CA-CANADA Summary (Reuters)
Toyota to revamp Ontario plants with government help
TORONTO (Reuters) ? Automaker Toyota Motor Corp, along with the governments of Canada and the province of Ontario, will invest a total of C$545 million ($567.7 million) to upgrade Toyota’s assembly plants in Ontario. The Canadian federal government and the Ontario government said on Tuesday they will each invest C$70.8 million in the plants to help create jobs in Ontario, where the auto industry is a key employer but took a beating during the 2008-09 economic downturn.
Bombardier to cut 1,400 jobs in Britain
LONDON (Reuters) – Canadian train maker Bombardier is cutting more than 1,400 jobs at its plant in Derby, central England, after losing out to German group Siemens in a competition to upgrade rolling stock on the Thameslink cross-London railway. Bombardier said it would cut 446 permanent jobs and 983 temporary jobs from its 3,000-strong Derby workforce having missed out on the Thameslink contract and completed much of its current workload, which includes supplying London Underground.
Husky bets big on north Canada oil drilling rights
CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) – Husky Energy Inc has opened its wallet to grab the lion’s share of C$534 million ($556 million) of winning bids for oil-drilling rights in the central Mackenzie Valley area of Canada’s far north, sparking speculation it may be chasing a rich prospect. In the 2011 government auction of drilling rights in northern lands, Husky bid C$376 million for two parcels near Norman Wells in the Northwest Territories, vastly outspending some of the world’s largest oil majors, the government announced on Monday.
TransCanada says Exxon spill no threat to XL line
CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) – TransCanada Corp said on Tuesday that Exxon Mobil’s 1,000-barrel oil spill into the Yellowstone River will not derail its plans to build the Keystone XL pipeline, but environmentalists promised renewed pressure to block approval. TransCanada is awaiting State Department approval to build the $7 billion Keystone XL line, which would carry 700,000 barrels per day of crude oil to the gulf coast refining hub. A final decision on the company’s application is expected by year end.
Royals’ Quebec visit appears to be winning gamble
QUEBEC CITY (Reuters) – Anti-monarchist protesters failed to disrupt the visit of Britain’s Prince William and his wife Kate to Quebec, which was the most politically sensitive portion of their Canadian royal tour. A group estimated by local reporters at about 200 people used loudspeakers on Sunday to decry the royal family and call for sovereignty for the French-speaking province, but they were kept far away from the couple in Quebec City.
Richardson upgrades Canada grain-handling, input sites
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) – Canada’s second-largest grain handler, Richardson International Limited, said on Tuesday that it is spending C$25 million ($26 million) to upgrade its network of grain-handling and crop input facilities. Richardson is building or expanding nine fertilizer facilities in Western Canada and adding grain-storage capacity to its Weyburn, Saskatchewan site, by December.
Western Canada crops bask in warm, humid weather
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) – Warm, humid weather with occasional rain showers are creating greenhouse conditions for Canada’s grains and canola, giving late-developing crops a much-needed chance to catch up. Flooding in the southern Prairies, which has dragged out to nearly three months in southeastern Saskatchewan and southwestern Manitoba, left an estimated 6 million to 8 million acres unplanted this year, while earlier cool, wet conditions delayed plant growth by two to three weeks.
New Sun Life CEO to chart steady course for growth
TORONTO (Reuters) – Sun Life Financial will focus on expanding its business in the United States, China and India rather that pushing into new markets, the man set to be the next chief executive of Canada’s No. 3 life insurer said on Monday. Sun Life Chief Operating Officer Dean Connor, 54, reiterated the company’s growth strategy after it announced he will succeed long-time CEO Donald Stewart, 64, on December 1.
Detroit automakers log strong sales in June
TORONTO (Reuters) – Detroit-based automakers reported higher Canadian sales last month, led by Ford Motor Co of Canada, which said on Monday that demand for fuel-efficient cars helped it record its best June in 22 years. Across the board, sales of cars and light trucks were up 6.6 percent in June from a year earlier at 164,796 units, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants.
Greek coastguard intercepts Gaza-bound Canadian ship
ATHENS (Reuters) – The Greek coastguard on Monday intercepted a Canadian ship which had set sail for Gaza carrying medicine and pro-Palestinian activists who had defied a ban by the Athens government, activists said. The boat, named “Tahrir,” had left a port on the island of Crete, a Reuters witness said. Greek authorities have said that ships carrying activists destined for Gaza with aid for Palestinians were prohibited from leaving Greek ports.
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