November 30, 2001
Los Angeles, California

The inaugural Team Canada West Trade Mission to Dallas, Texas and Los Angeles, California wrapped up its four-day visit today in Los Angeles. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien was accompanied by the four Western premiers, the three territorial leaders and more than 190 delegates.

"Our objectives for Team Canada West have been met," said Prime Minister Chrétien. "We established stronger links between the two regions — adding to a long history of cooperation. We helped Canadian and American businesses build stronger ties and we reaffirmed our commitment to the U.S. as a good neighbour, reliable business partner and close ally."

Canadian enterprises signed 19 deals, valued at $92.8 million. A total of 148 Canadian organizations registered for the Team Canada West Trade Mission, 108 for Dallas, 94 for Los Angeles and 58 for both cities.

Canada’s two-way merchandise trade with Texas and California reached $67 billion in 2000. Last year, Canadian goods exports to the U.S. Southwest (encompassing 11 states) reached $50.4 billion, while goods imports were $38.2 billion for a total two-way trade of $88.6 billion. Each day $1.9 billion worth of trade crosses the Canada-U.S. border.

The first Team Canada West Trade Mission ever signals a new partnership between the Government of Canada, the territories and the Western provinces. By extending the successful Team Canada formula to the West, the Government of Canada has added a new initiative to its export development strategy.

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The following is a list of agreements signed in Dallas during the Team Canada West Trade Mission. The total value of the agreements is approximately $58.3 million (in Canadian dollars).

Arslanian Cutting Works (NWT) Ltd., Yellowknife, N.W.T. Arslanian Cutting Works signed a contract with Beny Sofer Inc., of New York, New York as the official distributor of government-certified Canadian Arctic diamonds. These diamonds are from the BHP Billiton Ekati mine located in the Northwest Territories. The approximate value of the contract is $6.4 million, all Canadian content.

Avcorp Industries Inc., Delta, B.C. Avcorp Industries Inc. signed a contract with the Cessna Aircraft Company of Wichita, Kansas to supply additional components for an earlier Cessna Sovereign aircraft wing contract. Engineering and manufacturing work will begin immediately at both companies’ locations. The estimated value of the addition to the contract is $40 million, bringing the total value to $140 million.

Canadian Light Source Inc., University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Sask. Canadian Light Source Inc. signed a contract with EDS (Electronic Data Systems) for the design and production of an infrastructure to support the information technology architecture needs of the national facility for synchrotron light research. This new research facility is expected to attract industrial and academic researchers globally. The approximate value of this first phase is $2.3 million, all Canadian content.

Fusion Media Group Inc., Calgary, Alta. Fusion Media Group Inc. signed a contract with Group Baronet of Dallas, Texas for consulting services to redevelop their Web site. They also signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with them to do cross-market penetration, increase their mutual competitive advantage and penetrate new markets. The two companies also signed a letter of intent to further discuss the size, scope and clarification of potential projects. The three deals are valued at more than $160,000, all Canadian content.

Harvest Sun Seed & Grain Company Ltd., Regina, Sask. Harvest Sun Seed & Grain Company Ltd. signed a marketing agreement with Western Organics Inc., of Stratford, Texas. Western Organics Inc. will promote, distribute and sell Harvest Sun Seed & Grain’s certified organic bird seed products. Saskatchewan is the largest exporter of canary seed in the world.

Information Services Corporation, Regina, Sask. Information Services Corporation (ISC) signed a MOU with EDS to establish a marketing relationship that would see ISC become a vendor to EDS. ISC created a state-of-the-art land registry system that EDS will market around the world.

Manitoba Department of Industry, Trade and Mines, Winnipeg, Man. The Manitoba Department of Industry, Trade and Mines signed a letter of intent with the Texas Department of Economic Development of Austin, Texas to facilitate business development between Manitoba and Texas.

Peak of the Market, Winnipeg, Man. Peak of the Market signed a MOU with Ideal Sales Inc, of Dallas, Texas to provide them with 1 million pounds of Manitoba grown red potatoes and carrots. Peak of the Market has been a vegetable distributor of more than 120 different varieties of Manitoba-grown vegetables for the past 59 years. The deal is valued at $250,000, all Canadian content.

Pioneer Log Homes of British Columbia Ltd., Williams Lake, B.C. Pioneer Log Homes of British Columbia Ltd. signed a contract with Direct Management Services Inc. of Steamboat, Colorado to construct a 104,000 square foot home. The contract is valued at $6.2 million, all Canadian content, and will be completed by October 2002.

Pioneer Log Homes of British Columbia Ltd. also signed a distribution contract with Paul and Kathy Blymyer of Columbus, Texas, who will provide sales of custom log homes and contracting services to clients in the state of Texas.

Saskatchewan Trade and Export Partnership, Regina, Sask. Saskatchewan Trade and Export Partnership (STEP) signed a MOU with the Texas Department of Economic Development of Austin, Texas to facilitate business development between Saskatchewan and Texas. STEP is a partnership between the provincial government and private sector that delivers custom export solutions and market intelligence to member companies.

University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alta. and the National Research Council of Canada, Ottawa, Ont. The University of Alberta and the National Research Council of Canada signed a letter of intent with the University of Texas at Dallas. They will explore the possibility of a program to foster the exchange of scientific and technical knowledge, identify opportunities for collaborative research and technology transfer, and develop scientific and technical capabilities in nanotechnology applications in energy, computers and life sciences.

The following is a list of agreements signed in Los Angeles during the Team Canada West Trade Mission. The total value of the agreements is approximately $34.5 million (in Canadian dollars).

Bitcasters Inc., Toronto, Ont. Bitcasters Inc. signed a letter of intent with David Hutchinson, of Los Angeles, California to open a Bitcasters office in Los Angeles. David Hutchinson will promote business development in the region as well as provide production management services to Bitcasters’ current clients. Bitcasters is a multi-media production company involved in music videos, commercials, Web development and interactive strategy work.

ChromaColour International, Calgary, Alta. ChromaColour International signed a contract with Color Me Mine Enterprises Inc. of Hollywood, California to manufacture 50 different colours of underglaze (ceramic paint) for their chain of contemporary pottery studios. Customers from across the U.S. visit their local Color Me Mine studio to create personalized pottery ceramic pieces. The five-year contract is valued at $2.5 million, all Canadian content.

Metamend Software and Design Ltd., Victoria, B.C. Metamend Software and Design Ltd. signed a contract with Quantified Solutions of San Diego, California to offer the Metamend software to Quantified Solutions’ international client base. Metamend is a Web-based software that analyzes, optimizes and submits Web sites to the top search engines every month. The contract is valued at approximately $2.5 million, all Canadian content.

Metamend Software and Design Ltd. also signed a contract with Miva Corporation of San Diego, California to provide them with a customized version of the Metamend software to help manage their customer acquisition strategy for the Miva Marketplace solution, a major shopping portal on the Internet.

Proeco Corporation, Edmonton, Alta. Proeco Corporation signed a MOU with Remediation Service International of Ventura, California to continue development of an environmentally safe recycling process to generate electrical power, heat and mechanical energy using hazardous waste material as a feedstock in the industrial process. The estimated value of the contract is between $25 and $30 million over the next five years, of which $15 million is Canadian content.

Proeco Corporation also signed a letter of intent with Amazon Environmental Inc. of Whittier, California to use Amazon’s patented process to convert waste water-based latex paint into a feedstock for the cement manufacturing industry. Proeco intends to eventually use this environmentally friendly recycling process across Canada. The estimated value of the proposal is $4.5 million over the next three years, all Canadian content.