TELUS, a Canadian telecommunications provider, has announced that it is investing $2.8 billion in the province of British Columbia.

“TELUS (News - Alert) is proud to invest $2.8 billion in leading-edge broadband technologies through 2016 to ensure British Columbia continues to be one of the most connected places anywhere in the world," Darren Entwistle (News - Alert), TELUS president and CEO said.

The company will deploy more 700 MHz spectrum across the province for both rural and urban areas, as well as deploying Internet and cable TV services in addition to wireless access. The company will also expand its electronic medical records services as well as completing its TELUS Garden Office in downtown Vancouver.

TELUS will spend $1.2 billion in 2014, and another $1.6 billion in 2015 and 2016, it said in a statement. The company will improve its infrastructure and expand urban and rural Internet connectivity, as well as wireless access on remote highways, increasing safety.

Entwistle said that TELUS' continued investment in the region had fueled the unparalleled success of its Optik TV service, high-speed Internet and its LTE (News - Alert) wireless network. He added that the company’s efforts were bridging the “digital divide,” offering advanced services across the entire province, not just in major cities like Vancouver, reaching 90 percent of British Columbia residents.

Entwistle stressed that TELUS was putting back money into the communities of British Columbia, statements that seemed surprisingly civic-minded compared with many American companies.

For example, the company had paid more than $3.2 billion in income, payroll and property taxes to provincial and local governments, as well as supporting the B.C. economy to the tune of $40 billion in total by 2016. TELUS supports local communities through volunteer work. Entwistle said that to date, the company has donated more than $110 million and its employees have volunteered 2.9 million hours for various community organizations across the province.


Edited by Rory J. Thompson