The new tunnel, which is more than 10 kilometers in length, is channelling additional water from the Niagara River to flow to the Sir Adam Beck Generating Station at a rate of 500 cubic metres per second. This will supply Ontario with enough clean, renewable electricity to power 160,000 homes.

The largest hydroelectric project to come into service in Ontario in the past 50 years, the Niagara Tunnel Project is a milestone in renewable energy production for the province.

"This project is a source of pride as an engineering feat and as a practical solution for meeting Ontario's energy needs through clean sources," said Bob Chiarelli, Minister of Energy. "The completion of this project will provide Ontario with a source of clean energy for the next 100 years."

Ontario is a world leader in renewable energy. Since 2003, Ontario has brought more than 9,000 megawatts of new electricity supply online and is investing a total of $2 billion in smart grid infrastructure.

Ontario now produces more electricity from wind and solar than from coal, which the province is committed to phasing out by 2014. Today Ontario has more than one thousand wind turbines in operation and the four largest wind farms in Canada. The 10 largest solar farms in Canada are also located in Ontario.

Combined with globally competitive R&D tax credit incentives, low business costs, easy access to North American markets and long-term government support for reliable and low-cost alternative power generation, Ontario is a preferred location for advanced manufacturers, service providers and project developers.

QUICK FACTS

• When under construction, the Niagara Tunnel Project was the largest renewable energy project of its type anywhere in the world.
  
  
• Since 2003, Ontario has brought more than 9,000 megawatts of new electricity supply online. That's enough power for over two million homes.
  
  
• Ontario is in a prime position to meet the growing market demand for renewable energy with its establishment of North America's first comprehensive Feed-In Tariff Program.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's clean energy sector
• Find out about hydro generation in Ontario
• Read Ontario's Long-Term Energy Plan
• Discover the Ontario Feed-In Tariff Program

Ontario will contribute up to $50 million to the new fund. In time, Ontario's new venture capital fund could reach $300 million with the participation of private investors.

The new fund would build on the province's Ontario Venture Capital Fund, which was created in 2008 and has successfully leveraged $750 million in private capital.

Ontario is working with the federal government, institutional and corporate investors to develop the new venture capital fund.

Ontario offers a range of credits and incentives for innovation and research, including the Ontario Flagship Program, Ontario Research & Development Tax Credit, the Ontario Innovation Demonstration Fund, and the Ontario Venture Capital Fund.

QUICK FACTS

• The Ontario Venture Capital Fund is a $205-million fund, of which $90 million was committed by Ontario and $115 million from investors.
  
  
• The new fund would be managed by a private sector fund manager selected through a competitive procurement process.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's environment of innovation
• The Ontario Venture Capital Fund

Ontario is helping the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Ryerson University, Sunnybrook Hospital, University Health Network, University of Toronto and York University invest in new facilities and equipment that will support innovative research, including new ways to find and treat cancer cells, the use of nanomaterials to harvest and store renewable energy, better ways to prevent and treat inflammatory diseases, and how to get critical new technologies to patients faster.

"These research teams are poised to make breakthrough discoveries in sectors that include health, energy and advanced manufacturing. I'm proud to be part of a government that recognizes how important research is to improving our quality of life, and to the economic future of our province," said Reza Moridi, Minister of Research and Innovation.

The Ontario Research Fund is a key part of Ontario's plan to support research that can be developed into innovative goods and services. Ontario is committed to supporting R&D and innovation.

In addition to Canada's federal SR&D tax program—one of the most generous in the world—Ontario offers a range of additional credits and incentives, including the Ontario Flagship Program, the Ontario Research & Development Tax Credit, the Ontario Innovation Demonstration Fund, and the Ontario Venture Capital Fund.

Each year, more than $13.9 billion is spent on R&D in Ontario by industry, governments, hospitals, universities and non-profits. Ontario is home to Canada's top research talent, with more than 100,000 researchers working on issues ranging from life-saving vaccines to robotic software and climate change mitigation.

QUICK FACTS

• Since 2003, the Ontario Research Fund - Research Infrastructure Program has supported 1,430 projects and helped train more than 20,000 highly qualified people in Ontario.
  
  
• Combined with federal SR&D tax programs, Ontario's R&D Tax Program can reduce the after-tax cost of every $100 in R&D spending to about $56, or $38 for small businesses.
  
  
• Ontario's life sciences sector is the second largest in North America.

LEARN MORE

• About the Ontario Research Fund and the Research Infrastructure Program
• About the Research Projects Funded in Toronto
• About the Ontario Flagship Program
• About life sciences in Ontario

Shinichi Nakamura, President of Sumitomo Precision Products (SPP) Canada Aircraft, Inc., says, "Our new Mississauga facility is ideally located at the heart of Ontario's concentration of landing gear expertise. From this base, Sumitomo looks forward to offering an expanded suite of products and services to our North American aerospace customers."

Ontario is providing a $3.25 million loan that will support the final assembly project, which has a total value of $10 million. Sumitomo's overall investment in its new Mississauga facility is valued at over $50 million.

Ontario's well-established aerospace industry includes world leaders with global product mandates, top-of-the-line suppliers and a broad range of advanced manufacturing support services.

The industry in Ontario includes more than 350 companies. Sales top $6.5 billion annually with more than 80% of it generated by exports. Niche market capabilities include:

• commercial, business and special-purpose aircraft
• unmanned aerial vehicles
• structural components
• satellites sub-systems
• flight simulators
• optical/visual systems
• electronic systems
• landing gear
• avionics.

In Ontario, aerospace firms operate in a creative, top-ranked business environment that includes some of the world's most advanced manufacturers in the automotive, telecommunications and life science sectors.

Aerospace leaders the world over are investing in Ontario for growth and business success.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario is providing a $3.25 million loan in support of the final assembly project. This is part of an overall investment by Sumitomo of over $50 million in its new Mississauga facility.
  
  
• The company will undertake final assembly for aircraft landing gear and landing gear control systems.
  
  
• Sumitomo sources about a third of its landing gear components from Ontario suppliers, and this will grow with the new facility.
  
  
• Ontario's aerospace industry employs approximately 22,000 people and manufactures about 60 per cent of the world's large commercial landing gear and about 40 per cent of all commercial landing gear.
  
  
• Ontario has cut taxes on business investment in half, making the province more competitive for foreign investment.

LEARN MORE

• Learn more about Ontario's Aerospace sector

NanoLight's innovative breakthrough has resulted in a flurry of investments on the crowd-funding website, KickStarter, since its launch on January 7, 2013. The project had raised more than $140,000 with more than 3,000 investors at time of publication—surpassing their initial goal of raising $20,000 by March 8, 2013. Shipments of the Nanolight lightbulbs are set to begin in May.

Gimmy Chu, Tom Rodinger and Christian Yan

With a vision to create a better world through conservation and preservation of the planet, Tom Rodinger, Gimmy Chu and Christian Yan met at U of T while developing a vehicle with the university's solar car project. Rodinger was a senior member of the team, completing his PhD, while Chu and Yan were third-year Electrical and Computer Engineering students looking for ways to contribute their skills to different projects and start-ups around campus.

"For Gimmy and myself, U of T was a good atmosphere for entrepreneurship-- people in our class, our professors, it's a really dynamic place with different cultural backgrounds and people who are really smart," said Yan. "U of T provided a great platform for everyone to incorporate business together with engineering."

NanoLight bulbs

Ontario is a North American hub for Research and Development (R&D). More than 100,000 business and university-based researchers, their assistants and support staff, spend almost $13.4 billion every year working on issues ranging from life-saving vaccines to nano-materials and next-generation wireless devices.

Home to 18 of Canada's top research universities including number one ranked U of T, Ontario has globally recognized strengths in a range of sectors, including health, manufacturing, digital media and clean tech. Leveraging that high-value resource can generate competitive advantages for Ontario companies in the global marketplace.

NanoLight prototypes

Ontario's innovation strategy is, in turn, a component of a broader economic plan to create an ecosystem in the province that helps knowledge-based industries compete globally. Ontario has made massive investments in post-secondary education to create a skilled, educated talent pool. The R&D tax incentives in the province are among the most generous in the G7. Business operating costs are among the lowest in leading industrialized nations, particularly in digital media, financial services, biotech and advanced manufacturing.

QUICK FACTS

• Doing R&D in Ontario makes good financial sense. In addition to Canada's federal R&D tax program – one of the most generous in the world – Ontario offers a number of tax incentives to reduce the cost of innovation. Ontario also invests millions of dollars each year to support research and commercialization at its universities, colleges, hospitals and research institutions.
  
  
• Each year, more than $13.9 billion is spent on R&D in Ontario by industry, governments, hospitals, academic and research institutions, and private non-profit organizations.
  
  
• Ontario is home to Canada's top research talent, with more than 100,000 researchers working on issues ranging from life-saving vaccines to nano-materials and climate change mitigation.

LEARN MORE [requires Adobe Acrobat Reader^®]

• About Investing in innovation in Ontario
• About Establishing a business in Ontario (PDF-1.6MB)
• About Taxation and tax incentives in Ontario (PDF-1.9MB)

Toronto and Stratford are on this prestigious global list produced by the New York-based Intelligent Community Forum (ICF). The Intelligent Community of the Year is named in June.

The appearance of two cities from the same region (southwestern Ontario) on the Top 7 is "rare," according to ICF co-founder Lou Zacharilla.

The Top 7 is chosen from an initial group of 21 communities, the Smart 21, nominees which showed best how they've measured against the ICF's five Intelligent Community Indicators: broadband connectivity, knowledge workforce, innovation, digital inclusion and marketing and advocacy. Nominees are also gauged on an annual theme. This year the theme is innovation and employment.

ICF Top7 Intelligent Communities of 2013
Video courtesy Intelligent Community Forum (ICF)

Toronto and Stratford are part of a group that Zacharillo describes as "seasoned veterans. Each has been working on the five criteria at varying paces for at least seven years. They're also places that are not trying to 'win an award,' so much as learning how to build a community."

In its evaluation of Toronto's submission, the ICF highlighted one effort in particular: the revitalization of the city's waterfront, which ICF describes as "North America's largest urban renewal project."

In 2001, the city of Toronto, the province of Ontario and the Canadian government co-created a corporation, Waterfront Toronto, with each level of government providing $500 million in seed funding. Waterfront Toronto is stewarding the revitalization of roughly 2,000 acres of land.

"It's increasing Toronto's competitiveness globally," says Ed Chalupka, Director, Government Relations at Waterfront Toronto.

The province, as principal owner of the West Don Lands, dedicated part of the 80-acre site for use as the Athletes' Village during the 2015 Pan/Parapan American Games in Toronto.

"So out of this you're actually getting a planned community," says Chalupka.

As former industrial lands, located at the original mouth of the Don River, the West Don Lands are being reclaimed and flood-protected.

This is part of an overall effort that will see 40,000 new residential housing units, 1 million square meters of commercial space and 300 hectares of parkland built along Toronto's waterfront.

A 1 Gbps fibre network will be installed to serve residents, commercial operations, a new elementary school and two child-care centres.

For its part, Stratford, a city of 32,000, has built on its legacy as home to, among other things, the Stratford Festival. After 60 years in operation, the festival is the city's biggest employer and generates $140 million in economic activity, offers Stratford's mayor Dan Mathieson.

"So I think it's ingrained in our local mindset that creativity and vision are valuable, and really the only path to securing a prosperous future," he says.

In 1997, the city started a unique effort involving community consultation and a strategic plan to reposition itself. "By raising our sights, investing in infrastructure and embracing technology, we positioned ourselves for the digital economy," says Mayor Mathieson.

The growth from this vision is evident today and includes the University of Waterloo's new $45-million Stratford Campus, where two degree programs concentrating on digital media and business creation are delivered. "The province has been integral to faciliting this," says the mayor.

