November 2012 Alberta Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

Calgary housing market a $9 billion industry




The residential real estate market generates a staggering amount of money on an annual basis into the Calgary economy.




How much?




Over $9 billion in 2011 just from the sale of MLS properties, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.




The total dollar volume of all Calgary sales last year was $9.05 billion, up 8.1 per cent from the previous year.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta has huge shale oil, gas resources: Study




CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - A new study has identified immense oil and gas resources in Alberta's emerging shale prospects, suggesting a string of recent takeovers and land buys will yield impressive production gains for some of the world's largest oil companies.




The province's shale formations, including the Duvernay, Montney and Muskwa, could ultimately contain 3,324 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, 58.6 billion barrels of gas liquids and 423.6 billion barrels of oil, according to the research, conducted by the Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board and Alberta Geological Survey.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Fort Saskatchewan housing starts top 2011 levels




It`s only October, but 2012 will be a stronger year for Fort Saskatchewan new home starts than last year.




In a recent release sent out by the City of Fort Saskatchewan, building permits to date for 2012, including new construction and renovations, have tallied $86,491,969.

This come as a division between residential ($56,000,834), multi-family homes ($12,982,130), commercial construction ($5,906,530), institutional builds ($2,665,500), and both heavy and light industrial activity ($8,986,075).





Single-family residential permits issued have already surpassed those handed out in 2011, reaching 219 over last year`s 203, but still below the 265 that were initiated in 2010.





Permits issued for multi-family, condominum and duplex housing starts have dropped from the past years, currently sitting at 72, while 138 were issued in 2011, and 169 were given in 2010.





An all-time high for multi-family builds was seen in the Fort in 2007, when there were 423 permits issued.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary region housing starts stable when compared with last year




CALGARY ` Housing starts in the Calgary region remained at the same level as a year ago in October, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.




The agency reported Thursday that total starts in the Calgary census metropolitan area of 980 were down just one unit compared with October 2011. Single-detached units rose by eight per cent during the month to 440 units while multi-family starts dipped by six per cent to 540.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Obama energy adviser says many uncertainties with Keystone XL pipeline




CALGARY ` Newly-elected President Barack Obama will look to Canada for co-operation in implementing new policies to combat global warming, predicts a U.S. environmental expert.




The topic of climate change ` absent from much of the recent American election campaign ` appears to be back on Obama`s agenda after the president directly referenced global warming in Tuesday`s acceptance speech.




`We want our children to live in an America ... that isn`t threatened by the destructive power of a warming planet,` he said.



Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Construction demographic timebomb may delay oil and gas projects




"It's a demographic timebomb," says Christopher Smillie, a senior advisor of the Canadian Building Trades, which represents more than 550,000 skilled tradespeople in 15 trades across the country.




The oil and gas industry depends heavily on the construction industry to execute its projects before it can go anywhere near realizing production from an oil and gas well. But construction itself faces an impending labour crisis.




The Construction Sector Council estimates half the $250-billion of construction projects underway are in the oil and gas sector in Alberta.



Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

The outlook for construction in Western Canada





According to an old adage, real estate markets depend on three things, `location, location, location`. A similar statement can be made about the economy of Western Canada. It also depends on three things, `resources, resources, resources.`



British Columbia is currently ground zero for deciding Canada`s long-term energy future. That`s where hearings are either underway or planned to determine if oil and gas will be allowed to move from the interior to customers across the Pacific Ocean.




The potential sources of natural gas are mainly in B.C.`s northeastern gas fields. The crude will come from Alberta`s Oil Sands.




There are proposals for several large liquefied natural gas terminals near Kitimat, B.C. These will also require supply pipelines. Shell, Encana, Apache and Spectra Energy are some of the big firms involved in the planning.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Interior proposal would limit commercial oil shale development on government lands




The Interior Department on Friday issued a final plan to close 1.6 million acres of federal land in the West originally slated for oil shale development.




The proposed plan would fence off a majority of the initial blueprint laid out in the final days of the George W. Bush administration. It faces a 30-day protest period and a 60-day process to ensure it is consistent with local and state policies. After that, the department would render a decision for implementation.




The move is sure to rankle Republicans, who say President Obama`s grip on fossil fuel drilling in federal lands is too tight.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Upgrader a big win for region, experts say




Sturgeon County`s new upgrader should have huge spinoffs for St. Albert and the Edmonton region, say local experts.




North West Upgrading Inc. and Canadian Natural Upgrading Ltd. announced Thursday that they plan to build a 50,000 barrel a day bitumen upgrader south of Redwater next spring.




This plant will employ about 3,000 people on site during construction, said North West chairperson Ian MacGregor, plus another 5,000 in the region.




`When you build one of these things, it lasts 100 years,` he said of the upgrader, and it`ll be creating jobs and paying taxes the whole time.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta bitumen takes to the tracks






In a market where heavy crude sells at a huge discount and pipeline space is at a premium, one oilsands producer has found a way around the bottleneck.




