Invest Alberta has set up a new remote office in Vancouver, and wants B.C. investors to know it’s “open and ready for business.”

The crown corporation was founded in 2020 and works directly with firms to launch or scale their businesses in Alberta. Over four years, it has secured deals that have generated nearly $20 billion in investment and created over 25,000 jobs — for reasons, the organization suggests, that go beyond the province’s lack of sales or payroll taxes and its low corporate tax rate (which clocks in at four percent below B.C.’s).

Alberta’s tech ecosystem has grown to host more than 3,000 companies, Invest Alberta says — an increase of over 83 percent compared to six years ago. Of these, over 900 are in cleantech and 150 in fintech (by contrast, B.C. has an estimated 492 and 120 respectively.) Reasons for the region’s emergence in these areas, the organization suggests, include its historical experience and infrastructure to support the energy sector, as well as being the first in Canada to establish a regulatory sandbox that allows businesses to test innovative financial products and services. In addition, it adds, the entrepreneurial community is known to be close-knit and strong — notably when it pushed for R&D incentives for early-stage startups following cuts in 2019.

It’s for reasons like these that the organization believes Vancouver-based companies should consider setting up a base in B.C.'s neighbouring province.

In order to publicize the opening of its new remote office, Invest Alberta will be hosting a few exclusive events in Vancouver this week. Attendees can expect to learn about the benefits and opportunities in the province and takeaways from its latest wins with major companies — including eStruxture, Canada’s largest data centre provider, which will build a new 90-megawatt facility in Rocky View County; Wealthsimple, which plans to triple its number of full-time employees across the province; and Metlen Energy and Metals, a global industrial and energy company, which is opening its first Canadian headquarters in Calgary.

“We are just in Vancouver to tell our story,” Rick Christiaanse, the CEO of Invest Alberta, told the Vancouver Tech Journal. “When I share with people that Alberta actually raised more venture capital in the first six months of this year than B.C., it kind of blows people's mind because we've not done a good job of telling our story. So we think this is an amazing time to grow and promote B.C. in Alberta.”

What spurred Invest Alberta to grow its presence in Vancouver was seeing an “increased demand for a while,” said Christiaanse. 

One recent example is Fortinet’s investment of $30 million to build a cybersecurity hub in Calgary — which will include a data centre, a training facility, and a “centre of excellence” to keep infrastructure and operational technologies safe. The California-based company was attracted to Calgary largely due to its pool of talent, which has grown by 78 percent over five years — marking the fastest rate compared to other North American cities. It also helped that Fortinet received support from Invest Alberta to secure available government incentives, the organization said, as well as assistance from Calgary Economic Development. In addition, the government of Alberta supported the bid with over $3 million from its Innovation and Growth Fund.

“We did a fair amount of research when we put Invest Alberta together,” said Christiaanse. “We looked at what is best-in-class around the world, so places like Ireland, Israel, Singapore, and some U.S. states. [We asked], ‘How do we put a model together that's really going to work well?’ Then we talked to clients, and the number one feedback we got — and we still get to this day, especially when we're in Asia and talking to high-tech companies — is that there's a perception you can't get anything done in Canada and that things are really slow. That getting zoning approvals, business licenses, and anything done just takes a lot of time. So Fortinet is probably one of our best evangelists in that regard [...] Alberta wins based on speed to market and how easy we can make it for businesses. That's where we're primarily focused.”

Invest Alberta believes B.C.-based businesses may also be enticed to move to the province for risk mitigation, particularly in the case of data centres, because the coastal setting is more vulnerable to natural disasters like earthquakes. Significantly, in 2021, Amazon Web Services announced plans to invest $4.3 billion in a new cloud computing operation in Calgary — which, as Christiaanse highlighted, managed to open under budget and on time last December.

“It's a good example of the fact that we have the electricity and land available,” Christiaanse said. “We have the electrical grid that is already built to higher standards than maybe some other places. We have the ability to power those centers with either natural gas or green energy [...] And we also have the water that is often required to cool these places. Now, of course, Alberta gets a little cooler in the winter, so that actually reduces operating costs for those centers. That's one area where we think we can complement what is done in B.C. really well.”

When asked about how Invest Alberta supports companies that need help with scaling, Christiaanse said it provides “concierge services” that include customized plans designed for their needs. 

“Once they first inquire with us, we develop a roadmap that says, ‘Here are the markets, here’s the talent, and here’s how to connect to the ecosystem — whether it’s other companies, the government, or educational institutes,’” he said. “We try to make this decision really simple and easy to execute. And then people have a habit of putting us on speed dial and just asking any and all questions. For us, it’s really about how we smooth this process so that people can move really quickly [...] Time is money for businesses and our role is simply to eliminate any of the constraints that they normally face when they’re expanding anywhere in the world.”

The executive noted that because he and his team work directly for the Premier of Alberta, they can effectively “marshal the right resources.” Invest Alberta also works closely with the federal government and local municipalities.

“This is a really collaborative business community that has gone through some tough times, so it understands what happens when the economy goes sideways,” Christiaanse said. “[Oil and gas] is going to be an integral part of our economy for many years as it continues to grow. But the fact that we're bringing in tech, and doing it successfully — it's the first time Alberta has ever done that.”

He added: “I can call any businessperson in the province and say, ‘I need your help with X,’ or ‘I would like you to meet Y company,’ or ‘I want you to come with me to Vancouver to do something.’ People here are incredibly willing to do that and want to help each other succeed. That is one thing that makes us unique and once people experience it, they’re blown away. At the end of the day, we are really about connectivity.”

For companies in Vancouver that are thinking of relocating or expanding to Alberta, Christiaanse encourages them to contact his team and to leave it to them to figure out what the path could be and how to move it forward. “Let us be that trusted advisor,” he said.

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