Ontario cities are among the safest most liveable in the world. Annual surveys and rankings by the Economist Intelligence Unit, fDi Intelligence, the Intelligent Community Forum, Mercer and other leading organizations consistently give Ontario cities top marks for factors like quality of life, cost of living and innovation.

Business leaders worldwide invest in Ontario because of the province's combination of talent, cost-efficiencies, environment of innovation and quality of life.

QUICK FACTS

• Revitalization of the West Don Lands is accelerating community and infrastructure development: http://www.panam2015.gov.on.ca/en/news/20120522-factsheet.asp

LEARN MORE

• About the Intelligent Community Forum's evaluation process
• Why Ontario?

The Ontario government today announced an investment of almost $16.9 million toward hybrid vehicle production at the Toyota plant in Cambridge, Ontario. The investment will allow the plant to produce the Lexus RX450h hybrid.

Ontario is providing the funding through its Strategic Jobs and Investment Fund. The Government of Canada is also contributing $16.9 million to the project. The investment will help sustain 7,000 jobs at Toyota and thousands more at parts companies across the province.

Brad Duguid, Ontario's Minister of Economic Development and Innovation, says, "Toyota is an essential part of Ontario's auto industry, and a big reason why the province continues to be a leader in North America for vehicle assembly. The Ontario government is delighted to further strengthen our partnership with Toyota and we thank the company for its ongoing confidence in Ontario and its auto workers."

Toyota will put $125 million toward the new assembly line. The project will lead to the first Lexus hybrid produced outside of Japan – testament of Ontario's commitment to innovation in clean technology.

Ontario's renowned track record of auto innovation is founded on a sophisticated R&D infrastructure focused on green innovation, generous R&D tax credits, outstanding workers with skills for the 21st century and unparalleled market access.

Manufacturers doing research in Ontario have access to thousands of world-leading scientists at 30 auto-focused public research facilities. Their research involves re-thinking virtually every aspect of vehicle design and assembly.

Government incentives can cut costs substantially for R&D projects aimed at designing and building more fuel-efficient vehicles. Federal and provincial programs through which industry can access millions of dollars in research money include: the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Ontario and Canada Research Chairs.

QUICK FACTS

• With this investment, Toyota's Cambridge plant will produce an additional 26,000 Lexus vehicles, 15,000 of them hybrids.
  
  
• Ontario produces more cars than any other place in North America.
  
  
• The auto industry supports nearly 485,000 jobs across Ontario.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's automotive sector
• Ontario's Auto Industry - Driving the Green Revolution, Plug-in to the Future (PDF-283KB) [requires Adobe Acrobat Reader^®]
• About Ontario's clean energy sector
• About Ontario - The Global Clean Tech Hub
• About Ontario's Strategic Jobs and Investment Fund

The Fraunhofer Project Centre for Composites Research (FPC) is a 12,000 square-foot site located in Western University's Advanced Manufacturing Park near London, Ontario.

The Centre will provide platform technology for real-time, industrial part development using – as well as developing – composite materials and manufacturing processes. The focus of the Centre is advanced manufacturing, which means highly precise in-line quality controlled manufacturing of high-performance composites in a suitable scale.

The launch represents an unprecedented partnership bringing together a Canadian university, a German industry and three levels of Canadian government. The Project Centre will also make London, Ontario the leading site for advanced composite materials research and testing at the manufacturing scale in North America.

Video courtesy of Western University

FPC researchers will develop and test lightweight composites, using industrial standards and equipment, for client companies, starting with the automotive sector. The Centre already has big clients in Ford, Chrysler and General Motors.

"London is located along the 401/402 highway corridor that links the Michigan and Ontario auto sectors," explains Andy Hrymak, FPC deputy director and dean of engineering at Western University. "It's ideally placed between the main hubs of innovation in Detroit and the [Greater Toronto Area]."

For an increasing number of advanced manufacturers – leading companies from Asia, Europe and the U.S. – Ontario is a destination of choice because it's a manufacturing powerhouse, with the people, the resources and the location that are essential for success in today’s competitive economy.

"This (centre) will support the competitiveness and increase the productivity of Canada to respond to the lightweight challenges facing North America’s automotive transportation industries, as well as the development of innovative products for the renewable energy and construction material industries," said Frank Henning, Fraunhofer deputy institute director.

Material and process research will be carried out in processing technologies such as Direct – Sheet Moulding Compounds (D-SMC), Long Fiber Reinforced Thermoplastics (LFT) and High Pressure Resin Transfer Moulding (HP RTM). The aim is the accelerated adoption of these high volume composite technologies in industrial sectors such as the automotive and other transportation, machines and equipment supply, renewable energy, construction materials and aviation.

Equipped with this full industrial scale processing equipment and as a part of The University of Western Ontario, the FPC offers collaboration from bilateral private sector projects up to multilateral public funded research projects.

The FPC’s service portfolio contains:

• Research in the fields materials, simulation, design
• Optimizing of existing processes and materials
• Development of new processes and materials as well as transition of lab scale basic research results into industrial applications
• Part, process, material and tooling innovations
• Competence along the whole value chain from product engineering up to manufacturing of demonstrator parts

The Fraunhofer Project Centre is further evidence of Ontario’s global leadership in advanced manufacturing.

Lightweight composites are used increasingly in automotive underbodies, body panels, tailgates, doors and seats in an effort to make cars lighter and to improve overall fuel economy.

"Our next area will be sustainable building materials – long life, superior mechanical to weight performance and energy conserving," offers Hrymak.

The FPC will also develop and test lightweight composites for the production of solar and wind energy technologies.

The city of London provided $10 million in funding, the first of three levels of government to invest in the FPC.

Researchers at the Fraunhofer Project Centre. Photo courtesy of Western University.

Canada's federal government contributed $13.7 million through its Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario).

Through its Ontario Research Fund, the province made an initial $2 million investment in the FPC. According to Western University, the value of this investment has grown to more than $7 million as the initial investment attracted financial support from industry.

There's great momentum heading into 2013, when the initial phase of the FPC's equipment commission and installation will be completed, explains Western's Andy Hrymak.

The centre has already purchased the key pieces of equipment such as the Dieffenbacher Material Press (produced by Dieffenbacher North America Inc., located in Windsor, Ontario).

Along with strengthening infrastructure and increased capacity, the FPC represents opportunities for students, who will benefit from working with Fraunhofer experts in the state-of-the-art facility.

"It creates a unique platform for the training of the next generation of engineers," said Fraunhofer's Dr. Henning, who will act as the FPC's managing director, at its recent official opening. That means that Ontario’s pool of expertise in developing innovative lightweight materials will grow over time.

QUICK FACTS

• Through the Ontario Research Fund (ORF), the province has committed $730 million over four years to provide talented researchers with the support they need to undertake cutting-edge research.
  
  
• In Ontario, thousands of researchers work at 30 publicly funded research facilities, including the Centre for Advanced Materials and Manufacturing (CAM), the Waterloo Centre for Automotive Research (WatCAR) and the McMaster Manufacturing Research Institute (MMRI).
  
  
• More than 350 aerospace firms in Ontario are developing lighter, greener, stronger, more efficient next generation products using advanced polymers, bio-composites and super conductive materials.

LEARN MORE

• Composites World: Fraunhofer ICT and University of Western Ontario open research facility in Canada
• Western News: Western, Fraunhofer celebrate launch of lightweight composites centre
• About Western University
• About Fraunhofer

The early closure of Ontario's two largest coal-fired electricity plants, Nanticoke and Lambton, comes as a result of the province's improved, smarter electricity grid, increased efficiency, strong conservation efforts and diversified supply of clean energy. Coal-fired electricity emits high levels of pollutants that affect human health and the environment.

Clean energy and a modern electricity system have created tens of thousands of jobs and contribute to making Ontario one of the most liveable jurisdictions in North America, a hub of innovation and an attractive place to work and invest.

According to The fDi Report 2012 - Global Greenfield Investment Trends, released by the Financial Times' fDi Intelligence think-tank, "Ontario was the world's leading region for renewable energy projects in 2011." The renewable energy sector alone saw US$12 billion in capital investment that year.

QUICK FACTS

• Since 2003, Ontario has cut its use of coal by nearly 90 per cent.
  
  
• Ontario currently uses less coal-fired generation in its energy mix than any G8 nation.
  
  
• In 2014, Ontario's use of coal is expected to be less than 1 per cent of total electricity generation, down from 25 per cent in 2003.
  
  
• The province will have shut down 17 of 19 coal units by the end of 2013. By the end of 2014, Ontario will be one of the first places in the world to eliminate coal as a source of electricity production.
  
  
• Today, more than 80 per cent of the power generated in Ontario comes from clean energy sources such as water, nuclear and renewables.
  
  
• Ontario's elimination of coal-fired electricity is equivalent of taking up to 7 million cars off the road.
  
  
• Ontario's greenhouse gas emissions from the electricity sector will decrease dramatically as a result of becoming coal-free, from a high of 41.4 megatonnes in 2000 to only five megatonnes post-2020.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's clean energy sector
• About Ontario - The Global Clean Tech Hub
• Infographic: Ontario's electricity generation mix
• Infographic: Ontario has shut down 11 of its 19 coal units
• Infographic: Growth of wind and solar power in Ontario

"Ontario can make the case for the strength of science and technology enterprise," says Eliot Phillipson, chair of the committee, which wrote the State of Science and Technology in Canada report. Dr. Phillipson is also a professor emeritus of medical science at the University of Toronto.

The study shows that Ontario, with a third of Canada's population, produces half of the country's technology output – and nearly half of its scientific research papers.

Other key findings of the report include:

• Ontario accounts for almost half of all Canadian R&D expenditures.
• Ontario is the main hub of Canada's collaboration network.
• Ontario is the leading province for Canada's total intellectual property ownership.
• Ontario produces 46 per cent of Canada's bibliometric output (the analysis of peer-reviewed scientific papers).

The practical significance of the findings should be of particular interest to international investors. In sum, the findings define a bedrock of world-class excellence in technology and the sciences. For example, Canada has the third largest video game industry in the world, after the United States and Japan. Ontario alone possesses dozens of game developers, and trains video programmers in colleges from Toronto to Ottawa to Sault Ste Marie.

Dr. Phillipson points out that Ontario is especially strong in two of the six areas of research where Canada excelled in a recent international study: clinical medicine, and information and communication technologies, or ICT (the others are psychology and cognitive sciences, physics and astronomy, visual arts and historical studies).

In both clinical medicine and ICT, Ontario has developed "tech clusters" where strong research programs fertilize a profusion of small technology companies. Some of these grow into large companies, which support increased university research, which in turn lures major foreign investors attracted by the opportunity to set up local affiliates.

Perhaps the most well-known and colourful "cluster story" is the tale of an immigrant family from Turkey whose son studied electrical engineering at Ontario's University of Waterloo. That son, Mike Lazaridis, dropped out in order to bid on a research project. He subsequently levered that contract into the multibillion dollar Research in Motion, the company that created the iconic Blackberry mobile phone.

Within a year of launching the Blackberry, RIM ploughed much of the profit back into the university, setting up the now-world-famous Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, soon followed by the Institute for Quantum Computing. Within a short time Microsoft, Oracle, Google and many other offshore giants set up development offices in Waterloo and its sister city of Kitchener. Kitchener-Waterloo, with a modest population of just over 300,000, is now one of the world's premiere ICT clusters.

While the story of Kitchener-Waterloo is a tale of serendipity, Toronto's MaRS Discovery District is a carefully planned initiative of the Ontario government. A cluster which promotes research in clinical medicine, it opened in 2005 in the wing of the Toronto General Hospital where insulin was discovered a half-century ago. The idea was to join three large downtown teaching hospitals – which Dr. Phillipson calls "the largest collection of medical and health sciences complexes in the world" – with the renowned school of medicine at the nearby University of Toronto, where stem cells were discovered. Focussing on biotechnology research and business spinoffs, MaRS has matured into a "cluster" with dozens of startups like Receptor Therapeutics, and major financial support from companies like Glaxo Smith Kline.

