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Keystone XL has turned Oyen, Alta., into a boom town in a province that needs it – CBC.ca

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In the waning days of summer, afternoon traffic in Oyen, Alta., moved slowly along Main Street, easing along the weathered asphalt, past the low brick facade of the town office, farm equipment dealer and a cafe promising fresh pie and hot coffee.

But as evening approached on a mid-September day, the activity picked up again. A stream of men — some with fresh faces and others with grey hair — began trickling into town, filling up a pub for wing night, stopping to grab some Chinese takeout or picking up groceries. 

They’re only a fraction of the hundreds of workers who’ve arrived here recently, roughly doubling the town’s population to around 2,000. 

Alberta hasn’t felt the heat of a boom in years. 

But for the last few months, Oyen and its neighbours have been getting a taste of what, for some Albertans, may feel a bit like the good old days.

Roughly 850 workers — skilled trades, engineers and managers among them — have come to work on the Canadian leg of TC Energy Corp.’s Keystone XL pipeline. By the end of October, there will be close to 1,000. 

“It has been a tremendous boost for this community to have workers,” said Wanda Diakow, an economic development officer for the rural municipality. “It’s been a tremendous boost for our region.”

Alberta is a province in need of some boosting, with the unemployment rate pushing 12 per cent. However, the mini-boom in Oyen is underpinned by government investment

The province is taking a gamble on this early construction of Keystone XL, given that U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has said that he would kill the pipeline if he won the presidency. 

As well, Keystone XL remains a controversial project that’s faced (and still faces) legal battles, environmental protests and celebrity scorn. It’s part of an industry undergoing intense examination, including from oil companies themselves

Workers and money arrive

In the best-case scenario, the pipeline aims to be in service in 2023, which means the construction boost has a firm timeline. So people are making the most of the opportunity. 

Workers are helping fill hotel rooms, RV parks and rental suites. Crews have raised over $15,000 for the food bank and other programs. The company paid over $200,000 to Oyen for waterline and roadway improvements.

We’ve seen this before, you know, and I think we take these things more to heart. We’re very, very fortunate.​​​​​​– Oyen Mayor Doug Jones

The pipeline is expected to provide more than $4 million in annual property taxes to the municipalities along the right of way in Alberta once it’s in service. Some work along the pipeline route will also continue for a while after it’s built.

Pipe ready to be used for the construction of the Canadian leg of the Keystone XL pipeline in Alberta near the town of Oyen in September. (Kyle Bakx/CBC)

That’s good news in this community where the oilpatch still feels like the home team, pipeliners are welcome and knowing this small boom has a shelf life, people seem to appreciate it all the more.  

“We’ve seen this before, you know, and I think we take these things more to heart,” said Doug Jones, a retired farmer and the town’s longtime mayor. “We’re very, very fortunate.”

Past uncertainty

Located about 300 kilometres east of Calgary, Oyen doesn’t sit far from the Saskatchewan border. It straddles Highway 41, also known as the Buffalo Trail. The town’s website describes it as “Big Sky, Clean Air & Friendly People.”

Overlooking Main Street is the town’s clock tower, a metal-framed monument that commemorates the community’s founding more than a century ago. It’s a place built on agriculture but with ties to the oilpatch as well. When the downturn hit the industry about six years ago, it stung here, too. 

Pipeliners arrived the previous decade to work on the original Keystone pipeline. 

About 850 people from Alberta and other provinces have arrived in Oyen in recent months to work on the Keystone XL pipeline, a number of whom will stay at this camp located on the edge of town. (Kyle Bakx/CBC)

But people were uncertain of when, or if, they’d host work crews for Keystone XL after years of political and legal headwinds. The 1,947-kilometre pipeline would transport oil from Hardisty, Alta., to Steele City, Neb., and from there onto Gulf Coast refiners. 

Workers finally began arriving over the summer to work on the 269-kilometre Alberta leg after the United Conservative Party government announced it would invest $1.1 billion US as equity and guarantee a $4.2-billion project loan in a bid to get things moving. Some have questioned the prudence of such a big bet on a single project, but the Kenney government has remained committed.

‘That’s huge for us’ 

As afternoon wound down, it was the end of a busy day at the Fountain Tire-NAPA Auto Parts store. 

Dale Walker and Troy Maclean are the owners. In the last few months, the auto parts business has been up five per cent, and the tire business has climbed by as much as 10 per cent.

“That’s huge for us,” Walker said.

Business is good, and so is the rental market.

Rental properties in town are in demand, and some residents have opened their homes to workers and their families. Diakow estimated rentals are injecting roughly $75,000 Cdn a month into the region’s economy, not including hotels.

Resident Kari Kuzmiski has rented out a home to one worker.

“Lots of people are renting out bedrooms in their homes that never would do that,” Kuzmiski said. “It’s helping both, right? Helping [homeowners] with bills, yet helping Keystone out, too.”

Walk down the street from the tire shop, and you smell the aroma of Chinese food leading to the door of The 90’s Restaurant. But no one there had time to talk about business — they’re too busy meeting the appetite for takeout.

