+ Equinix agreed to acquire 25 Bell data centres/13 sites from BCE Inc. for $1.04 billion
+ Telus and Bell have opted to use Nokia and Ericsson 5G technology – not Huawei; meanwhile, the Canadian government is pushing its 5G spectrum auction into 2021 … tic toc
COVID-19 updates ...
+ Alberta COVID-19 stats: 149 deaths, 7,202 cases so far: aggregate Alberta data - currently there are 44 Albertans in the hospital with COVID-19, six of those are in intensive care units
+ ABTraceTogether – get the APP; GOA has launched an app which, if loaded on your phone, enables contact tracing in the event you or someone you’ve been near contracts COVID-19; this is something we should all consider getting on-board with
+ Canada and the United States have mutually agreed to extend the border closing for non-essential traffic for another month – now set to expire June 21, 2020
SAVE THE DATE / upcoming events
+ Aug. 22; Fresh Start Recovery’s 12 Stop Ride For Recovery Motorcycle Road Rally; save the date
+ Sept. 22-24; BOMEX 2020, 20th Annual Building Excellence Summit, JW Marriott Parq, Vancouver; save the date
+ Sept. 29-30; Business Transitions Forum, Westin Edmonton; info/registration
+ Sept. 30; Vancouver Real Estate Forum, Vancouver Convention Centre West, Vancouver; info/register
+ Oct. 21; Alberta Real Estate Forum, Edmonton; info/register
+ Oct. 27-28; Supply Change EXPO, Stampede Park, Calgary; register
+ Oct. 29-30; Business Transitions Forum, Westin Calgary; info/registration
+ Nov. 6; 6th Annual Barney Bentall and Cariboo Express/Peter Burgener Memorial Charity Concert benefit for Classroom Champions; save the date/information
+ Place Bonaventure’s exhibition hall is done; after 53 years of trade shows, conventions, and major events of all kinds; the bunker center of the massive merchandise mart building with a hotel on top will be reconfigured into office, retail, and other commercial uses; the project will be approx.. $50.0 million in scope
+ AMC Theatres’ viability in question – they just posted at US$2.4 billion 1st qtr. Loss; 1,000 theatres sitting idle … tic toc
+ Bestseller Canada, the parent of Jack & Jones and Vero Moda brands, filed for bankruptcy protection
+ Brooks Brothers in talks with lenders, trying to avoid a likely bankruptcy filing; 250 stores in U.S. and Canada; 700 stores worldwide …
+ Comark Holdings Inc., operator of Bootlegger, Ricki’s, and Cleo stores filed for CCAA bankruptcy protection; Alvarez & Marsal appointed as monitor
+ David’s Tea locations across the country remain closed; evictions in Montreal and Ottawa and stock market activity fuel speculation about the future of the chain
+ LVMH is reconsidering its US$16.2 billion acquisition of Tiffany & Co … board is reconsidering
+ Retail Council of Canada continues advocacy for rent relief for small and medium-sized retail businesses; seeking a moratorium on tenant evictions, particularly when eligible/qualifying tenants face resistance from Landlord unwilling to participate and forego rent … tic toc
+ Simon Property Group is suing Gap Inc. for US$65.9 million for unpaid rent – 412 stores in Simon malls …
+ Alberta COVID-19 stats: 149 deaths, 7,202 cases so far: aggregate Alberta data - currently there are 44 Albertans in the hospital with COVID-19, six of those are in intensive care units
+ ABTraceTogether – get the APP; GOA has launched an app which, if loaded on your phone, enables contact tracing in the event you or someone you’ve been near contracts COVID-19; this is something we should all consider getting on-board with
+ Alberta Carbon Trunk Line is now operational; $1.2 billion project for capture, transportation, and storage will harvest 14.6 million tonnes of CO2 / year; capture it at North West Redwater Partnership’s Sturgeon Refinery and Nutrien’s Redwater Fertilizer Facility – transported 240 km. via Wolf Midstream pipeline to Enhance Energy’s reservoir
+ Bank of Canada rate announcement; holding steady at 0.25%
+ Brookfield Asset Management Inc. investing $350.0 million in Superior Plus Corp.; convertible preferred share issue
+ BP plc cut 10,000 jobs worldwide/15% of its workforce so far during the COVID-19 pandemic
+ current energy prices; live link to current Bloomberg energy prices / OilPrice.com; notwithstanding building diesel inventories, and storage at Cushing, OK getting full, price rise continues – WTI crossed US$40/bbl this week, but slipped back yesterday. Saudi Arabia and Russia reached a preliminary new deal – no certainty yet on OPEC+ group holding their line – but we should learn later this week where production levels will shake out … tic toc
+ GOA has introduced legislation to overhaul the Real Estate Act and revise the mandate and scope of RECA (industry regulator – Real Estate Council of Alberta); full details of new governance structure proposed; it looks like RECA will no longer be in the training/pre-licensing education business – not clear yet who will be … tic toc
+ Longshore Resources Ltd. agreed to acquire Rifle Shot Oil Corp., Steelhead Petroleum Ltd., and Primavera Resources Corp.; terms not disclosed
+ Ottawa silence continues: despite widespread oil patch please for help and support from the Trudeau government, they remain silent – eight weeks into this pandemic, no help from the prime minister or any of his key ministries to help with our devastated oil industry in Alberta and other energy-producing provinces – is this silence, waiting a while, or perpetuating historical ignorance?