"It's no surprise that clinical medicine is one of the things we're good at," says Robert Luke, assistant vice president of research and innovation for George Brown College in Toronto.

Luke served on the Council of Canadian Academies panel which produced the State of Science and Technology report and endorses its description of Ontario as “the main hub of Canada's collaboration network” and the leading province for intellectual property ownership.

For Professor Luke a key element in the "hub" is polytechnic schools such as George Brown, which do advanced industrial research and train technicians to a high standard. Ontario has five out of nine of Canada's polytechnics, and their mission is to produce useful products. The bottom line, he says, is "what's the customer going to think about it?"

For Eliot Phillipson, another key indicator of world-class success in science is a country's ability to attract talent from abroad. Ontario's two tech clusters, which he does not hesitate to compare with "Silicon Valley, the Boston area and North Carolina", spark extensive overseas collaboration.

"Technology transfer is a social process based on people interacting," says Phillipson, noting that scientists who come from abroad to work in Canada's tech clusters learn English and stay in touch. This helps account for the report's surprising finding that four of the six top countries purchasing Canadian patents are the rising powerhouses of China, Japan, Korea and Brazil.

"It's a measure of respect for Canadian science."

QUICK FACTS

• Doing R&D in Ontario makes good financial sense. In addition to Canada's federal R&D tax program – one of the most generous in the world – Ontario offers a number of tax incentives to reduce the cost of innovation. Ontario also invests millions of dollars each year to support research and commercialization at its universities, colleges, hospitals and research institutions.
  
  
• Each year, more than $13.9 billion is spent on R&D in Ontario by industry, governments, hospitals, academic and research institutions, and private non-profit organizations.
  
  
• Ontario is home to Canada's top research talent, with more than 100,000 researchers working on issues ranging from life-saving vaccines to nano-materials and climate change mitigation.
  
  
• R&D in Ontario is driven by businesses, governments, hospitals, private non-profits, universities and colleges and research institutions.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's environment of innovation
• The State of Science and Technology in Canada, 2012 report (PDF) [Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader^®]

Hydrogenics Corporation, a Mississauga company with 130 employees in Canada, Belgium and Germany, recently sealed the three-year deal, which includes the sale of integrated fuel cell power systems, power electronic converters, associated hardware and propulsion system software.

The contract – the largest in Hydrogenics' history – represents yet another innovation success story in Ontario. It also underlines Ontario's leadership in the alternative energy sector, confirmed recently by an fDI Intelligence think-tank report that showed Ontario had the highest number of renewable energy projects in North America in 2011.

Hydrogenics makes generators and fuel cell systems that produce electricity by combining hydrogen and oxygen – a process that creates no emissions except pure water. The company's global leadership in hydrogen power technology was recognized this year by the International Association for Hydrogen Energy, which awarded Hydrogenics its prestigious Sir William Grove Award.

Daryl Wilson, CEO of Hydrogenics, says the company's technology is currently in use across various industries globally, including aerospace, telecommunications, mass transit, manufacturing and large-scale utilities.

Hydrogenics fuel cells are powering U.S. Air Force utility vehicles in Georgia, public transit buses in Texas, garbage collection trucks in Berlin, Germany, and street sweepers in Basel, Switzerland. The company's generators are also supplying renewable hydrogen energy to cars and buses through fuelling stations in Germany, Norway and Switzerland.

“Hydrogenics is leading the world in realizing the value of hydrogen technology for energy storage and clean energy systems,” says Wilson. “We are doing the important work supporting a power shift in global energy systems to clean, sustainable, renewable alternatives."

Hydrogenics is also part of an international consortium that recently launched a $31-million R&D and demonstration project. Funded in part by the European Commission, the project will combine hydrogen systems with advanced technologies for monitoring and controlling smart grids to balance power supply and demand in markets where there is high penetration of renewable energy sources.

Wilson says Ontario's environment of innovation and wealth of R&D talent have made it easier for Hydrogenics to develop and advance its technologies. Since it launched in 1995, Hydrogenics has collaborated on many occasions with engineers and researchers at leading Ontario universities, including the University of Toronto, University of Waterloo, and Queen's University.

Hydrogenics also has a large contingent of Ontario talent, many of whom will be providing the expertise needed to fulfill the company's $92-million contract.

QUICK FACTS

• Each year, more than $13.3 billion in spent on research and development in Ontario, which is home to more than 45 per cent of Canada's R&D personnel.
  
  
• Ontario has the second highest concentration of hydrogen and fuel cell facilities in Canada.
  
  
• Canada's hydrogen and fuel cell industry generated revenues of $211 million in 2011 – an increase of almost 120 per cent from 2001.
  
  
• Canada exports approximately 90% of its hydrogen and fuel cell technology.
  
  
• The global hydrogen and fuel cell market is expected to grow to $785 million in 2012.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's environment of innovation
• About Ontario's clean energy sector
• About Hydrogenics Corporation

The study, KPMG's Competitive Alternatives 2012 - Special Report: Focus on Tax, affirms other recent findings on Canada’s global tax and cost competitiveness. According to KPMG's Competitive Alternatives 2012 study of international business costs, Canada's overall business costs are lower than in the U.S., France, Italy, Germany, Australia or Japan. In the IMD World Competitiveness Scoreboard 2012, Canada placed second among G7 countries and sixth overall, out of 59 countries.

The KPMG study on taxes also found that Canada excelled in specific business sectors. For example, in the digital sector, Canada comes in first out of the 14 countries compared.

Ontario’s role in Canada’s leadership ranking

According to Elio Luongo, Canadian managing partner, tax, KPMG in Canada, who led the study, Ontario plays an important role in supporting Canada's leadership position. Case in point: the study ranks Toronto, Ontario in the top spot among 55 cities studied in the digital sector; and Windsor, Ontario ranks second out of the 16 Canadian cities considered in the sector.

"The Ontario Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit has a significant impact on the results for Toronto in the digital media sector, and therefore also contributes to Toronto’s overall positive ranking," Mr. Luongo explained.

The Ontario Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit (OIDMTC) is a refundable tax credit based on eligible Ontario labour expenditures and eligible marketing and distribution expenses claimed by a qualifying corporation with respect to interactive digital media products.

The program refunds 40 per cent of the costs of labour, marketing and distribution for games created in-house in Ontario. For companies that develop games under a fee-for-service arrangement the tax credit is 35 per cent. In either case, there is no per project or annual corporate limit on the amount that can be claimed.

Mr. Luongo has high praise for Ontario.

“Both Ontario and Canada continue to offer a very competitive tax structure, which is crucial to attracting inbound investment, spurring innovation, and creating skilled jobs that support our families and communities in the province and across the country."

Results for the KPMG study on the digital sector are based on an analysis of two model business operations: a software development firm and a video game production studio.

For the type of digital media operations examined by KPMG, Ontario’s labour credit of 35 per cent ranks second only to Nova Scotia (41.25 per cent for its capital and biggest city, Halifax), pointed out Mr. Luongo. But, he continued, higher tax costs in other areas cause Halifax to rank behind Toronto and Windsor, Ontario for this sector.

Ontario’s competitive corporate income tax rate (CIT) helps make the province a hub for global business. Ontario's combined federal-provincial 26.5 per cent CIT is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal-state CIT rate in the United States.

Ontario and federal CIT reductions, along with the introduction of a harmonized sales tax and elimination of the capital tax, lowered Ontario’s marginal effective tax rate (METR) on new business investment from 33.7% in 2009 to 18.7% in 2010. Ontario’s METR is lower than those of the U.S. and OECD countries and is projected to further decrease to 16.3% by 2013.

Ontario’s tax programs provide a big boost for business, helping them thrive and driving investments in innovation. Ontario has a number of targeted tax incentives, such as the Film and Television Tax Credit, and the Production Services Tax Credit, that can help emerging industries expand.

Ontario also offers a range of credits and incentives for innovation and research, including the Ontario Research and Development Tax Credit, the Ontario Innovation Demonstration Fund, the Ontario Emerging Technologies Fund, and the Ontario Venture Capital Fund.

QUICK FACTS

• The Total Tax Index (TTI) is the "primary measure" KPMG uses in its tax study. The study defines TTI as follows: "Total tax costs are compared between countries and cities using a Total Tax Index (TTI) for each location. The TTI is a measure of the total tax paid by corporations in a particular location, expressed as a percentage of total taxes paid by corporations in the U.S. Thus, the United States has a TTI of 100.00, which represents the benchmark against the other countries and cities are compared."

• Business costs for digital medial companies – from start-up through the first ten years – are lower in Canada than in any G7 country according to KPMG's 2012 Competitive Alternatives report. And they continue to fall as we cut business taxes substantially.

• Government incentives can substantially cut R&D, labour, marketing and distribution costs for game developers and producers. We also make it easy for companies to relocate key personnel for temporary work terms – and spouses can get work permits.

LEARN MORE

• About KPMG's Competitive Alternatives 2012 - Special Report: Focus on Tax
• Ontario’s competitive business costs
• About Ontario’s digital gaming sector
• The Ontario Interactive Digital Media Tax Credit
• Arkadium: new Toronto studio leads the company's move into mobile gaming

Referencing the well-known Star Trek TV series seemed altogether fitting as the facility will inspire exploration and enable cutting-edge research. But researchers won’t need to go to a galaxy far, far away to access the facility. The Quantum-Nano Centre is located conveniently in Ontario, Canada, on the main campus of the University of Waterloo.

The Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre. Photo by Maris Mezulis

The Centre will bring together the two disciplines of quantum computing and nanotechnology under one roof, creating a facility that is the first of its kind in the world. Both disciplines involve the study of matter on a minute scale.

Advanced research in such fields as quantum computing, theoretical physics and nanotechnology has historically led to some of the greatest advances in our fundamental understanding of the universe and matter, including advances in materials sciences. These advances hold the promise of transforming virtually every high-tech industry from advanced manufacturing to life sciences, to information technology. Unlocking and harnessing its potential requires four essential elements:

1. Great and ambitious science.
2. World-class research infrastructure.
3. Skilled workers.
4. And supportive government.

Investors who choose Ontario have access to all of that – in a positive climate that helps businesses grow and succeed.

The Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre. Photo by Tom Arban

“Breakthrough science is advancing at a dizzying speed today, with quantum physics at atomic and sub-atomic scale,” said Lazaridis, founder of QNC and co-founder of Research in Motion, makers of the now ubiquitous BlackBerry smartphone. “Simultaneously, rapid movement is happening in nanotechnology, where fabrication of materials, devices and systems 100 nanometres or smaller is being explored. This critical nexus of quantum computing and nanotechnology brings the world closer to the cusp of previously unimagined solutions and insights.”

The state-of-the-art $160-million centre was made possible by a $100-million donation from Lazaridis, as well as funding from the federal and Ontario provincial governments. Ontario, a centre for advanced scientific research and innovation, is a priority destination for entrepreneurs and industries who want to create world-class research facilities.

The 26,010-square-metre, five-storey Quantum-Nano Centre will become home to the Institute for Quantum Computing, the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology and the university’s undergraduate program in nanotechnology engineering. The state-of-the-art facility was designed to attract world-class talent.

The Quantum Nano-Centre is, in fact, the latest in a number of major investments in research centres that are driving innovation.

In 2011, the new Stephen Hawking Centre opened at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, and the MaRS Discovery District (a convergence centre that accelerates innovation and the commercialization of new discoveries) started a major phase of expansion aimed at more than doubling its size in Toronto.

