industry leaders.
With more than $2 billion invested in renewable energy since July 2019, Alberta is an ideal location for companies pursuing renewable investment. One of its major cities, Calgary, is ranked as one of the world’s top cleantech ecosystems, and Alberta’s major oil and gas companies are investing heavily in cleantech, with most committing to net zero by 2050.
Companies including Dow Chemicals, ITOCHU, Mitsubishi, Shell, and Air Products are leveraging Alberta’s energy infrastructure, talent, competitive business environment, and world-class environmental standards to pursue some of the lowest cost, clean hydrogen in the world.
“I advocate for investment in Alberta by pointing to the province’s unique strengths. Specific to investments in hydrogen, the province has resources, infrastructure, viable geology for carbon capture and permanent storage, and a young, highly skilled population.”
— Rachel Smith, Vice President and General Manager at Air Products Canada
It doesn’t stop there. Alberta is home to some of Canada’s best renewable resources, from wind and solar to bioenergy and geothermal. In 2020, Rystad Energy forecasted that by 2025, more than 80 per cent of wind and solar capacity built in Canada will be in Alberta.
Tech giant Amazon, which is investing $4.3 billion in the region, chose Alberta for its largest renewable energy project in Canada – an 80-megawatt solar project in Newell County that will contribute enough energy to the grid to power more than 18,000 homes for a year.
Also contributing to the rapid growth in this sector is PACE Canada, a global clean energy developer, which has relocated its Canadian head office to Alberta as the company scales up operations with a solar power plant in central Alberta.
“Alberta is one of the top business growth areas for cleantech making it an ideal location for PACE Canada’s future as we scale up our involvement in the clean energy sector through solar and increasingly moving into energy storage and green hydrogen. Being in Alberta gives us the opportunity to further expand our ability to service current and future market needs.”
— Rob Denman, Managing Director of PACE Group and President of PACE Canada LP
MAGNETS FOR INNOVATION – ALBERTA’S AVIATION AND TECH SECTORS
Alberta’s aviation sector is experiencing significant growth, fueled by a combination of strategic investments, innovative technologies, and a favourable business environment. Alberta’s prime location in Western Canada and strong infrastructure with two of the country’s largest airports position the province as a growing gateway for doing business throughout North America and worldwide.
The province boasts abundant land and excellent flying conditions, making it an attractive location for aviation leaders and innovators. De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited recognized these promising factors when the company selected Wheatland County as the site for a state-of-the-art aircraft assembly facility, parts manufacturing and distribution centres, and a maintenance centre. Its 1500-acre site will also be home to an educational space for training the workforce of the future as well as general office buildings and a De Havilland aircraft museum.
The province’s commitment to developing and expanding the aviation industry is evident in the rising prominence of remotely piloted aircraft systems. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are being used in agriculture, oil and gas, and environmental monitoring. Alberta’s vast landscape and diverse industries provide an ideal testing ground for UAVs, attracting companies and researchers eager to explore the potential of this technology. The province’s supportive regulatory framework and collaboration between industry and academia position Alberta as a frontrunner in both development and deployment.
Future-forward thinking is part of Alberta’s DNA – from new technologies like remotely piloted aircraft systems to artificial intelligence (AI). Alberta’s tech sector is experiencing remarkable growth and spearheading the development of transformative technologies to address global challenges.
Edmonton stands out as one of the three core hubs of the Government of Canada’s Pan-Canadian AI strategy that aims to harness and enhance the country’s capabilities in artificial intelligence and machine learning. The University of Alberta is ranked among the top in the world for AI and machine learning research, and the province is home to a growing community of companies and developers.
Alberta’s AI community aims to revolutionize many industries, including aspects of aviation from air traffic management to pilot training, and passenger experience. The integration of AI in aviation opens new opportunities for Alberta as a key player at the intersection of aviation and technology.
With more than 3000 tech companies calling Alberta home, Alberta’s tech landscape is also attracting global firms seeking to expand their North American presence and tap into the opportunities offered by Alberta’s vibrant network and access to key global markets.
Calgary, in particular, captured the attention of major technology leader Applexus, which selected the city for its new Canadian headquarters.
The post-secondary funnel here in Calgary is worldclass. The cost of living and the sense of community we found here was a major contributor to our decision. The access to all our markets from the Calgary airport was a significant factor for us as well.”
— Daniel Ratchford, VP- Head of Delivery, Canada at Applexus
Applexus’ plan to create more than one hundred jobs will contribute to Alberta’s thriving tech community, which already has nearly 100,000 skilled tech workers. Investors consistently prioritize talent when considering their investment decisions, and Alberta’s ability to deliver sets it apart.
EMPOWERING ALBERTA COMMUNITIES AND COMPANIES
Alberta has quickly established itself as a place where bright and diverse talent from around the globe come to live, work and study. EY Canada’s establishment of a finance centre of excellence, RBC’s innovation centre, and Mphasis’ delivery centre and Quantum City Centre of Excellence are additional examples of the large-scale projects that are reinforcing Alberta’s status a thriving hub for talent and innovation.
That includes pioneering transformations in the agriculture industry, a sector that is foundational to the province’s economy. The food produced in Alberta has a global reputation for safety and the very best quality. GoodLeaf Farms is using modern technologies to expand its indoor vertical farming systems to produce more than one million pounds of local leafy greens annually for consumers throughout Western Canada. The location in Calgary will be twice the size of the company’s flagship farm in Ontario, bringing new jobs, retail partnerships, and opportunities to partner with post-secondary institutions on agri-food innovation.
While Calgary ranks as the world’s most livable city and the third most diverse city in Canada, and Edmonton as the most affordable city in Canada, opportunities for major projects exist across the entire province. Invest Alberta partners with rural regions to identify project-ready communities and share those gems with investors pursuing major projects.
This partnership was a wonderful way for the Town of Wainwright to work together to gather information and data that we feel is important for investors when they’re looking at our community. The information that Invest Alberta was able to provide for us was invaluable.”
— Carley Herbert, Economic Development Officer, Town of Wainwright
INCA Renewable Technologies is building a state-of-the art 200,000-square-foot fibre processing and composites manufacturing facility in Vegreville. This significant endeavour has established a strong connection between the community of Vegreville and the company. In addition to generating jobs and bolstering Alberta’s hemp supercluster, it satisfies INCA’s need for materials from local farmers, transportation links to key markets, and insights from local researchers.
EMBRACING INNOVATION FOR A BRIGHTER FUTURE
Embracing innovation unlocks the potential to drive growth, revolutionize industries, and shape the future landscape of companies, industries, and the entire province. Alberta is a shining example of this ethos, as an investment destination for bold, forward thinking- individuals and organizations.
The province’s diverse and dynamic economy anchored by sectors like energy, technology, and agriculture offers fertile ground for growth and expansion for companies across all sectors. Alberta stands out as the premier location for businesses to flourish, and Invest Alberta is ready to make ambitious dreams a reality.
