Canada’s source of corporate R&D intelligence   
   


For Immediate Release


8 Alberta Companies Make Canada's Top 100 Corporate R&D Spenders List


Toronto - June 26, 2001 - Canada's Top 100 Corporate R&D Spenders List, released today by Research Infosource Inc. (www.researchinfosource.com) includes 8 Alberta companies:

  • Nova Chemicals Corporation #26, is in the same position it held in 1999 although its R&D spending increased from $46.1 million in 1999 to $60.9 million in 2000
  • Biomira Inc. #37 with $42.1 million in 2000, moved up three places from 40th in 1999
  • Syncrude Canada Ltd. #41, spent $37 million and moves up five places from last year's 46th
  • Westaim Corporation #49 is in the same position as last year, although it increased R&D spending by over 25% from 1999 to 2000
  • Alberta Energy Company #55 moves up from 71st position in 1999
  • AltaRex Corp #92, with $12.0 million, drops from 78th in 1999
  • TransCanada Piplines Limited #96 moves down from 58th in 1999
  • Petro-Canada #100, reduces R&D spending by $12 million from 1999 to 2000 and drops from 52nd position.
Petro-Canada and TransCanada Pipelines top the list of the 16 Canadian companies where R&D spending decreased from 1999 to 2000. Petro-Canada went from $22 million in 1999 to $10 million in 2000, a decline of 54.5%. TransCanada Piplines dropped R&D spending by 43%, going from $19.3 million to $11 million.

On a positive note, Alberta Energy Company holds the number 10 position on the list of companies that increased their R&D spending by 50% or more from 1999 to 2000. Going from $13.8 million in 1999 to $27.4 in 2000 meant a 99.1% jump. While Biomira Inc. leads the list of the Top 10 Research Intensive Companies, investing $42.1 million in R&D on revenues of $1.1 million, which translates to 3,761.6%.

"Our aim is to take the pulse of Canada's research community so that decision makers can track trends and measure the results of their decisions and investments," says Ron Freedman, CEO of Research Infosource Inc. "Alberta, for example, put a major emphasis on innovation several years ago. How well is Alberta's corporate sector doing as a result? Our data sheds some light on this question."

The total R&D spending by Canada's Top 100 rose dramatically from $8.7 billion in 1999 to $11.1 billion in 2000, a jump of 28.5%. Leading the charge was Nortel Networks with an investment of more than $5.9 billion in 2000. Pratt and Whitney ($331 million) came second, followed by Magna International ($246.5 million), then Ericsson Canada ($237.8 million), with ATI Technologies ($224.3 million) rounding out the Top 5 for Fiscal 2000.

The complete list, available on the Research Infosource website (www.researchinfosource.com) free of charge, is drawn from Research Infosource's Canadian Corporate R&D Database of more than 300 of the top companies doing R&D in Canada. An in-depth report on Canadian R&D trends, Canada's Top Corporate R&D Spenders Report 2001, will be published in July.

Research Infosource Inc. is a division of The Impact Group, one of Canada's leading consulting firms specializing in strategic planning, policy analysis & development, research & evaluation, communications & marketing, and training & education, for organizations concerned with science, technology, and innovation. The Impact Group provides a range of research and consulting services to companies, government agencies, higher education, and non-profit institutions.

-30-

Information: Ron Freedman, CEO, Research Infosource Inc.(416) 481-7070 ext. 31
Janet Sandor, Director of Communications (416) 481-7070 ext. 25