Each discipline will occupy its own building, joined by a six-storey central atrium with informal gathering space. Lounges, offices and meeting rooms are positioned around the edge of the atrium to foster collaboration and the exchange of ideas between scientists. White boards cover many of the walls to accommodate unexpected flashes of insight.

The Mike & Ophelia Lazardis Quantum-Nano Centre. Photo by Maris Mezulis

Equipped with controls for vibration, temperature fluctuation and electromagnetic radiation, the Quantum-Nano Centre was designed to meet strict scientific standards.

One of the signature features of the facility is a clean room area that was created to keep out particles of air and skin so researchers can manipulate atoms one by one and make very precise materials. The clean room contains less than 100 particles, whereas a standard room contains about two billion particles.

The QNC also has on-site fabrication facilities that will give scientists and students the tools to create quantum nanodevices. Because the fabrication can be done on-site, it will allow for faster development and revision than is possible in other research facilities.

With this unique facility, a new frontier of research and innovation is about to begin in Ontario.

Quick Facts
Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre

• The Quantum-Nano Centre will accommodate a total of 400 academics in quantum computing and nanotechnology.

• A hexagonal honeycomb lattice of structural steel distinguishes the exterior of the building; the pattern was inspired by the stable hexagonal carbon structure of the nanotube.

• Canada’s Technology Triangle (Waterloo Region; also abbreviated “CTT”) derived its name from the longstanding reputation the region has for innovation, established by resident businesses. Canada’s Technology Triangle came to be used in the 1980s and the global recognition of its high technology cluster in the 1990s validated the name.

• Companies in the region include RIM (BlackBerry), OpenText, DALSA, COM DEV, Christie (digital projection) and Toyota’s first, outside-Japan, luxury class car production.

Learn More

• Visit the Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum Nano-Centre website
• About nanotechnology in Ontario
• About Quantum Computing
• About Ontario’s Innovative Environment
• Visit the Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects website

Tech leaders and entrepreneurs who have chosen to do business in Waterloo have also discovered the region's wealth of compelling business advantages.

The Wall Street Journal states that, "Waterloo boasted 302 new technology-focused start-ups last year, according to Communitech, a local nonprofit that supports entrepreneurs. That dwarfs the 85 companies that New York think tank Urban Futures figures opened their doors in the Big Apple last year."

Waterloo lies at the heart of one of North America's pre-eminent technology clusters. A city of 100,000 people, it is the home base for Research In Motion, Open Text and dozens of other Canadian industry leaders, as well as operations of such companies as Google, IBM, McAfee and other multinationals. What distinguishes Waterloo from other technology centres is a culture that combines collaborative, small-town networks with an entrepreneurial global perspective.

A key driver of this culture is the local presence of a college, three universities and more than 150 think tanks such as the Perimeter Institute where renowned physicist Stephen Hawking is a Distinguished Research Chair. The University of Waterloo, one of Canada's leading research universities, is the largest of these schools with more than 1,000 faculty members and 27,000 undergraduates. It attracts some 4,300 international students each year from 90 countries. The university is renowned for its engineering programs, particularly in computer and software engineering. From its inception in the mid-1950s, the University of Waterloo deliberately fostered both close connections with the business community and an entrepreneurial culture among its faculty and its students.

The synergies of world-class engineering and technology programs, a highly skilled workforce and other competitive business advantages have made the Waterloo region a go-to destination for start-ups and entrepreneurs.

Ontario is where leading tech entrepreneurs with big ideas go to make their ideas a reality. Read the Wall Street Journal article (registration required). To find out more about Waterloo, Ontario's wealth of business advantages, see the Learn More links below.

QUICK FACTS:

• Ontario's ICT industry is recognized globally for its expertise in every sector, including software and systems, wireless and telecommunications, mobile applications, microelectronics, photonics, digital media and green IT.
  
  
• Our diversified talent pool of more than 300,000 skilled workers – close to 60 per cent with a post-secondary education – working with world leading infrastructure and communications networks means invention and commercialization come easy in Ontario.
  
  
• Ontario has among the best R&D tax credits of the G7 countries. More costs qualify for R&D tax credits in Ontario than in the U.S. Ontario and federal tax credits can cut the after-tax cost of a $100 R&D expenditure to about $57 - $39.

LEARN MORE:

• The Wall Street Journal: Waterloo, Ontario, Morphs Into Tech Start-Up Magnet (registration required.)
• Waterloo, Ontario, Canada: It takes a community to grow a company
• Clearpath Robotics: Global from the get-go
• Ontario, Canada's innovation ecosystem
• OpenText: Navigating the Deep Web
• About Ontario's ICT Industry

Case in point: Bombardier. Currently on the fifth leg of its "Get More" world tour, Bombardier Aerospace's Q400 Next Generation airliner landed in Beijing, China in spring 2012. Built at Bombardier's Toronto, Ontario facility, this turboprop airliner is the most recent development in the evolution of the Q400 aircraft.

Andy Solem, Vice President, Sales, China and North Asia, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft, says, "The Q400 NextGen aircraft's fuel efficiency, operational flexibility, low operating cost, reduced environmental impact and passenger-pleasing interior make it an outstanding solution for local airlines and leasing companies looking at growing hubs and connections between major regional and industrial cities as well as tourist destinations."

"Bombardier predicts that over the next 20 years, China's fleet of commercial aircraft will grow as it becomes the world's second largest market for new aircraft deliveries, following closely behind the United States," says Solem. "The overall fleet of 20- to 149-seat aircraft in China is forecasted to grow by 300 per cent over the next 20 years."

Bombardier forecasts a growth in the 20- to 149-seat segment that will reach 2,540 units in China in the next 20 years, with a strong demand in the 100- to 149-seat segment. It is working closely with local airlines, supplier and stakeholders to assist in the fleet and infrastructure expansion.

Companies like Bombardier, Pratt & Whitney Canada, Honeywell Aerospace, Goodrich Landing Gear, Messier-Bugatti-Dowty, Eurocopter Canada, COM DEV and Magellan Aerospace Corporation thrive in Ontario. They are helping to transform mobility worldwide by answering the call for more efficient, sustainable and enjoyable transportation everywhere. Ontario, Canada's aerospace companies are developing lighter, stronger, more efficient next-generation products using advanced polymers, bio-composites and super conductive materials.

Ontario helps aerospace companies succeed in global markets by offering an exceptional workforce, top-ranked R&D, and competitive business costs.

Canada was ranked second as the most cost sensitive location for aerospace aircrafts part manufacturing in KPMG's influential Competitive Alternatives report 2012.

QUICK FACTS

• The Canadian government offers a range of aerospace R&D support programs through the Institute for Aerospace Research, the Canadian space agency, strategic Aerospace and Defensive Initiative, the Industrial Research Assistance program and the National Research Council.
  
  
• Innovation is part of the reason why more than 100 aerospace programs around the world – including the Airbus A380, Boeing 787 and the Joint Strike Fighter – incorporate components made-in-Ontario by companies like Goodrich Landing Gear, Messier-Bugatti-Dowty, Honeywell, Pratt & Whitney Canada and Magellan Aerospace.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's aerospace industry
• About Bombardier
• Press release on Bombardier's "Get More" World Tour

The Lexus RX hybrids will be made in Cambridge, increasing Toyota’s production capacity in Canada to 500,000 units. The Lexus RX capacity will increase by 30,000 vehicles to 104,000 units, including 15,000 RX450h vehicles – the hybrid electric version of the popular Lexus.

The expanded Lexus production is set for early 2014. "This is a big and ambitious project with new technology, exacting standards and tight timelines," commented TMMC President, Brian Krinock. "Our Team Members have demonstrated time and time again that they thrive on these kinds of challenges."

The Canadian and Ontario governments partnered with Toyota in 2011, on a multi-project suite of initiatives designed to sustain and grow Toyota’s manufacturing footprint in Canada. This encourages the production of greener, more fuel-efficient vehicles. In March, TMMC announced an investment of $80 million in its Woodstock, Ontario plant. Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc. has been building quality vehicles in Canada for more than 25 years. TMMC produces the Toyota Corolla, Matrix, RAV4 and RAV4 EV vehicles and the Lexus RX model in assembly plants located in Cambridge, ON and Woodstock, ON.

More recently, J.D. Power and Associates awarded the TMMC Lexus plant in Cambridge the Gold Plant Quality award for the Americas. TMMC has now been recognized with a total of 11 Plant Quality awards between the two plants, including 6 Gold awards, which is more than any other North American automotive manufacturer. This is TMMC’s third consecutive plant quality award. In 2010 they received the Gold Plant award, and in 2011 tied for the global highest honour Platinum Plant award.

"For almost nine years now, Canada has had the only Lexus production outside of Japan," states Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc. Chairman Ray Tanguay.

In Ontario, there are 11 assembly plants operated by five of the world’s top automakers: Toyota, General Motors, Honda, Ford and Chrysler.

For over a century now, Ontario has been manufacturing cars and trucks. Ontario has created a dynamic and diversified supply chain from material production and tool, die and mould making, to parts manufacturing and vehicle assembly.

Ontario’s legacy of high-quality auto making is further bolstered by a sophisticated R&D infrastructure focused on green innovation, generous R&D tax credits, outstanding workers with skills for the 21st century and unparalleled market access.

Automakers and parts manufacturers worldwide have discovered that there's no better place than Ontario to conduct R&D or assemble the components and cars of the future.

QUICK FACTS:

• Ontario is home to over 300 parts manufacturers, including homegrown giants ABC Group, Linamar, Magna International and The Woodbridge Group, as well as foreign-based companies such as Aisin Seiki, Amino, Brose, Dana, Denso, Johnson Controls, Lear, Nemak and Wegu.
• Manufacturers doing research in Ontario have access to thousands of world-leading scientists at 30 auto-focused public research facilities. Their research involves re-thinking virtually every aspect of vehicle design and assembly.
• Ontario has 44 highly respected universities and colleges offering degree and certificate programs in various automotive fields such as automotive design, engineering and production, and business management. The apprenticeship and co-operative education programs provide students with critical, real-world experience. Ontario made vehicles are made by our high-skilled workers.

LEARN MORE:

• About Ontario’s automotive industry
• About Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada

"The Ottawa R&D Centre of Excellence is focused on the GENBAND GENiUS platform, which is the heart and soul of GENBAND's value proposition." says Charlie Vogt, GENBAND's President and CEO. "Our industry is quickly evolving from a hardware-based infrastructure environment to one that is software-centric. Our GENBAND GENiUS platform is at the forefront of this trend, combining multiple software solutions on a common, flexible IP platform, and is a reflection of the advanced technology skills, leadership and expertise of the GENBAND employee population in Ottawa."

The new GENBAND facility includes more than 70,000 square feet of lab, office, customer support and briefing space. GENBAND's commitment to the new location continues the company's presence in the Ottawa region, which began in 2010 with the successful acquisition and merger of Nortel's carrier VoIP and Application Solutions assets.

In Ontario, innovation is at the core of our ICT industry. Invention and commercialization come easy. There is a diversified talent pool of more than 300, 000 skilled workers who work with leading infrastructure and communication networks. Thanks to innovative minds and world-class research facilities ICT companies in Ontario are leading the world to new frontiers.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's ICT industry is recognized globally for its expertise in every sector, including software and systems, wireless and telecommunications, mobile applications, microelectronics, photonics, digital media and green IT.
  
  
• GENBAND recently won the Global Telecoms Business Award for IP Transformation Innovation.
  
  
• This facility will house a range of products in GENBAND's portfolio including the GENBAND GENiUS™ Universal Services Platform, GENWare™ Middleware and GENView™ OAM&P (Operation, Administration, Maintenance and Provisioning) System.
  
  
• GENBAND GENiUS IMS was recently awarded INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine's 2011 Product of the Year for its quality, innovation and ability to meet marketplace needs.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's ICT sector
• About GENBAND

In 2009 the Federal and Ontario government provided $10.5 billion to assist GM Canada in staying competitive in the auto industry. "We're excited about our future and the possibilities ahead," said Kevin W. Williams, president and managing director, GM Canada.

