National Post (National Edition)
Tech firm move a sign of Calgary’s potential
ABritish Columbia-based technology company is shifting its corporate headquarters to Calgary, sending an important signal to the city on a couple of different wavelengths.
Vancouver-based mCloud Technologies Corp., which uses artificial intelligence, cloud computing and sensors to monitor and improve the efficiency of energy-intensive assets — from commercial buildings to oil and gas facilities — announced Tuesday it's signed a memorandum of understanding with Invest Alberta to relocate its head office to Calgary.
The technology company, which already has about 100 employees in the city, expects to increase its local hiring this year and, in the coming months, move its existing offices in Calgary's northeast to the downtown.
“We are going to double our size of revenue this year. I am not sure that that will double our headcount, but most of our growth will occur in Alberta,” CEO Russ McMeekin, who will be moving to the city, said in an interview.
“It's not inconceivable we would be (at) a couple of hundred people within the next year and a half … Primarily, this is a hire-versus-a-move strategy.”
The company, listed on the TSX Venture Exchange, has 300 employees in seven different countries. It recorded revenues of $17.7 million during the first nine months of last year.
For Calgary, a city with a sky-high downtown vacancy rate and double-digit unemployment, every addition is welcome.
McMeekin said the relocation won't move many positions out of B.C., but it will bring the company's management closer to new and existing customers in the energy sector in Calgary, where decision-makers are based.
The company will be looking to hire engineers and the province has talented professionals available in this area, he added.
What also makes the decision significant is it further confirms that tech companies see a promising future in Calgary. It's a place to build or expand a business, with enough talent and corporate customers to become a home base — and Alberta also offers lower corporate income taxes.
“There were no incentives involved. This is the kind of firm that could go anywhere in the world they want to and they chose to come here,” said David Knight Legg, CEO of Invest Alberta, a provincial Crown corporation.
The agreement will see Invest Alberta assist in the company's relocation and open doors for market expansion, according to the provincial agency.
The decision by the Vancouver-based firm to move its global corporate headquarters to Calgary checks another strategic box.
The company's technology helps customers — including upstream and midstream oil and gas operators — measure and lower their energy use and emissions, improving their environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance.
For example, using sensors and AI technology, mCloud monitors indoor air quality and energy consumption in buildings, reducing electricity use. In the energy industry, it is working on early detection of fugitive gas emissions.
“Step No. 1 in decarbonizing is measure — you have got to be able to measure,” said McMeekin.
The company says it's connected to about 55,000 different assets around the world and counts Bank of America, Starbucks, Suncor Energy and AltaGas among its customers.
“Firms like mCloud make it easier to measure and manage. I think we can be a global centre of excellence for ESG and ESG reporting — and that is a competitive advantage in the energy space around the world,” added Knight Legg.
For Alberta, home to the world's third-largest proven oil reserves, being a leader in ESG performance is critical if companies are going to be able to attract capital in a world focused on decarbonization.
The importance of ESG issues, along with achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, is gaining prominence among investors and corporate leaders. This was highlighted last week at the Petronas International Energy Speaker Series, hosted online by the University of Calgary's Haskayne School of Business.
Companies in the energy business are facing greater scrutiny, with investors wanting to know about specific actions, timelines and resources dedicated to lowering emissions and moving towards net-zero goals.
“They are not a nice-tohave. This has to be woven into how you operate, your business plans, how you behave,” Tengku Muhammad Taufik, CEO of Petronas, Malaysia's national energy company, said at the event.
Emissions per barrel in the oilsands have dropped by about 20 per cent in the last decade, according to IHS Markit. But Alberta must do better — and it has to be recognized as making progress and being a leader.
“We are seeing clearly from markets that ESG is going to play a bigger and bigger role over time when it comes to being able to finance (firms), as well as the opportunity to access capital markets,” said Doug Schweitzer, Alberta's minister of Jobs, Economy and Innovation.
The relocation announcement comes as Calgary has been making inroads growing the tech sector in the city.
During the first nine months of last year, local technology companies raised more than $280 million in venture capital, according to an industry report.
Several companies have also moved their offices downtown.
Calgary Economic Development CEO Mary Moran said mCloud's decision to shift its own office downtown will expand the critical mass of these firms operating in the core, and increase the spotlight on the city's innovation ecosystem.
“When a company of this size moves their headquarters and has such a growth strategy attached to it, people will stand up and pay attention to that across the country,” Moran said.
“People should be hopeful about this because it will lead to more companies relocating here, particularly those focused on ESG and clean tech.”
WE ARE GOING TO DOUBLE OUR SIZE OF REVENUE THIS YEAR.