+ rig counts (active/working) – U.S.: down 17 to 284 this week; Canada: up 1 to 21 this week; full breakdown
+ World Bank math – they predict the worst recession in 80 years …
CLIMATE CHANGE + LEED + RENEWABLE ENERGY
+ Canadian Real Estate Fund (managed by KingSett Capital; owned by KingSett Capital, Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) and James Richardson & Sons Limited) got certified for its 40 King St. W. building in Toronto; Canada’s largest Zero Carbon Certified building
SHAREHOLDER MEETINGS
+ June 10; Dollarama Inc., Annual Meeting of Shareholders, (virtual only)
+ June 10; Restaurant Brands International Inc. Annual General Meeting of Shareholders, (virtual only)
+ June 11; Africa Energy Corp., Annual General and Special Meeting of Shareholders, Vancouver
+ June 11; SIR Royalty Income Fund, Annual General Meeting of Unitholders, (virtual only)
+ June 12; Arrow Capital Management Inc., Special Meeting of Unitholders, Toronto
+ June 16; AcuityAds Holdings Inc., Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders, (virtual only)
+ June 17; American Hotel Income Properties REIT, Annual and Special Meeting of Unitholders, Vancouver, (and virtual)
+ June 23; Pinnacle Renewable Energy Inc., Annual General Meeting, Vancouver
+ June 23; Vertex Resource Group Ltd., Annual and Special Shareholders Meeting, (virtual only)
+ June 24; K-Bro Linen Inc., Annual General Meeting, (virtual only)
+ June 25; Melcor REIT, Annual General Meeting, (virtual only)
+ June 25; Melcor Developments Ltd., Annual General Meeting, (virtual only)
+ Air Canada closed $1.6 billion in debt and equity raises
+ AltaGas Ltd. is on the market to raise $500.0 million in debt
+ Centric Health Closed $11.5 million equity financing by private placement
+ General Electric Co. raised US$3.0 billion in debt
+ InterRent REIT closed $230.0 million equity raise
+ Macy’s Inc. raised US$4.5 billion in debt
+ Polaris Infrastructure closed US$27.0 million debt financing
+ Pond Technologies Holdings Inc. is on the market to raise $1.0 million in equity by private placement
+ QuadReal Property Group closed $350.0 million debt financing
+ Siyata Mobile Inc. is on the market to raise US$1.0 million in convertible debt by private placement
+ Superior Plus Corp. secured $350.0 million convertible preferred shave financing
+ Xebec Adsorption Inc. closed $25.0 million equity raise by private placement
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*editor’s note: names companies involved in debt financing transactions we report in this section are ALWAYS the borrower; we report ‘fresh raises’ and do not report secondary offerings …
CONSTRUCTION NEWS + BUILDING INNOVATIONS
+ Canadian Real Estate Fund (managed by KingSett Capital; owned by KingSett Capital, Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) and James Richardson & Sons Limited) got certified for its 40 King St. W. building in Toronto; Canada’s largest Zero Carbon Certified building
+ Telus Communications acquired a site in Victoria; they will construct the Telus Ocean building to serve as a regional headquarters to house 250 staff
+ WeWork reported to have not paid rent on 20% of its U.S. leases for May – notwithstanding being widely criticized for keeping its locations open during the pandemic …
this week in REITS
+ InterRent REIT closed $230.0 million equity raise
+ Maplewood International Operating Limited Partnership completed its termination of Maplewood REIT
QUOTES
+ I think that little by little I'll be able to solve my problems and survive. – Frida Kalo
+ I learned a long time ago that reality is much weirder than anyone’s imagination. – Hunter S. Thompson
+ Calgary GreenLine LRT project continues to limp through a controversial approval process; the revised alignment has been approved, but approval of the $4.9 billion project is now scheduled for a June 15 city council meeting … tic toc
+ Canadian Pacific completed its acquisition of the Central Main & Quebec Railways US Inc. (244.2 route miles in Maine and Vermont); terms not disclosed
+ Ontario is moving forward with its Ontario Line, a 15.5 km. subway connecting Exhibition Place to the Ontario Science Centre, but have not committed to timing; there will be two P3 projects – RFQ’s to find suitable groups to design, build, and maintain the subway line – expected to be complete by 2027, it will connect to GO Transit, the TTC and Eglinton Crosstown LRT line