Ontario is home to five of the world's top automakers, as well as over 300 innovative parts manufacturers; employing 88,000 highly skilled workers who produced over 2.1 million vehicles in 2011. This is more than any other North American sub-national jurisdiction.

"GM has long been a Canadian technology and innovation leader and these additional investments will build our expertise in strategic and important technologies even further," said Williams. "Since 2009 alone, employees at our Canadian Engineering Centre have generated nearly 100 records of invention which allow us to offer better solutions for our customers, helping GM to design, build and sell the world's best vehicles."

QUICK FACTS

• The University of Ontario Institute of Technology is home to the Automotive Centre of Excellence (ACE). It is the first commercial automotive research, development and innovation centre of its kind in the world.
  
  
• Ontario is home to 11 assembly plants operated by five of the world's top automakers: General Motors, Honda, Toyota, Ford and Chrysler.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's automotive sector
• About the Automotive Centre of Excellence (ACE)

Unlike chemotherapy and radiation, thiroridazine appears to have no effect on normal stem cells.

"The unusual aspect of our finding is the way this human-ready drug actually kills cancer stem cells; by changing them into cells that are non-cancerous," said Mick Bhatia, the principal investigator for the study and scientific director of McMaster's Stem Cell and Cancer Research Institute (SCC-RI) in the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine.

Bhatia and his team found that thioridazine worked at killing cancer stem cells in leukemia and in some types of breast cancer, leaving the healthy cells unharmed. Taking it one step further the researchers took cancerous tissue from humans and transplanted it into mice. Once again, thioridazine was effective at targeting the cancer stem cells.

The team discovered that thioridazine works through the dopamine receptor on the surface of cancer cells in both leukemia and breast cancer patients, providing the possibility to use it as a biomarker that would allow early detection and treatment of breast cancer and early signs of leukemia progression, he said.

For 15 years researchers have believed stem cells are the source of many cancers. Canadian researchers were the first to identify cancer stem cells in certain types of leukemia in 1997. Since then cancer stem cells have been identified in blood, breast, brain, lung, gastrointestinal, prostate and ovarian cancer.

Ontario is one of North America's premier centres for life sciences, and home to a remarkable cluster of top-ranked bio-medical researchers, developers and manufacturers. With 25 research and teaching hospitals employing 10,000 scientists, clinical investigators and other researchers, Ontario is one of the largest biomedical research centres in North America.

Universities and teaching hospitals spend around $2 billion annually on health research – roughly 30 per cent of all the health research done across Canada by governments, industry, academics and the non-profit sector.

The next step is to test thioridazine in clinical trials, focusing on patients with acute myeloid leukemia whose disease has relapsed after chemotherapy. Bhatia wants to find out if the drug can put their cancer into remission, and by targeting the root of the cancer (cancer stem cells) prevent the cancer from coming back. Researchers at McMaster have already designed how these trials would be done.

Using a fully automated robotic system developed by the researchers of McMaster University they plan to test more than a dozen different compounds in order to identify several other drugs, including thioridazine.

"Now we can test thousands of compounds, eventually defining a candidate drug that has little effect on normal stem cells but kills the cells that start the tumour," said Bhatia.

Ontario is a biomedical research powerhouse, with specialized centres across the province conducting investigations into virtually every area of the life sciences.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario, Canada was home to the discovery of stem cells in 1961 by Ernest A. McCulloch and James E. Till.
  
  
• Ontario has an exceptional research community. The University of Toronto's Faculty of Medicine, along with its hospital partners, is the largest life sciences research entity in Canada and the fourth largest in North America. Several other world-renowned organizations – Princess Margaret Hospital, the Hospital for Sick Children, the Ottawa Heart Institute – also call Ontario home.
  
  
• Ontario has 120 pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms with over 15,000 employees.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's life sciences sector
• About the Stem Cell and Cancer Research Institute at McMaster University
• Read the McMaster University press release on the report

Scientists and clinicians are working with academic and industry partners to develop tools to bring molecular imaging, and advanced diagnostic technologies to patients in a research setting.

The Thunder Bay Regional Research Institute's (TBRRI) current focus is cancer. From this came a spin-off company, XLV Diagnostics Inc., a medical imaging system that will be applied to mammography to improve access to screening and aid diagnosis of breast cancer.

The XLV Diagnostics team, led by world-renowned researcher Dr. John Rowlands, created the X-ray Light Value (XLV), an inexpensive, efficient, and portable alternative to digital X-rays with less radiation exposure.

The XLV combines three well-established technologies: amorphous-Se photoconductor, liquid crystal display and digital scanner readout, to achieve a low-cost but high quality digital x-ray detector system. With this technology x-ray absorption, image formation and amplification stages are incorporated within a simple, compact structure and entirely eliminates problems related to a secondary quantum sink.

This technology will significantly reduce manufacturing costs in comparison to the flat-panel detectors currently in use in digital x-ray systems. It is entering the marketing for digital mammography, but has general applications in medical x-ray.

XLV Diagnostics is an example of an Ontario firm developing innovative, world-class medical technologies that address significant issues in global healthcare, and is supported by Sunnybrook Research Institute (SRI), Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) and MaRS Innovation.

Ontario is home to many of the world's most innovate companies in biotechnology, advanced medical technologies, pharmaceuticals research and biomedical manufacturing. Our products, technologies and systems are in use worldwide to improve lives and healthcare.

Ontario's universities and teaching hospitals spend almost $2 billion annually on health research, which is roughly 30 per cent of all the health and research done across Canada by governments, industry, academics and the non-profit sectors.

QUICK FACTS

• The TBRRI was funded by the Ontario Research Fund Research Excellence program.
  
  
• XLV technology has a wide range of applications in radiography, and is less expensive to manufacture that the current imaging tools used in the industry today.
  
  
• The digital mammography marketplace is growing at a rate of 20 per cent with sales of $1 billion annually.
  
  
• Ontario's Technology Acceleration Program provided $750,000 towards the commercialization of the tumour Margin Assessment Machine (MAM).
  
  
• Dr. John Rowlands' advanced medical imagining technology is already in use by radiologists worldwide to produce continuous digital images.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's life science industry
• About the Thunder Bay Regional Research Institute
• About the XLV Diagnostics

Leading this project is Dr. James Drake, head of the Centre of Image-Guided Innovation and Therapeutic Intervention (CIGITI), who brought together surgeons, engineers and software developers from universities and businesses to develop KidsArm.

Ontario, Canada is a global leader in medical innovation with breakthroughs like the first successful childhood meningitis vaccine, and the development of the world's first prosthetic elbow joint, biological artificial cornea, and antibody coated stent.

KidsArm is a tabletop surgical tool for minimally invasive operations using a pair of hand controllers. It will enable surgeons to navigate to the treatment region, avoiding dangerous structures such as blood vessels, and perform procedures at a rate that is at least ten times faster than a surgeon.

The aim of the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) robot technology is to increase surgical efficiency, safety, accessibility, and patient care. The technology combines integrated imaging elements of magnetic resonance (MR), ultrasound and video to create a smart 3D image for better real-time navigation. It creates virtual reality-based models that are used in surgical planning and teaching, giving surgeons a better idea of what to expect before the operation begins.

Using image-guided robotics can shift the process of surgical procedures through the development of incision-less surgery; decreasing the risk of infection, improving recovery time and patient care.

A key factor in Ontario's history of innovation is that the province is home to a growing number of internationally recognized centres of excellence in research, innovation, and collaboration. At institutions like SickKids', creative scientists are encouraged to translate their innovative, high-impact ideas into new treatments and technologies, making them accessible to the world. Other institutions like the Ontario Brain Institute, the International Cancer Genome Consortium at the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, and the Population Health Research Institute at McMaster, are also home to innovative breakthroughs in the life sciences sector.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario is one of the largest biomedical research centres in North America, with research centres across the province conducting investigations into practically every area of the life sciences.
  
  
• The Centre for Image-Guided Innovation and Therapeutic Intervention is working in partnership with MDA Corporation, Philips and L-3 Communications MAPPS Inc. towards the development of KidsArm.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's medical technology industry
• Read the SickKids press release on the report

The report, titled "The fDi report 2012 - Global greenfield investment trends", shows that last year, Ontario attracted 135 foreign direct investment projects worth an estimated US$7.1 billion, or 7 per cent of total FDI value in North America. It was an impressive show of strength for Canada's economic powerhouse and the seventh largest economy on the continent.

Renewable energy projects were a big win for Ontario, which landed 11 contracts in the sector – the most among all U.S. states and provinces. The report states that, "Ontario was the world's leading region for renewable energy projects in 2011." Energy was a major area of capital investment in North America, with renewable energy, coal, oil and natural gas accounting for 34 per cent of FDI dollars in 2011. The renewable sector energy alone saw US$12 billion in capital investment last year.

Global companies are drawn to Ontario because of its stable and growing economy, skilled and reliable workforce, environment of innovation, proximity to market, competitive business costs and quality of life. The latest numbers reinforce the province's growing status as a top destination for foreign direct investment. Over the last five years, the number of FDI projects in Ontario has climbed steadily, from 69 in 2006 to almost double that number in 2011.

Ontario is one of four jurisdictions that, collectively, attracted 33 per cent of FDI projects that came to North America in 2011. California, New York and Texas are the other jurisdictions in this group.

Although California and New York – which are larger economic jurisdictions than Ontario – netted more projects at 229 and 150, respectively, Ontario still came out ahead with more projects per 1,000,000 of the population.

More than 10,300 Ontario jobs were created as a result of the new FDI projects. By comparison, California, with a population of almost 38 million versus Ontario's 13.4 million, generated employment for over 11,400 workers from its new FDI projects.

In the information and communication technologies sector, Ontario ranked third with 29 FDI projects, behind California and New York. It ranked fourth in life sciences, with seven projects.

The United States remained Ontario's largest source of FDI projects, providing 52 per cent of all projects that came to the province last year. Germany, China, France, the U.K. and Japan accounted for 25 per cent of FDI projects in Ontario in 2011.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario was the world's leading region for renewable energy projects in 2011.
  
  
• In terms of capital investment, coal, oil and natural gas and renewable energy were the top two sectors for foreign direct investment in 2011, accounting for 34% of the capital investment that came to North America.
  
  
• Ontario ranked ahead of all North American states and provinces for total capital investment except Alberta.
  
  
• Ontario ranked second for total jobs created with over 10,300 jobs.
• Ontario ranked third for the total foreign direct investment projects, with 135 total projects (even though it is the seventh largest economy among states/provinces in the United States and Canada).
  
  
• Four states/provinces attracted 33% of the foreign direct investment projects that came to North America in 2011 - California, New York, Ontario and Texas.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Clean Technology sector
• Read more about the Ontario Emerging Technologies Fund

The Ontario-based company has developed a new membrane technology for purifying drinking water and treating wastewater that costs less than half as much to produce as competing products. As Fibracast's new purification system will be significantly less expensive than most non-membrane filtration technologies, it could become a product of choice for drinking water filtration, wastewater treatment, and industrial pure-water treatment.

Ontario's innovative water technology and wastewater treatment services sectors make the province the North American leader in water protection and treatment solutions. As an established – and still growing – clean technology hub, Ontario is fostering the climate for investment, innovation, expertise, and cutting-edge research into water-related technologies that have gained international recognition.

"Fibracast Ltd. selected Ontario for our global headquarters because it is the best place in the world to develop new technology," said John Tomescu, Chief Executive Officer, Fibracast Ltd. "Ontario has an abundance of world-class engineering and manufacturing talent, which is supported by strong government programs to help new companies become established, innovate and launch breakthrough technologies. No successful technology development can be a 'one man show' anymore. Ontario offers a pool of local dynamic companies capable of working side by side with us and delivering state-of-the-art custom-made equipment."