Southern Pacific Resource Corp., which began trucking out initial production from its new McKay Thermal Project three weeks ago, will open a dedicated rail terminal in a few weeks just south of Fort McMurray and ship its product in leased tanker cars via CN Rail all the way to Natchez, Miss.




From there, it's just a short barge ride down the Mississippi River to one of the eight refineries in Louisiana, where the crude will fetch $20 to $30 a barrel more than it could at the congested terminal hub in Cushing, Okla.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary top real estate investment market in Canada






CALGARY ` Calgary has been ranked as the top real estate investment market in the country followed by Edmonton by the Real Estate Investment Network Ltd.




In its Top Alberta Investment Towns report, REIN said that Alberta`s economy has come out on top after a few years of economic turbulence.




The report identifies towns and regions poised to outperform other regions of the province over the next three to five years.




Read more: Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Long-term plan for Airport Trail could cost city $322 million




CALGARY ` Turning Airport Trail into a major corridor that joins one side of northeast Calgary to the other by 2039 will eventually cost the city more than $300 million, on top of what`s been spent on the airport tunnel.




A new city report describes the costs that will face future city councils to construct the interchanges and upgrades from Deerfoot Trail to Stoney Trail.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Should Canada worry? Report sees U.S. as energy self-sufficient by 2035



CALGARY ` The International Energy Agency predicts the United States will be capable of meeting its own energy needs by 2035.





But that doesn`t mean its top crude supplier ` Canada ` has reason to panic.





`The United States, which currently imports around 20 per cent of its total energy needs becomes all but self-sufficient in net terms ` a dramatic reversal of the trend seen in most other energy-importing countries,` the Paris-based group said in its World Energy Outlook, released Monday.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Saskatchewan, Alberta tied for highest job vacancy rate




REGINA ` Saskatchewan and Alberta have the highest rate of private sector job vacancies in the country, according to Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).




The job vacancy rate in Saskatchewan and Alberta is tied for the highest in the country at 3.6 per cent, said the first in a new series of quarterly reports on Canada`s labour market released Tuesday. In Saskatchewan, that translates to 11,700 unfilled private sector jobs.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta job vacancy rate highest in the country





Good help is getting harder to find in Alberta.







There are roughly 55,000 unfilled job openings in this province, according to a new report from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. It says Alberta's job vacancy rate sits at 3.6 per cent - the highest in the country. That's up sharply since bottoming out over two years ago, but still well below the big labour shortages in 2006 during the boom. Still, the labour pinch is being felt strongly enough that the CFIB is looking to Ottawa for help







Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Strong momentum forecast for Calgary housing market in 2013




CALGARY ` Calgary`s housing market is forecast to remain strong in 2013 following increased sales activity this year, according to real estate firm RE/MAX.




In its Housing Market Outlook 2013, released Wednesday, the company said MLS sales in Calgary are expected to finish this year at 25,500 transactions, up 13.5 per cent from the previous year and the forecast is for sales to grow by another 10 per cent in 2013 to 28,100.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta once again suffers labour shortage




`We have probably about 50 electricians in queue to start making it across to Canada in the next quarter,` said Sullivan, adding that the company is also keeping its focus on the domestic market.




`We`re focused on growth. In order for us to grow our business, we anticipate that we`re going to need to double our trade workforce in the next couple of years . . . We`re doing what we can on the domestic (front), turning over every rock.`




Ben Brunnen, chief economist with the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, said the vacancy numbers are consistent with the strong economic growth the province is experiencing.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary housing market tops in Canada for sales growth




CALGARY ` Calgary`s resale housing market had the highest annual rate of sales growth in the country in October, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.




In releasing its monthly MLS data on Thursday, the association said sales in Calgary rose by 26.7 per cent to 2,104 transactions.




Nationally, sales dipped by 0.8 per cent to 35,971.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta exports to jump 12% in 2013: EDC





CALGARY ` Export Development Canada`s forecast for Alberta`s export growth calls for a substantial gain of 12 per cent in 2013 after recording a seven per cent gain this year.




`Alberta exports will be firing on all cylinders in 2013,` said Peter Hall, chief economist at EDC. `Crude oil, most agricultural commodities and a number of industrial goods will post gains next year, driving Alberta`s total exports to over $100 billion.`





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Oilsands the economic engine for the country for the next 25 to 30 years




EDMONTON - Many Canadians don`t realize how vital the Alberta oilsands are to the national economy, and the need for a public dialogue based on facts is critical to the success of the industry, says the co-author of a report by a leading financial advisory firm.




`The oilsands are going to be the economic engine for the country for the foreseeable future, for the next 25 to 30 years, and it is akin to the impact of building the national railway in the 1880s,` said Marc Joiner, a partner at Deloitte in Toronto.





Read the full article here.