April 2010

[Ally]

Calgary luxury home sales nearly double from year-ago levels

CALGARY - Luxury home sales soared in the first quarter of 2010 as affluent purchasers moved to take advantage of favourable market conditions across the country, according to a report released today by Re/Max.

In Calgary, sales of luxury homes have almost doubled from a year ago as 67 upper-end properties valued at more than $1 million were sold in the first quarter of this year compared with 35 during the same period last year.

The Re/Max Upper End 2010 Report, highlighting sales and trends in 13 major Canadian centres and five sub-markets, found that improved economic performance, increased personal wealth, immigration and foreign investment all contributed to a serious upswing in sales. Virtually all areas experienced double and triple-digit increases between January and March of this year over 2009 figures for the same period.

Nine out of the 13 markets examined (69 per cent) shattered existing records – setting new all-time highs for first quarter activity in the upper end.

"Recovery in the upper end has been nothing short of remarkable," said Elton Ash, Regional Executive Vice President, ReMax of Western Canada. "This segment of the market was hardest hit when the recession took hold—yet its comeback has been fast and furious. There is no doubt that mindset has changed and confidence has returned. One only has to look at the percentage increases to see the current upward trajectory."

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary house prices to rise 5%-7%: Conference Board

CALGARY - The Conference Board of Canada is forecasting house prices in Calgary to experience short-term - over the next six months - year-over-year growth in the range of five to seven per cent.

In its Metropolitan Monthly Monitors report released today, that growth expectation put the city on the same level as Victoria, Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Regina, Ottawa, Halifax and Newfoundland.

One level above, seven per cent growth and higher, consisted of Edmonton, Saskatoon, Gatineau, Montreal, Quebec City, Sherbrooke, Trois-Rivieres and Saguenay.

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Katz Group open house invites public input

EDMONTON — Edmontonians will have the opportunity to ask the Katz Group questions about the proposed downtown arena project during a public open house May 6.

Representatives from the Katz Group, Stantec Consulting, Bunt & Associates and Anschutz Entertainment Group will present information about the proposed concept plan and other features of the arena district between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. at the Art Gallery of Alberta, a news release said.

The Katz Group has proposed a new sports and entertainment district — including a new arena — on a 16-acre parcel of land on the north edge of downtown.

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary luxury home sales surging in 2010

CALGARY - Affluent purchasers moved in the first quarter to take advantage of low interest rates, pushing luxury home sales in Calgary to nearly double what they were a year ago.

Although the high-end market is not on fire like it was a couple of years ago during the real estate boom, it has picked up dramatically from the recession in 2009.

In Calgary, for the first quarter of this year, 67 upper-end properties valued at more than $1 million were sold compared with 35 during the same period last year.

"We felt it in the last quarter of last year with the surge of first-time buyers coming into the market and it creates a catalyst all the way through. It just took a matter of time before it hit the upper-end market really," said Christina Hagerty with Re/Max Realty Professionals.

"There`s an overall confidence seen in the Calgary market again. Specializing in the inner city, surprisingly, a good 20 per cent of people I`ve been speaking with are coming in from other places," said Hagerty.

Those places include Toronto, Vancouver, London and South Africa.

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Massive manufacturing site put on Calgary market

CALGARY - It`s considered one of the choicest commercial real estate properties to be put on the market in Calgary.

The 760,000-square-foot Haworth manufacturing facility in southeast Calgary, on 18.2 hectares of land, is for sale as the U.S.-based company winds down production in the city.

Although the list price is not being revealed, the property is assessed for $60 million and is being marketed internationally, the Herald has learned.

"We`d be open to any and all scenarios," said Ken Brandsen, facilities manager for Haworth. "Probably the last scenario that we are not interested in would be leasing the facility. Our primary business is manufacturing. While this is a large facility, we`ve got another seven million square feet around the globe."

Last August, the office furniture-maker announced it was moving its Calgary manufacturing operations to west Michigan, which would result in the loss of about 600 jobs in the city -- one of the largest local corporate layoffs in recent history.

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Husky hires workers for Sunrise project

CALGARY - Husky Energy Inc. said yesterday it has hired outsiders to work on its Sunrise oil sands project, even though it has yet to officially decide whether it is moving ahead with the $2.5-billion project.

Husky plans to make its final investment decision on Sunrise by the end of the year, but has already signed contracts necessary to proceed.

"At Sunrise ... major contracts have been tendered for the phase one project plan and field facilities," Husky chief executive John Lau said on the company`s first-quarter conference call yesterday. "Construction work continues ... and with planned site preparation."

BP PLC, the British energy giant, controls half of the project and has yet to say whether it is a go. If the steam-assisted gravity drainage project gets the green light this year, its first drops of oil will come in 2014.