The funding to Fibracast provides financial support of up to 50% of eligible costs to help Ontario companies pilot demonstrations that will lead to the commercialization of processes and/or products in Ontario that are globally competitive, innovative green technologies.

Ontario firms provide globally renowned expertise in ultraviolet disinfection, compact sewage treatment, water information and systems software, and plant design and operation.

Ontario companies are leading the way globally, selling technologies and services for water around the world. Across the province, the clean water industry employs 22,000 and generates $1.8 billion in sales.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario is a top 10 global centre for water related patent activity.
  
  
• Filtration membranes are becoming the standard for water and wastewater treatment in developed countries due to their exceptional ability to filter out most bacteria, viruses, and parasites.
  
  
• The water technology sector is valued at more than $400 billion worldwide, doubling every five to six years.
  
  
• Fibracast will begin commercial sales of its purification system in 2013.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Clean Technology sector
• About the Innovation Demonstration Fund
• About Ontario's Innovation Agenda

SAIL Venture Partners is one of the first American clean-tech venture capital funds to come to Ontario and this new fund represents a strong vote of confidence in the quality of Ontario's clean-tech sector.

Ontario, Canada, a recognized world leader and an established hub for renewable energy, energy management, and water and environmental technologies, continues to forge a bright green future for clean technology investment and growth.

"By fostering clean-tech innovation and business," said Walter Schindler, Managing Partner, SAIL Capital Partners, "Ontario will benefit by being at the forefront of this burgeoning industry and job creation. Ontario is helping to create the next frontier of clean technology, becoming the capital of clean-tech in Canada, and SAIL is excited to be a part of this development."

Through support and guidance provided by Sustainable Development Technology Canada, SAIL was attracted to Ontario because of the significant opportunities in the clean-tech sector and a record of fostering innovation.

Ontario's Green Energy and Green Economy Act (GEA), passed in 2009, places a priority on establishing Ontario as the North American leader in producing and using clean and renewable sources of energy including wind, water, solar, biomass and biogas power.

Although Ontario has been home to renewable energy development for decades, the adoption of the GEA has seen fast and significant growth in the province's renewable energy sector, including manufacturing, R&D, and major energy generation projects.

"SAIL Venture Partners investing in Ontario's clean energy economy is a clear sign of the economic opportunities that exist in the province," says Ontario Minister of Energy Chris Bentley. "The clean-tech sector is a key part of Ontario's plan to create and support good jobs, replace dirty coal and build a healthier future for generations to come."

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's clean energy strategy has leveraged more than $27 billion in new investment and economic opportunities.
  
  
• Ontario's environmental sector (which includes clean tech) is worth an estimated $8 billion in annual revenues and $1 billion in export earnings.
  
  
• SAIL has invested in a number of today's leading clean-tech companies, including Xtreme Power, The Cleantech Group, Dow Kokam, Enerpulse, Activeion, SNTech, FlexEnergy, Paragon Airheater Technologies, Ice Energy, M2 Renewables, Clean Technology Solutions, CNS Response, and WaterHealth International.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Clean Technology sector
• Read more about the Ontario Emerging Technologies Fund

IBM will invest up to $175 million through December 2014 in the project, forming the "IBM Canada Research and Development Centre" to serve as a foundation for the research initiative. The Government of Ontario is investing $15 million towards the creation of this Centre; ensuring that the skills needed for developing future information and communications technology products and services are fostered in Ontario, new and existing Ontario companies are leaders in their fields, and innovation efficiencies and cost-savings are created across multiple sectors.

Thousands of researchers at Ontario universities and colleges are working with companies in every area of ICT including photonics, mobile apps, industrial virtual reality, satellite communications and specialized e-devices. Ontario's R&D tax incentives are among the most generous in the world. An expenditure of $100 can be reduced to an after-tax cost of approximately $56 - or $38 for small businesses. The province also has a range of targeted programs that can help innovative businesses expand.

John Lutz, President, IBM Canada, said "As we begin a new century of innovation for IBM, we're investing in this industry-building initiative to further advance Canada's competitiveness in the global digital economy, both now and in the future. Together with our government, academic and industry partners, we will apply new, collaborative approaches to Canada's productivity and competitiveness challenges by more fully leveraging IBM's 100-year legacy of research and development leadership here in Ontario."

The Government of Canada will contribute $20 million to allow a consortium of seven southern Ontario post-secondary institutions and IBM to install two high-performance IBM Blue Gene/Q supercomputers and develop a cloud computing and agile computing platform to underpin the initiative's research collaboration. The university consortium will have access to a new Barrie, Ontario based IBM data centre, which will be fully operational in the fall of 2012. Other Canadian researchers and small to medium-sized enterprises will also be invited to join the consortium.

The new IBM Canada Research and Development Centre will use state-of-the-art computer infrastructure to drive innovative discoveries in key areas and bring them to market. The Centre's research will focus on:

• Data management for health care, such as technology that can help doctors detect life threatening conditions in premature babies 24 hours earlier
• Water conservation and management, such as reducing pollution in water systems by monitoring sewer systems and spotting problems in a pipeline before a leak
• Energy management, such as finding better ways to track how hydro flows, reducing waste and saving customers money, and
• Rapid urbanization and aging infrastructure in our cities, such as managing traffic lights to improve traffic flow.

The research projects will be supported by an expansion of IBM's software development labs in Markham and Ottawa, and the new high performance data centre in Barrie.

"This is a very exciting initiative that demonstrates Ontario is a leader in cutting-edge research," said Brad Duguid, Minister of Economic Development and Innovation. "Thanks to Ontario's commitment to building an innovation-driven economy – with leading research institutions, a highly educated workforce and a favourable corporate tax environment – we are attracting world-leading initiatives, like IBM Canada's Research and Development Centre."

Ontario has become a North American hot spot for ICT. The province offers everything leading ICT companies need to succeed: a smart, skilled workforce, outstanding researchers and research facilities, exceptional R&D tax credits, among the lowest business costs in the G7 and an enviable quality of life that is needed to attract top talent. Ontario also has a government that's making ICT research and commercialization a priority.

QUICK FACTS

• In 2010, the information and communications technology sector employed about 276,000 people in Ontario, almost half of the Canadian total.
  
  
• The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) is the third-largest ICT cluster in North America.
• The project adds to IBM's more than $6-billion global R&D investment last year that helped generate over $1.7 billion in exports for Canada.
  
  
• IBM opened its first Canadian office in Ontario in 1917. Today its software development lab in Markham is home to the largest team of IBM software professionals outside the United States.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's ICT Industry
• About Ontario's Innovation Agenda

Reducing regulatory burdens on business and giving companies that invest in Ontario the tools they need to grow is a high priority. The Province is committed to ensuring that for every new regulation, two existing regulations will be eliminated.

The report was prepared by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP after it conducted a large-scale survey of businesses in Ontario. The survey results showed that single administration will save businesses an estimated $136.7 million annually and that 90 per cent of the total savings will be realized by small businesses.

The results come only months after Ontario announced sweeping efforts to slash slash red tape for business.

In autumn 2011, when Forbes magazine ranked Canada the #1 Best Country for Business in its influential annual ranking, the magazine lauded Ontario's tax policies, especially, as a key factor of Canada's business success: "Credit a reformed tax structure with a Harmonized Sales Tax introduced in Ontario and British Columbia in 2010. The goal is to make Canadian businesses more competitive. Canada's tax status also improved thanks to reduced corporate and employee tax rates."

"In addition to the $136.7 million identified in this report, the harmonization of the provincial sales tax through the HST has further reduced the cost of paperwork on businesses in Ontario, said Dwight Duncan, Ontario Minister of Finance. Our government remains committed to working with our federal partners to remove overlap and duplication."

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's regulatory environment is balanced and transparent. Compliance is relatively easy and straightforward.
  
  
• In Ontario, entrepreneurs and investors can get businesses started fast. It takes on average only one simple step to start a business, compared to as many as 20 needed in other industrialized countries.
  
  
• In 2011, Forbes.com named Ontario a top destination for foreign direct investment in North America and gave the province top rankings in various areas including job creation, tax reform and health care.
  
  
• Doing business in Ontario, Canada means enjoying all the benefits of operating in a country ranked by the World Bank as 7^th out of 183 countries for ease of doing business.  Canada also placed 7^th out of 58 countries in the IMD World Competitiveness Scoreboard 2011.

LEARN MORE

• Why Ontario is a great place for investment
• Ontario, Canada Slashing Red Tape for Business

Measures proposed in the Budget, when fully implemented, will further strengthen Ontario's reputation as one of the most stable and secure jurisdictions in the industrialized world for new investment. They will also cement Ontario's reputation as a place where new ideas and innovation thrive.

Stabilizing the Corporate Income Tax Rate

Following a comprehensive initiative begun in 2009, Ontario's general corporate income tax (CIT) rate has fallen from 14 per cent in 2009 to 11.5 per cent. The small business CIT rate has been reduced to 4.5 per cent from 5.5 per cent, and the small business deduction surtax has been eliminated, which extends this lower CIT rate to growing small businesses.

With a total combined provincial (11.5 per cent) and federal (15 per cent) corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent, Ontario's combined general federal-provincial CIT rate is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal-state CIT rate in the United States.

The 2012 Budget proposes to keep the general CIT rate at 11.5 per cent until Ontario's budget is balanced. Ontario is scheduled to return to a balanced budget in 2017–18. At that time, planned CIT rate reductions would resume and the general CIT rate would continue to fall.

Ontario has already proven to be a cost effective centre for business. In early 2012, the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario, Canada released the results of a study that estimates that Ontario businesses will save $136.7 million a year as the result of the single administration of Ontario's corporate tax by the Canada Revenue Agency.

Strengthening Ontario's Skilled Workforce

Ontario has one of the best educated workforces in the G7. Ontario's apprenticeship system is a key part of building the well-educated and highly skilled workforce that investors have come to depend on to operate, innovate and succeed.

Over the past eight years, Ontario has significantly expanded its apprenticeship system. The Ontario Apprenticeship Training Tax Credit (ATTC), along with other provincial apprenticeship program measures, have helped to increase the availability of skilled workers in Ontario's economy. Today, more than 120,000 apprentices are learning a trade in Ontario. Annual apprenticeship enrolment is up from 17,000 in 2002–03 to nearly 30,000 in 2010–11.

The 2012 Budget proposes that Ontario will further support apprenticeship programs to ensure support to key sectors, further strengthening the skilled workforce that global investors have come to rely on when they come to Ontario. Measures will include:

• introducing technical literacy and numeracy support to apprenticeship training and expanding examination preparation courses to help apprentices complete their training;
  
  
• enhancing connections between apprenticeship and employment services to facilitate links between individuals and employers;
  
  
• reviewing the effectiveness and efficiency of the Ontario Apprenticeship Training Tax Credit.

Jobs and Prosperity Fund

Ontario currently provides about $2 billion in annual support to business, including targeted tax expenditures, through more than 40 different programs across at least seven ministries. These programs have encouraged business investment, jobs and economic growth. The 2012 Ontario budget proposes a transformation of existing business support programs to provide better coordination, clarify objectives, and avoid duplication and unnecessary costs.

Under these provisions, Ontario would consolidate many of its programs into one Jobs and Prosperity Fund that will focus on supporting productivity growth and job creation in the business sector. It will target a reduction in administrative costs of at least 25 per cent. The Fund will support businesses and enhance productivity and innovation in the province's many areas of economic strength. It will help businesses compete in the global marketplace.

Reaching Out to Global Markets

The U.S. market accounted for 77 per cent of Ontario's international merchandise exports in 2011. This market will remain vital to Ontario but is expected to grow at a much slower pace than emerging economies such as those of Brazil, India and China. The Province has strong relationships with many of the world's emerging economies and will build upon these important ties.

