A Leaner, More Private Venture 100

In 2007 we witnessed a period of consolidation and privatization.

No, it’s not your imagination. After years of galloping growth, this year’s Venture 100 looks a little thinner. (The list, not the magazine you’re holding, thank goodness!) I’ll be the last one to declaim the so-called “hollowing out” of corporate Canada, but the fact is in 2007 we witnessed a period of consolidation and privatization of public companies that served to thin the ranks of the Venture 100. Shell Canada was taken out by its parent. The Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (“Taqa”) bought out PrimeWest Energy Trust and Northrock Resources. CCS Income Trust went private. Indeed, the entire royalty trust sector numbered only two-thirds as many as the previous year.

And the trend continues in 2008. As I write this, electrical giant TransAlta Corp., #27 on this year’s Venture 100, is the subject of a take-over bid by an American private equity group. Fording Canadian Coal Trust (#45) is in Teck Cominco’s shopping cart. Royal Dutch Shell has just announced the friendly, $6-billion cash takeover of Duvernay Oil Corp., #108 on the Next 100. Toronto-based Barrick Gold Corp. is buying Cadence Energy Inc. (#147). On page 80 we describe how three credit unions currently inhabiting the Next 100 will combine to form one financial institution by this time next year.

This doesn’t diminish the province’s economic output in any way, but it does make it harder for us to bring you the figures, company by company, as a growing number are no longer bound by rules of disclosure. We nonetheless have introduced some new features to expand our Venture 100 coverage, most notably the PWC Private 50, your best and possibly only source of information on privately held companies in Alberta.

I’d like to extend my thanks to our program partners at PricewaterhouseCoopers, led by managing partner Barry James and Brendan Hobal, senior manager of the audit and assurance group, for the long hours put in compiling the list. As always, the effort is always deeply appreciated.

This month also marks a revamp of the magazine’s online companion, www.albertaventure.com. Led by our new online editor, Rachel Singh, we will be rolling out a number of enhanced features and web-exclusive content over the coming months. Look for updates of stories we’ve covered in the magazine, easier ways to search our archives by subject, web-only interviews with business leaders and easier aggregation of listings and how-to guides – all in a cleaner, more navigable package. The current month’s online-only features will henceforth be featured in a separate contents page following the main table of contents in each issue of the magazine. Surf’s up!

Michael McCullough
Editor

Current Issue