Meanwhile, Mr. Lau said the company has picked his successor -- the person who will fill his shoes when Husky hives off its Southeast Asia division, expected this year -- but will not reveal the new chief executive until the second or third quarter. The board is still hammering out details, he said.

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Shell puts oil sands expansion plans on hold

Costs to build in the oil sands have grown so high that one of the world`s largest energy companies plans to wait at least five years – perhaps much longer – to expand its presence there.

The oil sands have become one of the most costly places on earth to pursue oil projects, said Marvin Odum, the Americas head for Shell (RDS.A-N61.76-0.83-1.33%).

As a result, the company will delay any decisions on expanding its Athabasca Oil Sands Project (AOSP) until at least the second half of this decade, and will focus instead on wringing more production out of its existing facilities.

That process could increase its production, which will hit 255,000 barrels a day later this year, by a further 30,000 to 80,000 barrels per day, Mr. Odum said.

"We certainly have seen the cost environment in Alberta go up considerably," he said in an interview with The Globe and Mail editorial board on Wednesday. "We see the ability for lower investment levels to bring more production online over the next four, five, six years."

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

West expected to resume leadership in economic growth

Commodity-producing provinces took the biggest hit to economic growth in the recession of 2009, Statistics Canada reported Wednesday.

But those mostly Western provinces are likely to return to top spot later this year, according to BMO Capital Markets economist Robert Kavcic.

Newfoundland and Labrador experienced the biggest decline, Statistics Canada said, with gross domestic product falling 10.2 per cent a result of lower offshore oil output and a protracted strike at Voisey`s Bay nickel mine, owned by Vale-Inco of Brazil.

"Western Canada was also hit hard with declines of 6.3 per cent and 5.1 per cent in Saskatchewan and Alberta, respectively, much deeper drops than initially estimated," Kavcic said.

"Lower exploration activity and construction (in both the residential and energy sectors) hurt in Alberta, while Saskatchewan saw potash output plunge about 50 per cent as export demand weakened. The more modest decline in B.C. was the result of pre-Olympics construction activity and strength in the real estate sector, though output still fell a significant 2.3 per cent," he added.

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Oil sands bitumen to flow to West Coast by 2015: Enbridge

Enbridge Inc.`s (ENB-T49.320.300.61%) ambitious plan to build an oil sands pipeline to the West Coast will succeed despite opposition from first nations and environmentalists as well as concerns about pipeline overcapacity, the company`s chief executive officer says.

Enbridge plans to file next month for a permit from the National Energy Board to build the North Gateway project to Kitimat, B.C., says CEO Pat Daniel. He expects the NEB process to take two years and is confident the project will be approved.

If all goes according to Enbridge`s plans, Alberta bitumen would be flowing to Pacific Rim markets by 2015, even though industry observers are warning of a glut of pipeline capacity until at least 2018.

At a meeting with The Globe and Mail`s editorial board, Mr. Daniel stoutly defended the Northern Gateway project, saying it is crucial to open new markets and will lead to higher prices for oil sands companies.

"Producers feel that in order to be able to negotiate better pricing for their crude oil, they do need access to another market," the Calgary-based CEO said yesterday. He acknowledged, however, that diverting export volumes from the U.S. could drive up pipeline fees on those lines, because costs would be spread among fewer barrels of oil.

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta paycheques still highest

The recession in Alberta may have been deeper than originally anticipated in 2009, but workers in the province earned the highest wages in the country.

Average weekly earnings in the province jumped to a record level in February rising by 2.7 per cent from the previous month to $989.77 including overtime, according to data released Thursday by Statistics Canada. Wages were also up 2.5 per cent from a year ago.

"We do enjoy the highest wages on average of most communities in Canada and that`s for a whole host of factors," said Elsbeth Mehrer, manager of workforce development for Calgary Economic Development.

"Part of it was driven by our labour shortage in 2006 and 2007. That certainly saw some wage escalation, and those wages tend to remain sticky at higher levels.

"There`s also the factor that we have concentrations of jobs in the natural-resource industry, for instance, where wages are higher."

Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Inflation alarm bells ringing in oil patch

CALGARY - Cenovus Energy Inc. said inflation has climbed as much as 10% in some parts of the Canadian oil patch, making it the second major energy outfit to report cost concerns in two weeks.

The company, which has operations in the oil sands as well as conventional natural gas and oil plays in western Canada, said completion services such as fracturing wells in Saskatchewan`s Bakken and Shaunavon plays are up as much as 10%.

"The real active areas are the ones where we`ve experienced the higher inflation," Don Swystun, the head of Cenovus Canadian plains division, said during the company`s first-quarter conference call. "Keep in mind that`s also going from a very low situation that we experienced in 2009."

When it comes to labour and construction costs, particularly in Alberta, he said inflation is roughly 5% or less.

Cenovus also spots trouble in the oil sands.

Read the full article here.