The government will also continue to diversify Ontario's exports. It will focus its export promotion efforts on the key strengths of Ontario's economy, including the clean energy technology sector.

The Canadian government, with the participation of Ontario and other provinces, is currently negotiating a Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with the European Union (EU), one of the largest and richest markets in the world. This will help Ontario companies diversify and open new trade and investment opportunities in the EU.

Continuing to Grow a World-Leading Financial Services Sector

Ontario's financial services sector continues to grow. Toronto is the financial capital of Canada and one of the top 10 financial centres in the world based on the Global Financial Centres Index. Ontario continues to update and adapt the province's financial regulations to better protect investors and support a more vibrant financial services sector, including the securities and insurance industries.

Canada has a sophisticated, highly advanced financial system that is supported by an internationally respected regulatory and supervisory framework. In 2011, for the fourth year in a row, the Geneva-based, nonprofit World Economic Forum found that Canada has the world's soundest banking system. The Ontario government continues to support a strong securities regulatory framework. Over half of Canadian securities industry GDP and employment and 80 per cent of market activity take place in Ontario. Accordingly, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) must be well equipped to respond to the challenges that arise in the capital markets that it is mandated to oversee.

Ensuring Stability and Growth for Investment Success

The 2012 Ontario Budget helps ensure that Ontario remains a cost competitive and dynamic business environment that can drive investor growth, opportunity, and innovation.

Ontario offers investors a stable and growing economy, a highly educated and skilled workforce, an environment of innovation, excellent proximity to the $17-trillion NAFTA marketplace and global markets, competitive business costs, and a great quality of life. These factors and more should continue to assure international investors that Ontario is the best choice for investment growth and business success.

Contact us

For more information about the 2012 Ontario Budget, please visit: http://www.fin.gov.on.ca/

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Ontario is a North American hot spot for ICT. The province offers everything leading ICT companies need to succeed: a smart, skilled workforce, outstanding researchers and research facilities, exceptional R&D tax credits, low business costs and an enviable quality of life that attracts top talent. Ontario also has a government that's making ICT research and commercialization a priority.

"These low-cost computers will improve the access to technology worldwide, particularly for students," said Seneca College President David Agnew. "It is rewarding to see Seneca students and faculty from across Toronto, Ontario using their expertise to build and adapt software for this breakthrough device."

Raspberry Pi features made-in-Ontario, Canada software.

Ontario's ICT industry is recognized globally for its expertise in every sector, including software and systems, wireless and telecommunications, microelectronics, photonics, digital media and green IT. Ontario ICT companies are leading the world to new frontiers, thanks to innovative minds and world-class research facilities.

The energy-efficient Raspberry Pi can run off 4AA batteries, use a TV as a monitor and store data on SD cards. A basic software package developed at Seneca College in Toronto, including a custom version of the Linux Fedora operating system and basic tools like a web browser and word processor, are available for the device.

The Raspberry Pi Fedora Remix 14 provides a complete software environment for the Raspberry Pi, a highly anticipated computer system designed to spur interest in computer science, software development, and electronic technology among young people. It also allows Raspberry Pi to be used for many of the things that desktop PCs do such as spreadsheets, word processing, games, and playing high-definition video.

"Ontario students and faculty have helped to make Raspberry Pi a reality," said Eben Upton, Director of the Raspberry Pi Foundation. "As a free software-based platform, we're very dependent on Linux and the open source community at large to provide our users with a working environment complete with programming languages, productivity applications and educational software."

This software release marks an important milestone in CDOT's applied research in building open source software for emerging low-energy ARM systems. ARM chips are known for combining a high level of functionality with extremely low power consumption. This software will power a new generation of computer systems, ranging from the Raspberry Pi to new models of the One Laptop Per Child project to high-density server systems that consume a tiny fraction of the power used by traditional data centres.

"I jumped at the chance to work on this project because I knew it would be invaluable experience," said Paul Whalen, Seneca Computer Systems Technology graduate, CDOT research assistant and professor. "This year I saw the students' growing excitement as they learned about the computer and their imaginations are running wild with applications they can create. It's amazing to think we were involved with bringing Fedora to the ARM architecture in support of devices like the Raspberry Pi."

Seneca's Centre of Development of Open Technology (CDOT) provides a physical and virtual environment for the development and research of open source software through collaboration with Seneca, the open source community, business and other institutions. The centre is an integration point for knowledge, education, and relationships within the open source world.

Thousands of researchers at places like Seneca College's CDOT and other Ontario universities and colleges work in every area of ICT, including photonics, bioinformatics, 3D imaging, broadband/satellite/mobile/wireless communications and next generation e-devices.

Organizations such as the Centre of Excellence for Communications and Information Technology, the Canadian Microelectronics Corporation and MaRS facilitate technology transfers and multi-party ICT partnerships.

Ontario also has a business friendly approach to intellectual property. The province offers companies the opportunity to acquire the rights to the IP developed at our public research centres.

QUICK FACTS

• Five of the world's ten biggest ICT companies conduct R&D in Ontario (GE, IBM, Siemens, Cisco and Intel).
  
  
• Ontario has among the best R&D tax credits of the G7 countries. More costs qualify for R&D tax credits in Ontario than in the U.S. Ontario and federal tax credits can cut the after-tax cost of a $100 R&D expenditure to an average of about $41.49 depending on company size and manufacturing practices.
  
  
• Over 276,400 people work in Ontario's ICT industry.
  
  
• With 17,000+ firms and annual revenues of $75 billion+, Ontario has one of North America's largest concentrations of ICT leaders.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's ICT Industry
• About the Seneca Centre for Development of Open Technology

Toronto-based Side Effects Software won the Technical Achievement Award for their software that improves rendering of digital special effects such as smoke and clouds. The Ontario-made software is being used in blockbusters, such as Transformers: Dark of the Moon and Puss in Boots.

Hamilton-based PV Labs received a Scientific and Engineering Award for the development of a camera mount that provides more stable images when filming scenes from a helicopter. The technology is being used in several Hollywood blockbusters, including The Hangover 2, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn and the upcoming The Dark Knight Rises.

In addition, all six of the films nominated for an Academy Award® for Achievement in Visual Effects feature the artistry of graduates or professors of Seneca College's Visual Effects for Film and Television program. Their work includes visual effects for Martin Scorsese's 3D children's adventure Hugo, which won five Oscar® awards and led the nominees for the 2012 Academy Awards® with 11 nominations. In the other nominated films (Planet of the Apes, Real Steel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows: Part 2 and Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon), Seneca graduates worked as compositors – effects artists who combine a number of images to create the final.

Kim Davidson, Co-Founder and President and CEO, Side Effects Software says, "Ontario is home to the third largest film industry in North America. As a company, we've benefited from the exceptional talent coming out of Ontario's universities and colleges, and the tremendous government support for the industry."

Digital media production contributes almost $1.5 billion annually to Ontario's economy and employs 16,000 people, up from 8,000 in 2000. Leading media companies have invested millions to set up and expand studios in partnership with the Ontario government.

Ontario is committed to building an innovation-focused economy through postsecondary education and technology with partnerships like the Screen Industries Research and Training Centre. New digital media technologies spur development in video games, movie making and web applications and help create jobs for Ontario graduates.

Supporting made-in-Ontario technology is part of Ontario's plan to strengthen the province's position as a global leader in entertainment production.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's film and television industry supports nearly 30,000 jobs and contributed $1.26 billion to Ontario's economy in 2011, an increase of 31 per cent over 2010.
  
  
• Ontario's tax credits to support the film and television industry are valued at $290 million annually.

LEARN MORE

• Check out PV Labs innovative camera stabilization equipment in action.
• Read more about Side Effects Software's innovative technology.
• Learn more about the Ontario Media Development Corporation.
• Learn about Seneca College's Visual Effects for Film and Television program.

Canada already boasts the fewest steps required to start a business. Ontario, with these recent reductions and tax reforms, including the introduction of the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST), has streamlined administration with the federal government and eliminated duplication even further. Moving to the HST eliminated outdated rules, regulations and procedures and is saving businesses $500 million per year.

In autumn 2011, when Forbes magazine ranked Canada the #1 Best Country for Business in its influential annual ranking, the magazine lauded Ontario's tax policies, especially, as a key factor of Canada's business success: "Credit a reformed tax structure with a Harmonized Sales Tax introduced in Ontario and British Columbia in 2010. The goal is to make Canadian businesses more competitive. Canada's tax status also improved thanks to reduced corporate and employee tax rates."

Reducing regulatory burdens on business and giving companies that invest in Ontario the tools they need to grow is a high priority. The Province is committed to ensuring that for every new regulation, two existing regulations will be eliminated.

QUICK FACTS

• With a total combined provincial (11.5 per cent) and federal (15 per cent) corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent, Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax (CIT) rate is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal-state CIT rate in the United States.
  
  
• In Ontario, entrepreneurs and investors can get businesses started fast. It takes on average only one simple step to start a business, compared to as many as 20 needed in other industrialized countries.
  
  
• Ontario's regulatory environment is balanced and transparent. Compliance is relatively easy and straightforward.
  
  
• Companies in Ontario have access to a wide range of government programs that can help accelerate growth and new product development.

With the province's support, Pond Biofuels is piloting a new, high-tech CO2 absorption system at St. Marys Cement. The new system will reduce greenhouse gases by absorbing dirty smokestack emissions to grow algae which can be used in oil production, converted into biodiesel and bioplastics or act as a renewable coal substitute.

Martin Vroegh, Corporate Environment Manager at St. Marys Cement, says, "This partnership between St. Marys Cement and Pond Biofuels, made possible with the support of the Government of Ontario, reinforces St. Marys Cement's commitment to producing the most sustainable building materials available. With our goal of near-zero emission cement manufacturing and a biofueled distribution fleet, the most sustainable energy projects, green buildings, homes and highways of tomorrow will soon be a reality."

Pond anticipates progressing to a full-scale commercial facility at St. Marys by 2014.

"Solving the problem of industrial emissions requires industry, government, technology and capital all working together," says Steve Martin, the CEO of Pond Biofuels. "We have that here, with Pond Biofuels providing the technology, St. Marys as our commercialization partner, angel investors in the Biomaterials Investment Group and support from the Province of Ontario. Going forward, Pond's made-in-Ontario technology can be applied to other essential industries, like steel, power generation and resource extraction."

QUICK FACTS

• One tonne of algae can yield 100 litres or more of biodiesel.
  
  
• Algae is one of the fastest growing organisms in the world, consuming almost twice its weight in carbon dioxide.
  
  
• The estimated global market for biofuels in 2011 was $82.7 billion and is forecasted to rise to $185 billion by 2021.
  
  
• Ontario is home to around 2,400 environmental industry companies, which employ more than 60,000 people.
  
  
• According to a 2008 study from the Canadian Medical Association, Ontario's economic cost related to air pollution, in terms of lost productivity, healthcare costs, quality of life and loss of life, is almost $4 billion.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Clean Technology sector
• About the Innovation Demonstration Fund
• About Ontario's Innovation Agenda

When it is finished, the smooth concrete lining will ensure the efficient and uninterrupted flow of Niagara River water through this 10.2 km tunnel to the Sir Adam Beck generating stations for the next 100 years.

Ontario's Green Energy and Green Economy Act (GEA), passed in 2009, places a priority on establishing Ontario as the North American leader in producing and using clean and renewable sources of energy including wind, water, solar, biomass and biogas power.

Digging the tunnel using the largest hard-rock boring machine in the world, dubbed "Big Becky,: was completed last spring.

