BCAdvantage 2008; Business and investment across British Columbia

A growing population underlines the importance of the region as a destination, and those who are here are becoming aware of new possibilities in the region’s historic activities, as well as opportunities that are breaking stereotypes of the region as a getaway from the larger centres. Indeed, stretching from Manning Park in the west to the Alberta border, the Thompson Okanagan is a centre in its own right with a total population of more than 515,000 people (that’s currently increasing at 2.1% a year).

Perhaps nothing illustrates the growth of the region more, and the diversified economic base that exists here, than the opening of UBC Okanagan in 2005. By establishing the campus on the outskirts of Kelowna, UBC acknowledged that it had a role to play in supporting the economic growth of the region.

“The Thompson Okanagan is one of the fastest growing areas of British Columbia, and in terms of its own economic development, having a university presence was crucial to allowing that development continue in a high-quality way,” said Doug Owram, deputy vice-chancellor and vice-president, academic and research for UBC Okanagan.

Specific areas of interest for UBC include supporting traditional industries, such as agriculture, on its own and through collaborative relationships with researchers at the federal Pacific Agri-food Research Centre in Summerland, as well as supporting efforts to make the Okanagan a more sustainable region. A local option for MBA students will also be offered via distance learning.

Owram adds that with 60% of UBC Okanagan students coming from outside the Okanagan, the university also has the potential to draw in a rich vein of new blood to spur innovation.

“We think that by bringing people in at that rate we can contribute to the qualified workforce of the Okanagan,” he said.

It’s an important point, especially as traditional sectors adapt to changing economic realities.

Agriculture is an example. The orchards that once dominated the Okanagan are giving way to vineyards, which require a different set of skills than do tree fruits. Yet the wineries have also establishing a business model that creates opportunities to infuse new life into the valley’s historic orchards.

Okanagan Spirits in Vernon, for example, was the first of three distilleries that have opened in the valley and are making use of the region’s fruit. This year, Naramata orchardist and winery owner Keith Holman plans to officially open the province’s first farm-based distillery, a highly anticipated venture that follows the successful model established by the valley’s estate wineries.

The explosive growth of wineries and similar ventures in the region has also spurred the expansion of wine tourism, now worth approximately $75 million to the region, as well as plans by developers for billion-dollar resort projects. Indeed, wineries rank alongside golf courses and ski resorts as pillars of the region’s tourism sector, and the resorts are giving the visitors a year-round pied-à-terre from which to enjoy what’s on offer.

Residential projects are significant contributors to the region’s economy, representing more than two-thirds of the $1.5 billion worth of building permits issued in the region each year. All told, there are $21.1 billion in projects valued at ‘more than $15 million’ on the books for the region, of which $13.3 billion are currently under construction.

Those figures include significant numbers of industrial projects, reflecting the transformation sweeping the region’s resource-based industries.

The woes of the forest sector that have seen mills throughout the Interior idled or shut down completely are prompting the exploration of new uses for local forest resources.

Timber killed by the mountain pine beetle that would have otherwise flowed into mills in the Thompson Okanagan region are instead slated for processing as wood pellets, which are in demand as fuel for industrial boilers in Asia and Scandinavia.

The province has fielded inquiries from Swedish, Japanese and Korean bio-energy firms looking for fibre sources that would enable them to establish pelletization plants in the Thompson Okanagan, initiatives that could significantly boost B.C. production of wood pellets.

The Wood Pellet Association of Canada estimates that B.C. has the potential to boost its pellet production to 2.8-3 million tonnes by 2011, up from the 600,000 tonnes produced in 2006.

“Many of the mills in the Thompson Okanagan are already producing energy from sawmill waste. There is opportunity to expand bio energy production in the Thompson Okanagan if the price of energy goes up by also using logging residue and beetle-killed timber,” said B.C. Minister of Forests and Range Rich Coleman in a statement.

The emphasis on renewable energy sources is seen in other areas, too.

Several licences have been issued giving wind energy companies rights to sites for the evaluation of wind resources, including Ontario-based Invenergy Canada ULC. The company, whose Chicago-based parent is also active in the U.S. and Europe, has nine projects in the Thompson Okanagan area.

The draw for Invenergy lies in the fact that suitable locations for its potential wind power installations are near the transmission lines required for distributing energy to the grid.

“[There’s] both wind on top of these plateaus and the requisite transmission lines running through the area,” said Mark Bell, director for Invenergy Canada.

Cities such as Kamloops and Kelowna don’t hurt the case for setting up shop here.

“It’s great to be close to Kelowna and Kamloops. They’re thriving cities, they have the amenities that are required, the support, and indeed we have been getting calls from a number of interested companies and individuals,” Bell said.

Invenergy responded to the province’s 2008 call for hydro and wind power producers. Should its bids win, it expects to bring the sites online as early as 2009. Development cost for a 100 MW wind farm (capable of serving approximately 300 households), would be in the range of $250 million.

On the hydro side, Canadian Hydro Developers Inc. plans three run-of-river generating projects in the North Thompson. The projects, valued at $90 million, will produce approximately 150,000 megawatt hours a year, enough to power approximately 21,000 households. Should it win the required approvals, construction could start as early as spring 2008, with completion expected by the end of 2009. •

TOP OF PAGE

Comments about this site should be sent to:
Business in Vancouver Webmaster
Copyright © 2008 BIV Publications Ltd.
102 East 4th Avenue, Vancouver BC V5T 1G2
Tel 604-688-2398 | Fax 604-688-1963
Terms of use for this site.