As trusts morph back to being bottom line driven corporations, winter brown hovers over Calgary it seems our 'carbon footprint' is on the minds of many of us, new year's resolutions to recycle, reduce and go-green-itis - overshadowing what ought to be public enemy number one - the economy. Repercussions of our strong dollar, soft natural gas markets, U.S. recession and the realities of post-Stelmach royalty tinkering set in, but there is still lots to cheer in Calgary . . . . one thing that amazes me constantly is the strong underlying influence in this market of the pipeline companies, these ditch-diggers with credentials, capital and nerve.
I asked Hal Kvisle, CEO at TransCanada Corporation how, in light of current low prices, capital costs of pipelines from Prudhoe Bay or the McKenzie delta can be justified; his answer deserves ink: 'these are long term projects that require years of preparation, regulatory proceedings and foresight. We need to build these pipes to bring supply to markets as they will exist in 2015 and later. Market supply and demand today is a factor, but not a large one. Companies like TC, Exxon and Shell do a lot of work to forecast supply and demand, 10 and 20 years out. It's not easy or foolproof, but our track record is pretty good. On the basis of our forecasts, we think Mackenzie will be welcomed by the market just as soon as we can bring it on, and Alaska will be easily accommodated anytime after 2014'
Dave Filipchuk at PCL Constructors tells me there seems to be no end in site for projects, the challenge continues to be recruitment of staff with the right skill sets. Georgi Sizeland at Sizeland Evans Interior Design echoes similar sentiments.
Euphoric times have their place in history books, but not many - reduced to short sentences on the boom, they are followed by long paragraphs outlining the fortunes won or lost in the period that follows. Will Calgary's story be different?
Mark Kolke . . . author, columnist . . reader, writer, editor, facilitator, coach, public speaker - writes wherever he is working or playing - he lives in Calgary, plays in Maui, works in Houston, plays in Maui, works in Los Angeles, plays in Maui . . you get the picture. Work, life and play are migrating slowly, inexorably, in the direction of Maui. Whether a crisp journalistic piece or a door-stop weight proposal, he writes as he speaks - clearly, effectively and passionately in the following areas: oil & gas, commercial real estate, hotels/tourism, residential real estate, education, social services, persons with disabilities, retail, golf, government, politics, relationships. Mark writes articles, columns, newsletters and proposals. His story telling writing style proves most effective when writing about the things which matter most to him personally and in which he has direct involvement.
Mark Kolke is a freelance writer and commercial real estate consultant in Calgary. He can be contacted at: MaxCommCom munications
