LOOKING AT THE INDUSTRIAL HEARTLAND IN 2016 // ENERGY
NW REFINING INC., PREVIOUSLY NORTH WEST UPGRADING, IS ONE SUCH COMPANY, AND IAN MACGREGOR IS ITS PRESIDENT AND CHAIRMAN. THIS COMPANY IS IN THE MIDST OF BUILDING A NEW REFINERY IN PARTNERSHIP
Vanessa Goodman, chair of Life in the Heartland, explains how the changes are impacting communities in Alberta’s Industrial Heartland region. This encompasses the communities of Sturgeon County, Fort Saskatchewan, Strathcona County, Lamont County and the City of Edmonton. “From the community standpoint I get the sense that people are feeling some uncertainty based on news from across the province and around the globe, but in the Heartland region itself, the direction is still forward. Obviously not as quickly as in boom times, but forward rather than at a standstill, or even backward, nonetheless.
“Because some of the heartland industries are midstream operations, they aren’t as impacted by oil prices and therefore neither is the community. Of course, there are still likely some businesses and families who have to readjust to these economic conditions. In general, however, the region’s industrial facilities are still running and spending approximately $1.5 billion locally every year to source goods and services. This is a huge economic boost for the community.” In many ways the events of the last year and half have been a learning experience for us all. Alberta has now seen the folly of putting too many eggs in the oil basket and as a result more people, as Goodman says, “have an appetite for new
B&E Electronics since 1975 is a Canadian broadline stocking industrial electronics distributor based in Calgary offering electronic products to the maintenance, repair and manufacturing sectors.
www.be-electronics.com · Canadian stocking distributor · Quick and easy online buying · Low shipping costs across Canada · All items on our site are regular stocked items · Accounts available on approved credit
Contact one of our inside sales staff for special requests, quantity price breaks and items not listed on our website. Visit one of our locations today for all your industrial electronic needs. Head Office: 444 Manitou Road SE, Calgary, AB T2G 4C4 Tel: 800.661.5619 Branch: Saskatoon: 888.249.5144
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MARCH 2016 // BUSINESS IN EDMONTON // BUSINESSINEDMONTON.COM