SABEX Remarks

Greetings Mayor Clark, dignataries, SABEX finalists and guests.

The dark cloud of covid is starting to move off. Sporting cultural and recreational events are returning. Families are sharing visits, trips, meals and hugs. Borders are opening and people are excitedly packing their bags and rebooking trips and vacations. With COVID we know we are not completely out of the woods yet. We know that vaccinations are the path forward.

Saskatchewan’s economy is doing incredibly well. Our manufacturing sector has increased by 53.2%. Retail is up 7.2%. Housing is amazing with an increase of 55.3%. Hotels are recovering slowly, daily and family stays are coming back.

The government is making major infrastructure investments in highways, schools and health care. We are working very hard to get new private sector projects to go forward.

BHP has announced it is moving ahead with its $12 billion Jansen Potash Mine. This decision marks the single largest economic investment ever made in Saskatchewan's history. The project is expected to create around 3,500 jobs annually during construction. Once in operation, the project will support over 600 direct jobs at the mine site and at the corporate office in Saskatoon.

Ceres Global Ag is investing $350 million USD towards a new 1.1 million metric tonne integrated canola crush facility at Northgate. Viterra is investing in a new $2.5 million metric tonne canola processing plant, with construction beginning in early 2022 with production underway in 2024.

Cargill is investing $350 million in a new 1 million metric tonne canola processing plant, with operation beginning in 2024.

Richardson International will be investing in a major expansion to its canola crush facility, doubling its annual capacity to 2.2 million tonnes of canola seed annually.

Red Leaf Pulp is leading a project to commercialize new technologies to produce pulp from wheat straw, which can be used to manufacture paper and packaging products. The facility is estimated to be worth $350 million and is expected to create 110 permanent full-time jobs and 250 jobs during construction.

Northern Nutrients is investing in a new $25 million sulphurenhanced urea fertilizer manufacturing facility near Saskatoon. The facility will be the first in Canada to utilize the innovative Shell Thiogro technology, a patented process to make highquality sulphur/urea prills for crop production. The company expects to hire about 30 new employees when the plant is operational.

One Sky Forest Products is investing in a new Oriented Strand Board mill in Prince Albert. The $250 million mill is expected to create over 700 jobs in northern Saskatchewan. Paper Excellence is reopening the Prince Albert Pulp mill, and is expected to create over 1,650 direct and indirect jobs, while enhancing northern and Indigenous economic and labour development opportunities. Carrier Forest Products is investing several million dollars to increase production at its Big River Sawmill. And, Dunkley Lumber is investing $100 million in an expansion to its Carrot River mill which will lead to significant growth in lumber exports and create 240 new direct and indirect jobs. Hon. Don Morgan, Q.C. operations through the lease of a newly built 16,000 square foot facility located in Saskatoon. The facility will focus on electronics and machine assembly, sales, and service. Clean Seed becomes the first company in the province to benefit from the Saskatchewan Commercial Innovation Incentive (SCII) program. The first of its kind in North America, SCII is a newgrowth tax incentive that offers eligible corporations a reduction of the provincial Corporate Income Tax Rate to six per cent for 10 consecutive years for corporations that commercialize their qualifying intellectual property in Saskatchewan. We will continue to do everything to continue bringing these projects to life. It is time for Saskatchewan to lead the nation.

Lastly, Clean Seed is expanding their Thanks to you, we can do it.