Mark Kolke visits with interesting Calgarians - to catch a glimpse of what drives them, how they see the world and what they see in Calgary's future . . .
+ to Alliance Pipeline – donated $40,000 to buy a new transport van for CampHe Ho Ha
+ to George Papandreou – former Prime Minister of Greece – for his Ted Talk which takes a refreshingly candid view of changing political realities in Europe and elsewhere
SAVE THE DATE / upcoming events
+ June 17-18; Supply Chain Contracts for Energy Conference; Marriott Downtown, Calgaryinfo/register
+ Oct. 16; 32nd Annual National Ernest C. Manning Innovation Awards Gala, TELUS Convention Centre, Calgarytickets/sponsorship
+ Oct. 17; 2nd Annual Vancouver Real Estate Leasing Conference, Vancouver Convention Centre
“A man always has two reasons for the things he does – a good one, and the real one.” – J.P. Morgan
SOME THINGS DON'T ADD UP
+ Health Minister Fred Horne said the decision to replace the Alberta Health Services Board was not pre-planned, but when they made a decision he (and presumably the Premier) didn’t like, yes he was able to immediately name an appointee to take over. Considering how long it usually takes to recruit and on-board any employee, his story that it wasn’t pre-planned defies credulity. It would seem to me, if you make such a dramatic decision as an essential decision, it would make sense to spin it as ‘planned’ rather than ‘not-planned’. Truth, obviously, is the first victim in a new era for health care in Alberta . . . stay tuned.
NEWS TODAY June 18 / 2013
+ Alberta Securities Commission issued a cease trade order on Papa Chocolat Distribution Inc.
+ Brookfield Asset Management Inc. agreed to sell of $3.68 billion in lumber assets
+ G8 conference yielding side deals; US and EU trade deal negotiation process, undermining Canada-EU talks . . . stay tuned
+ Integrated Pipeline Projects Canada Ltd. changed their name to UniversalPegasus International
+ investor nervousness continues – concern over U.S. economic recovery, unsettling signals from Fed. Chair Bernanke – new PIMCO article discusses
+ Madalena Ventures Inc. engaged advisors to seek out JV partners
+ Montreal Mayor Michael Applebaum arrested on fraud charges as Quebec corruption probe continues . . .
+ pipeline issues remain hotbed of political chatter; premiers of eastern provinces happily cooperating on east coast option, BC’s Cark warming up on west coast options while Federal gov’t review of Northern Gateway continues – setting the stage for a summer of politicians attending bbq’s, golf tournaments and pancake breakfasts to reinforce the reality that U.S. refineries are heavily invested in/already re-tooled to handle Canadian heavy oil; on balance the Keystone approval is looking stronger rather than it was a while ago. The Conference Board of Canada report that pipeline uncertainty is a threat to the oil and gas sector – which doesn’t square with what industry people are telling me
+ Stephen Poloz, Governor of the Bank of Canada speaking tomorrow – speech embargoed until 12:25 ET, then posted here
+ Talisman Energy Inc. reported to be exploring sale of Eagle Ford shale assets through advisors RBC; could raise us to $2 billion
+ True North Commercial REIT consolidated units & got approval for listing on the TSE
NEWS REVIEW June 11 - 17
+ Alberta Government sacked the Health Services board – overriding a decision to fulfill contractual obligations to senior staff, bonuses which will likely be paid by government just the same – and the health services mess continues to defy logic as politics over-ride sound decision making
+ DundeeWealth, the financial network Scotiabank bout last year from Dundee, re-branding as HollistWealth
+ Enbridge Northern Gateway Project – oral final arguments began in Terrace
+ European banking volatility; Bank of Scotland CEO stepped down, Deputy Governor of Bank of England resigning, protests in Greece and Turkey shaking confidence in banks and governments . . .
+ Gas & Oil Expo 2013 – largest ever with 25,000 registrants, 4,000 exhibitors, 29,000 attendees – up more than 30% since 20111; organizers announced this will be the last bi-annual event, starting in 2014 the Global Petroleum Show will be an annual event replacing the Gas & Oil Expo
+ Kinder Morgan’s TransMountain pipeline experiences a leak near Merritt, B.C.
+ Mobilicity terminated its deal to sell to Telus
+ Sobeys Inc. agreed to acquired Canada Safeway for $5.8 billion, Crombie REIT to likely acquire real estate assets . . . while industry now focuses on Overwaitea (Pattison Group) as next takeover target as competition from Walmart and Target grows
+ Temple Hotels Inc. sold its remaining 15.7% interest in Holloway Lodging Corporation
+ TransCanada Corporation’s application for toll restructuring on its Canadian Mailine rejected byt National Energy Board – reasons not yet published
+ United Protection Security Group Inc. and United Protection Services Inc. went into bankruptcy; Meyers Norris Penny LLP is trustee
+ IronMountain plans to convert itself to a REIT is facing difficulty with tax regulators
+ Ivanhoé Cambridge to spend $20 million on modernization project, Rockhill Apartments, in Montreal
+ Manulife Real Estate acquiring portfolio of 5 Quebec commercial properties from Redbourne Realty Fund, for $75.9 million
+ Agellan Commercial REIT closed $18.25 million acquisition of Houston office building; National Oilwell Varco is lead tenant
+ Sears Canada Inc. selling its leases back ($191 million paid to Sears) to surrender space upon landlord demand at Yorkdale in Toronto and SquareOneShopping Center in Mississauga
+ Toronto’s historic concert venue, Masonic Temple traded; Info-Tech Research Group acquired it from Bell Media
