Canada’s Source of R&D Intelligence
Toronto - June 25, 2003 - Nine Alberta companies made Canada's Top 100 Corporate R&D Spenders List 2003, released today by Research Infosource Inc. Together these companies invested $338 million in R&D activities in fiscal 2002, a slight decrease of 2.8% from 2001.
EnCana Corporation (#30) spent $76 million on R&D in fiscal 2002 a 24% decline from last year. Alberta Energy Company and PanCanadian Energy Corporation merged to form EnCana.
NOVA Chemicals Corporation (#35) drops 4 spots from 31st, investing $61.2 million a slight 1.1% dip from 2001.
Syncrude Canada Ltd. (#39) remains in 39th position with $52.3 million in R&D spending, a jump of 8.3%.
Precision Drilling Corporation (#52) moves up 6 places, posting $34.9 million in R&D expenditures, an increase of 7.5%.
Biomira Inc. (#62) plunges 19 spots from 43rd , with a whopping 32.8% decrease in R&D spending for a total of $28.3 million. Biomira has the dubious distinction of ranking fourth among the top 10 most research intensive (R&D as a percentage of revenue) companies, and languishing fourth from the bottom among the companies that showed a significant decline in R&D spending.
Westaim Corporation (#72) leaps 10 places from 82nd with $25.7 million in R&D expenditures, an increase of 32.2%.
Global Thermoelectric Inc. (#75) gains 21 spots, posting $23.3 million in spending, an increase of 54.6%. Global Thermoelectric placed 14th on the list of Top 100 companies ranked by R&D growth
Isotechnika Inc. (#80) shoots up 27 places from 107th last year with $21.3 million in R&D spending, a 59% jump. This puts Isotechnika in 13th spot on the list of Top 100 companies ranked by R&D growth.
Suncor Energy Inc. (#98) moves up one spot while holding R&D investment steady at $15 million.
"Alberta companies appear to be weathering out turbulent economic climate", says Ron Freedman, CEO of Research Infosource Inc. "Most are opting to preserve R&D investments in the face of declining revenue."
Overall, Canada's Top R&D companies invested $10.9 billion on research and development activities in fiscal 2002, down 8.7% from last year's figure of $11.9 billion. A closer look at the numbers reveals a healthier picture. Nortel Networks' size and depressed results mask a positive underlying trend. With Nortel's figures included, total spending declined by 8.7%. Removing Nortel's results from the mix, R&D spending actually grew by 6.5% in 2002.
Looking at the regional breakdown, 50 of the Top 100 companies are headquartered in Ontario. Together they spent $7.7 billion on R&D in 2002, down 14.2% from last year. Quebec's 24 companies invested $2.1 billion, a 7% increase from 2001. British Columbia's 16 firms posted $813.8 million in R&D expenditures, a jump of 13.1%. The Prairie provinces (9 Alberta and 1 Manitoba firm) invested $356.8 million, a slight 2.1% drop from 2001.
The complete Canada's Top 100 Corporate R&D Spenders List is available on the Research Infosource website, www.researchinfosource.com. An in-depth Corporate R&D Spenders Report 2003, based on over 600 companies, is slated for publication in July 2003. Research Infosource Inc., a division of The Impact Group, is Canada's source of R&D intelligence. Drawing from an extensive database, Research Infosource Inc. publishes Canada's Top 100 Corporate R&D Spenders List, Canada's Top 50 Research Universities List, and specialized reports.
Information: Ron Freedman, CEO, Research Infosource Inc. (416) 481-7070 ext. 31
Janet Sandor, Director of Communications (416) 481-7070 ext. 25