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| Telus to Invest More Than $700 Million in Alberta |
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www.telus.com Canadian telecoms group Telus plans to invest CAD700 million (US$577 million) in advanced mobile and fixed broadband infrastructure in Alberta, the province in the western part of the country. The CDMA-based operator expects that the investment in the mobile broadband network will enable the company to switch to the HSPA technology in Alberta and nationally by early 2010, in time for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. It will also ensure an optimal future transition to LTE. TELUS today announced a 2009 capital plan to invest more than $700 million focused primarily on advanced wireless and wireline broadband infrastructure in Alberta. This investment is expected to support more than 2,100 jobs. Since 2000, TELUS has made more than $18 billion in capital and operating expenditures in the province. Work is currently underway to build TELUS' next generation wireless network, using the most advanced mobile broadband technology. TELUS expects to launch the new network, based on the latest version of a technology known as High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), in Alberta and nationally by early 2010. This investment is expected to ensure an optimal future transition to long term evolution (LTE) technology, the emerging worldwide standard for fourth generation or 4G networks. TELUS' broadband wireline investment plan is anticipated by 2010 to significantly expand the reach of its high-speed Internet and digital TELUS TV service in Alberta. The extension of new broadband services creates significant benefits and opportunities in the areas of healthcare, education, economic development and entertainment. “Our 7,200 Alberta-based team members and 6,800 retirees are proud of TELUS' legacy in this province and despite the challenging times we are committed to making significant investments that benefit the economy, our communities, and our customers,” said Darren Entwistle, President and CEO of TELUS. “Our investment of more than $700 million in leading broadband technology will create employment opportunities, contribute to the province's future competitiveness, and support the launch of innovative new services for TELUS customers.” Since 2000, TELUS, our team members and retirees have contributed more than $45 million and 836,000 volunteer hours to charitable and community organizations in Alberta. The TELUS World of Science in Calgary and Edmonton, the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation, the Alberta Children's Hospital Foundation, the Edmonton Community Foundation, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Alberta & NWT and the Calgary Humane Society are just a few of the more than 1,000 Alberta charitable and non-profit organizations that TELUS has supported over the past nine years. The capital investment disclosed in this release is consistent with TELUS' overall capital expenditure guidance for 2009. About TELUS TELUS (TSX: T, T.A; NYSE: TU) is a leading national telecommunications company in Canada, with $9.7 billion of annual revenue and 11.6 million customer connections including 6.1 million wireless subscribers, 4.2 million wireline network access lines and 1.2 million Internet subscribers. Led since 2000 by President and CEO, Darren Entwistle, TELUS provides a wide range of communications products and services including data, Internet protocol (IP), voice, entertainment and video. In support of our philosophy to give where we live, TELUS, our team members and retirees have contributed $137 million to charitable and not-for-profit organizations and volunteered more than 2.6 million hours of service to local communities since 2000. Nine TELUS Community Boards across Canada lead our local philanthropic initiatives. For more information about TELUS, please visit telus.com. Forward-looking statements This document contains statements about expected future events and financial and operating results of TELUS Corporation that are forward-looking. By their nature, forward-looking statements require the Company to make assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. There is significant risk that the assumptions, predictions and other forward-looking statements will not prove to be accurate. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a number of factors could cause actual future results and events to differ materially from that expressed in the forward-looking statements. Accordingly this news release is subject to the disclaimer and qualified by the assumptions, qualifications and risk factors referred to in TELUS' reports, comprehensive public disclosure documents including the 2008 Annual Report, Annual Information Form and quarterly interim reports and in other filings with securities commissions in Canada and the United States. |