WATCH | Life in a boom town thanks to Keystone XL:

Overtime Pub manager Charlene Carlson says her bar and restaurant are full almost every night with so many pipeline workers now staying in town. 2:17

Another block on, and you’re at the Overtime — a brightly lit pub with sports on every TV, hockey and football logos on the walls, and the bar is decorated with metal plate.

Everyone walking in sanitizes their hands, and soon every physically distanced table is occupied for wing night. (TC Energy said Monday there have been no confirmed cases of COVID-19 at the work camp.)

Pub manager Charlene Carlson has lived in Oyen much of her life and is raising two kids. Beyond the financial lift, Carlson said, the pipeline has provided a bit of a morale boost as well.

“That’s the big thing with being proud to live here,” she said. “You come from a province that these people are so hardworking [and that] people come here to do that type of work.”

Over the course of the evening, more workers would come and go. Some talked about putting down roots. Carlson said they’re good people. 

But she said her heart remains with the locals, who’ll be there long after the work on the pipeline is done. In the meantime, they’ll make the most of things.

Doug Dingman knows the ups and downs of the oilpatch. He’s lived it.

Dingman was among the thousands of Albertans who lost their oilpatch jobs in the wake of the global crude price collapse a few years ago.

He’s now the owner of the T&D Market Fresh Foods, just off Main Street. Dingman said business is up as much as seven per cent from last year.

The crowd inside the Overtime pub on a Wednesday night in September. Most of the patrons on this night are workers from the Keystone XL pipeline. (Kyle Bakx/CBC)

Dingman continues to be a supporter of the energy sector, believing strongly that Alberta’s oil will be needed for a long while to come, while acknowledging the push for renewable energy.

It’s something you hear around the province these days, an acknowledgement of the changes in the energy industry and an eventual transition to things like renewables.

“I understand the changeover to new energies and stuff — eventually we have to go that route,” said Dingman. “But, for now, new energies are further out than they want it to be. So I think we still have to use fossil fuels until the proper changeovers are made.”

U.S. election could be key

There are many questions and challenges that lie ahead for the future of energy as the world seeks ways to address climate change. For Alberta’s oil industry, it seems the final fate of the Keystone XL pipeline is among the unknowns.

Though there’s an economic boost in Alberta right now, with construction jobs in places like Oyen, plenty of eyes will be on Washington, D.C, and the results of the next U.S. presidential election in November.

An equipment yard for work on the Keystone XL pipeline near Oyen in September. (Kyle Bakx/CBC)

Donald Trump is a supporter. But rival Biden has said he’d cancel the Keystone XL pipeline permit if elected, though whether he’d make good on the pledge would have to be seen. It’s something workers here talk about, too.

Back at the Overtime pub, when asked for her thoughts on Alberta’s future, Carlson said that’s a discussion she’s had in her own home. She called herself a realist.

“I get that the world is changing, and we all have to adapt to that,” Carlson said. “The world now is a world that’s being built for my kids — and not so much us [older generations]. So we all have to change a little bit. But I hope it’s for the better. I hope we’re all successful.”

As for now, Carlson shared the wisdom of someone who has seen good times before.

“When you have it good, you should never take it for granted,” she said. “But that’s like with everything in life, especially living in Alberta.”

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Telus prioritizing ‘most important customers,’ avoiding ‘unprofitable’ offers: CFO

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Telus Corp. says it is avoiding offering “unprofitable” discounts as fierce competition in the Canadian telecommunications sector shows no sign of slowing down.

The company said Friday it had fewer net new customers during its third quarter compared with the same time last year, as it copes with increasingly “aggressive marketing and promotional pricing” that is prompting more customers to switch providers.

Telus said it added 347,000 net new customers, down around 14.5 per cent compared with last year. The figure includes 130,000 mobile phone subscribers and 34,000 internet customers, down 30,000 and 3,000, respectively, year-over-year.

The company reported its mobile phone churn rate — a metric measuring subscribers who cancelled their services — was 1.09 per cent in the third quarter, up from 1.03 per cent in the third quarter of 2023. That included a postpaid mobile phone churn rate of 0.90 per cent in its latest quarter.

Telus said its focus is on customer retention through its “industry-leading service and network quality, along with successful promotions and bundled offerings.”

“The customers we have are the most important customers we can get,” said chief financial officer Doug French in an interview.

“We’ve, again, just continued to focus on what matters most to our customers, from a product and customer service perspective, while not loading unprofitable customers.”

Meanwhile, Telus reported its net income attributable to common shares more than doubled during its third quarter.

The telecommunications company said it earned $280 million, up 105.9 per cent from the same three-month period in 2023. Earnings per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 was 19 cents compared with nine cents a year earlier.

It reported adjusted net income was $413 million, up 10.7 per cent year-over-year from $373 million in the same quarter last year. Operating revenue and other income for the quarter was $5.1 billion, up 1.8 per cent from the previous year.

Mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.85 in the third quarter, a decrease of $2.09 or 3.4 per cent from a year ago. Telus said the drop was attributable to customers signing up for base rate plans with lower prices, along with a decline in overage and roaming revenues.

It said customers are increasingly adopting unlimited data and Canada-U.S. plans which provide higher and more stable ARPU on a monthly basis.

“In a tough operating environment and relative to peers, we view Q3 results that were in line to slightly better than forecast as the best of the bunch,” said RBC analyst Drew McReynolds in a note.

Scotiabank analyst Maher Yaghi added that “the telecom industry in Canada remains very challenging for all players, however, Telus has been able to face these pressures” and still deliver growth.

The Big 3 telecom providers — which also include Rogers Communications Inc. and BCE Inc. — have frequently stressed that the market has grown more competitive in recent years, especially after the closing of Quebecor Inc.’s purchase of Freedom Mobile in April 2023.

Hailed as a fourth national carrier, Quebecor has invested in enhancements to Freedom’s network while offering more affordable plans as part of a set of commitments it was mandated by Ottawa to agree to.

The cost of telephone services in September was down eight per cent compared with a year earlier, according to Statistics Canada’s most recent inflation report last month.

“I think competition has been and continues to be, I’d say, quite intense in Canada, and we’ve obviously had to just manage our business the way we see fit,” said French.

Asked how long that environment could last, he said that’s out of Telus’ hands.

“What I can control, though, is how we go to market and how we lead with our products,” he said.

“I think the conditions within the market will have to adjust accordingly over time. We’ve continued to focus on digitization, continued to bring our cost structure down to compete, irrespective of the price and the current market conditions.”

Still, Canada’s telecom regulator continues to warn providers about customers facing more charges on their cellphone and internet bills.

On Tuesday, CRTC vice-president of consumer, analytics and strategy Scott Hutton called on providers to ensure they clearly inform their customers of charges such as early cancellation fees.

That followed statements from the regulator in recent weeks cautioning against rising international roaming fees and “surprise” price increases being found on their bills.

Hutton said the CRTC plans to launch public consultations in the coming weeks that will focus “on ensuring that information is clear and consistent, making it easier to compare offers and switch services or providers.”

“The CRTC is concerned with recent trends, which suggest that Canadians may not be benefiting from the full protections of our codes,” he said.

“We will continue to monitor developments and will take further action if our codes are not being followed.”

French said any initiative to boost transparency is a step in the right direction.

“I can’t say we are perfect across the board, but what I can say is we are absolutely taking it under consideration and trying to be the best at communicating with our customers,” he said.

“I think everyone looking in the mirror would say there’s room for improvement.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

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TC Energy cuts cost estimate for Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico

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CALGARY – TC Energy Corp. has lowered the estimated cost of its Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico.

It says it now expects the project to cost between US$3.9 billion and US$4.1 billion compared with its original estimate of US$4.5 billion.

The change came as the company reported a third-quarter profit attributable to common shareholders of C$1.46 billion or $1.40 per share compared with a loss of C$197 million or 19 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

Revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30 totalled C$4.08 billion, up from C$3.94 billion in the third quarter of 2023.

TC Energy says its comparable earnings for its latest quarter amounted to C$1.03 per share compared with C$1.00 per share a year earlier.

The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

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BCE reports Q3 loss on asset impairment charge, cuts revenue guidance

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BCE Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter as it recorded $2.11 billion in asset impairment charges, mainly related to Bell Media’s TV and radio properties.

The company says its net loss attributable to common shareholders amounted to $1.24 billion or $1.36 per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $640 million or 70 cents per share a year earlier.

On an adjusted basis, BCE says it earned 75 cents per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of 81 cents per share in the same quarter last year.

“Bell’s results for the third quarter demonstrate that we are disciplined in our pursuit of profitable growth in an intensely competitive environment,” BCE chief executive Mirko Bibic said in a statement.

“Our focus this quarter, and throughout 2024, has been to attract higher-margin subscribers and reduce costs to help offset short-term revenue impacts from sustained competitive pricing pressures, slow economic growth and a media advertising market that is in transition.”

Operating revenue for the quarter totalled $5.97 billion, down from $6.08 billion in its third quarter of 2023.

BCE also said it now expects its revenue for 2024 to fall about 1.5 per cent compared with earlier guidance for an increase of zero to four per cent.

The company says the change comes as it faces lower-than-anticipated wireless product revenue and sustained pressure on wireless prices.

BCE added 33,111 net postpaid mobile phone subscribers, down 76.8 per cent from the same period last year, which was the company’s second-best performance on the metric since 2010.

It says the drop was driven by higher customer churn — a measure of subscribers who cancelled their service — amid greater competitive activity and promotional offer intensity. BCE’s monthly churn rate for the category was 1.28 per cent, up from 1.1 per cent during its previous third quarter.

The company also saw 11.6 per cent fewer gross subscriber activations “due to more targeted promotional offers and mobile device discounting compared to last year.”

Bell’s wireless mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.26, down 3.4 per cent from $60.28 in the third quarter of the prior year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

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