Saskatchewan
Where Enterprise Meets Opportunity
Saskatchewan is vast province—home to almost half of Canada's total cultivated farmland and the center of Canadian crop production. Even with production reaching a record high volume of 29.8 million tonnes in 2008, the province is gaining worldwide attention for its wealth of minerals and energy resources, cutting-edge research centres spawning high-tech industries and rapidly-expanding manufacturing sector. With a growth rate that outpaces Canada as a whole, one of the youngest and most educated populations, and cost advantages that beat out most North American locations, this prairie province offers a quality of life that is second to none.
Business Environment
- Highest average economic growth (GDP) in Canada along with the lowest rate of unemployment in the country
- Government incentives for natural gas drilling and new oil wells, a 90,000 barrel/ day refinery, an asphalt refiner, 2 heavy oil upgraders and 3 ethanol plants
- One of Canada’s lowest corporate income tax rates for manufacturers and processors—as low as 10% for qualifying companies—and royalty rates among the lowest in Canada
Workforce
- Job tenure in Saskatchewan is consistently the best in Canada - exceeding the national average by 22.8 per cent in 2005, resulting in lower costs to hire and train new staff
- Educated workers—50% have a post secondary diploma, certificate or degree
- Highest percentage of workers under 24 years of age—the youngest workforce in Canada
- Multicultural workforce is able to serve customers in many languages
- Highest employment growth rate of any province between May 2008 and May 2009
Other Key Advantages
- Recognized as a world leader in agricultural biotechnology
- Highest mining productivity in Canada
- Second largest oil-producing province as well as the third largest natural gas producing province making the oil and gas industry one of the largest contributors to the provincial economy with over $1.8 billion in revenue in 2007-2008
- World’s largest producer and exporter of both potash and uranium (respectively supplying 31% and 23% of world production in 2007)
- Home to the largest diamondiferous kimberlite field in the world causing total mineral expenditures in 2008 to reach $360 million
- Home to the world’s largest uranium-producing company and the world’s largest uranium mine
- Athabasca Basin in northern Saskatchewan boasts the highest-grade uranium deposits in the world
- 190,000 km. highway and road network, CN and CPR intermodal terminals connect to the US , and both eastern and western Canada
Sector Strengths
- Agri-value
- Alternative Energies
and Environmental
Industries - Bio-fuels, Bio-Products
and Bio-Processing - Forestry
- Information and
Communication
Technologies - Life Sciences and
Biotechnology - Manufacturing
- Minerals
Look Who’s Investing in Saskatchewan
- AgrEvo Inc.
- Brant Industries
- Crown Life Insurance
- Degelman Industries
- Enbridge Pipelines
- Foothills Pipe Lines Ltd.
- Husky Oil
- IBM
- Ipsco Inc.
- TransCanada Pipelines
- Kalium Chemicals
- Maple Leaf Consumer Foods
- Potash Corporation
of Saskatchewan - PCL Construction
Management Inc. - RBC Royal Bank
- Saskatchewan Wheat Pool
- Sears Canada
- Siemens Canada
- TD Commercial Banking
- Vecima Networks Inc.
Visit the Competitive Advantages page for more information on the Centres of Excellent and Innovation found in Saskatchewan.