Tom Mitchell, President of Ontario Power Generation, says "The Niagara tunnel is an investment in our future that will provide Ontario with clean, renewable energy for more than 100 years. What's equally impressive is that the men and women who are building this project have worked safely under extremely difficult and challenging conditions. That's a testimony to the quality and skill of Ontario's workforce."

When complete in 2013, the Niagara Tunnel – one of the largest renewable energy projects of its kind – will supply enough clean, renewable electricity to power 160,000 homes.

The project currently employs more than 400 people and has brought about $1 billion in economic benefits to the region.

Strengthening Ontario's hydroelectric infrastructure is an important part of the Ontario Government's plan to build a modern, clean, reliable electricity system to power homes, schools, hospitals and the economy.

"The Niagara Tunnel Project is an example of how the province is transforming Ontario's electricity system and investing in the clean energy economy," says Chris Bentley, Ontario's Minister of Energy. "We are ensuring a clean, modern, reliable and affordable energy system that will power us today, and for generations to come."

Ontario is an international hub for developing innovative clean tech solutions and delivering them to markets worldwide.

The Province's strategic location in North America, long-term government support for alternative energy generation and advanced and diverse manufacturing capabilities, position Ontario as a preferred location for manufacturers of sustainable, alternative energy technologies and related components, service providers and project developers.

QUICK FACTS

• Since 2003, more than 100 megawatts of new and refurbished waterpower projects have come online in Ontario - enough power for about 50,000 homes.
  
  
• The Niagara Tunnel is as high as a four-storey building, and will propel water at a rate of 500 cubic metres per second, fast enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool in a matter of seconds.
  
  
• More hydroelectric power will be added to Ontario's electricity system in the next eight years than over the previous 40 years.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Clean Technology sector
• Find out about hydro generation in Ontario
• Read Ontario's Long-Term Energy Plan

Talented people and brainpower, especially, drive success in the Financial Services sector and Ontario has the kind of broad, deep multilingual talent pool growing companies need. More than 358,000 people work in Ontario's finance and insurance sector, and they are well educated. Nearly 80% of Ontario's financial services work-force have postsecondary designations.

Ontario's MBA programs are consistently ranked among the best in the world. Its talent pool of skilled, well-educated financial services professionals is growing. Toronto, alone, has the second largest chartered financial accountant population outside New York, over 7,200 certified management accountants, over 23,000 financial services IT employees and 7,444 lawyers practicing financial services law in the GTA.

Ontario works with stakeholders throughout the industry and at all levels of government to ensure that it attracts, retains and trains the best talent available to support and grow this key industry.

A big reason for Ontario's efforts to nurture its financial services talent pool is that Toronto, Ontario is the heart of Canada's financial services industry. The Province's efforts have yielded great results.

How successful have we been? Toronto, Ontario's collaborative approach to dealing with talent issues is being held up as a model for other regions to emulate by global institutions like the World Economic Forum. In early 2012, the World Economic Forum invited Janet Ecker, the president of the Toronto Financial Services Alliance (TFSA), to its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland to discuss Toronto's experience with growing the region's world-class pool of financial services talent.

The Toronto Financial Services Alliance, a key partner of the Ontario government, is a public/private initiative whose mandate is to enhance and promote the long-term competitiveness of Toronto, Ontario as a premier global financial centre. Its membership encompasses core financial services companies – banks, brokerages, investment fund managers, insurance companies – as well as partner sectors – accounting, law and education.

Toronto is presented as one of five in-depth case studies highlighted in a report published by the World Economic Forum in collaboration with Mercer.

The logic of choosing Toronto is clear. Toronto has become one of North America's top financial services hubs. For the second consecutive year, The Banker's 2011 International Financial Centers Index ranks Toronto second of financial centers in North America and seventh of 53 centres globally. The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) is the third largest financial centre in North America by employment after New York and Chicago. Toronto and the GTA are home to five of the largest domestic banks (three ranked among the world's top 50 based on total assets in US$); 55 foreign bank subsidiaries or branches and 119 securities firms; and five of the top 300 global pension funds (three ranked among the top 60 for global AUM). Toronto is also home to the eighth largest stock exchange in the world based on domestic equity market capitalization.

Entitled "Talent Mobility Good Practices – Collaboration at the Core of Driving Economic Growth" (see: www.weforum.org/TalentMobility2012), the report features the work of Ontario's Centre of Excellence in Financial Services Education, established in 2009 by the TFSA with Government of Ontario support to act as a catalyst to strengthen and expand Toronto's talent pool and elevate the region's global stature as a financial services capital.

Ms. Ecker's participation at Davos will focus on the case study, "Engaging Stakeholders to Improve an Industry's Global Competitiveness", which outlines the approach adopted by the TFSA and its stakeholder partners to deal with issues of talent mobility in Toronto, Ontario.

Key findings of the TFSA case include the critical value of establishing a Centre of Excellence in financial services, working to influence the public's perception of the industry and its importance to Toronto, ongoing efforts to promote and market the city, clarity about the sector's talent needs, and more.

Regarding the World Economic Forum's recognition of the work that Toronto has done, Ms. Ecker says, "We are honoured that the success of our efforts has gained such important international recognition. It is a testament to our public- and private-sector partners."

Soon after her appearance at Davos, Ms. Ecker will be traveling to London, England, where she'll be among Ontario's represents at City Week 2012: The International Financial Services Forum. Ontario's International Marketing Centre will be hosting Ms. Ecker, who in addition to speaking at the event, will be meeting with a number of companies during her stay in London to discuss investment opportunities in the Toronto financial services sector.

City Week organizers have assembled an impressive panel of senior and truly international speakers for City Week 2012. Among those speakers will be Ms. Janet Ecker, speaking again on good practices in talent mobility.

QUICK FACTS

• The Geneva-based, non-profit World Economic Forum found that Canada has the world's soundest banking system for the fifth year in a row in its influential Global Competitiveness Report 2012-2013. Ontario is the heart of Canada's banking system, and is the headquarters location of 14 major financial institutions, including the top 5 Canadian banks.
  
  
• The Toronto financial services sector – comprised of banks, insurance companies and brokers, securities dealers, pension fund administrators, mutual funds, credit unions, and trust and loan companies, among others – directly accounts for over 14% of the GDP of the Toronto region and over 220,000 jobs.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Financial Services Industry
• About the Toronto Financial Services Alliance (TFSA)
• About the TFSA's Report on Talent Mobility (see pages 31-34 of the downloadable PDF)
• About City Week 2012
• About the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting 2012 in Switzerland

The study, titled "Subclinical Atrial Fibrillation and the Risk of Stroke" and published in the January 12, 2012 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine, says that of nearly 2,600 patients without a history of atrial fibrillation but with a recently implanted pacemaker, more than one-third had episodes when the heartbeat would become rapid and irregular for more than six minutes.

The international research team that published the report, based at Ontario's Population Health Research Institute, was led by Dr. Jeff Healey, an associate professor of medicine of the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine at McMaster.

"This study suggests that silent atrial fibrillation is very common and may be the cause of many strokes that previously could not be explained. In all, atrial fibrillation may be responsible for nearly 1 in 5 strokes," said Healey. "This is an important observation as we have very effective and specific therapies to prevent stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation, once this heart rhythm disturbance is identified."

Ontario is a leader in cutting-edge research, development and innovation, making the province an ideal place for international companies to invest and grow. Within the life sciences sector alone, 10,000 scientists, clinical investigators and other researchers at 25 research and academic hospitals conduct $850 million in research annually. Bringing together all these public and private-sector researchers are collaborative networks and organizations that help new ideas converge.

Ontario's universities and teaching hospitals spend almost $2 billion annually on health research, which is roughly 30 per cent of all the health research done across Canada by governments, industry, academics and the non-profit sectors.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario is a biomedical research powerhouse, with specialized centres across the province conducting investigations into virtually every area of the life sciences.
  
  
• About 41,500 people work in Ontario's life sciences industry.
  
  
• In addition to the Population Health Research Institute at McMaster University, Ontario is home to a growing number of internationally recognized centres of excellence in research, innovation and collaboration, including the International Cancer Genome Consortium at the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research and the Ontario Brain Institute.

LEARN MORE

• Read the McMaster University press release on the report
• The Report in the New England Journal of Medicine (subscription required)
• Learn more about Ontario's life sciences industry

With the province's support, Safran Electronics Canada is investing in new equipment and expertise at its Peterborough facility to adapt its existing innovative technologies to new markets around the world. Serving the commercial aerospace and defence sectors, the company plans to enhance its line of control units, which are currently used for aircraft engines and landing gears.

The investment is being made through the Eastern Ontario Development Fund. The $80 million fund is targeted to businesses and economic developers. The program supports projects that create and retain jobs, encourages the introduction of new technologies, and pursues growth in new markets.

Partnering with local businesses and supporting made-in-Ontario technologies is part of Ontario's plan to strengthen local economies and attract investment.

QUICK FACTS

• A subsidiary of Sagem and company of the Safran Group, Safran Electronics Canada develops, produces, and supports embedded electronic systems for aerospace and defence applications.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario was named a top destination for foreign direct investment in North America, second only to California. The province attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects, which created more than 11,200 jobs.
  
  
• Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Aerospace Industry
• Explore government programs and services for Ontario businesses.

In total, Novocol is investing over $54 million in this project over the next five years, which includes a loan of $10 million from the Ontario Government.

Novocol Pharmaceutical of Canada Inc. (Novocol), and its affiliated owner, Septodont SAS of France, are world leaders in the production of dental anaesthetic cartridges. Novocol controls a large portion of the U.S. market, through its own brands, or the manufacture of other brands, and private label products.

QUICK FACTS

• In 2010, Ontario's Pharmaceutical sector exported $5.8 billion in goods.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario was named a top destination for foreign direct investment in North America, second only to California. The province attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects, which created more than 11,200 jobs.
  
  
• Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States.

LEARN MORE

• Learn more about Ontario's life sciences industry.

In 2009, Ontario partnered with the Canadian and American governments to help GM restructure. GM has since repaid its loans and announced approximately $1 billion in new investments.

GM's other investments in Ontario include:

• $480 million in the engine and transmission facility in St. Catharines.
• $117 million the production of the new Cadillac XTS in Oshawa.
• $96 million to expand capacity at its CAMI assembly plant in Ingersoll.
• The addition of a new shift for GM's Oshawa operations.

Strengthening the auto sector is part of the Ontario government's plan to protect jobs while growing the economy and ensuring it remains a manufacturing leader in North America.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario builds more cars than any other state or province in North America.
  
  
• The auto sector is a critical component of Ontario's economy, supporting approximately 400,000 jobs.
  
  
• Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Automotive Industry

A recent, influential report published by Ernst & Young ranks Canada as one of the best places in the world for small business and for fostering an entrepreneurial environment.

This recognition is on top of other high-profile findings at the national and regional levels. Forbes magazine recently ranked Canada #1 in its list of "Best Countries for Business". And the Financial Times' fDi Intelligence ranked Ontario, Canada as the top North American jurisdiction for FDI projects relative to population in 2010. In June 2011, Toronto, Ontario, Canada leapt into the number two spot in the world in the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) "Cities of Opportunity" report.

This latest report, titled "Entrepreneurs Speak Out: A Call to Action for G20 Governments", is drawn from survey results from 1,000 entrepreneurs across the G20 (50 in each country). The study's authors characterize the survey as an "entrepreneurship barometer", providing a snapshot of perceptions of the entrepreneurial environment in the G20 countries.

The study praises Canada for its "strong entrepreneurial culture." An impressive 88% of respondents believe Canada's culture encourages entrepreneurship. Canada also gets top marks for start-up costs, business confidence, and banking sector strength, as well as coaching and education programs for young entrepreneurs.

Canada earns praise for its competitive start-up costs, described as the "cheapest of the [G20]". "Canada sounds like the start-up paradise for G20 counterparts," the report states. "These costs have been significantly reduced over the period, dropping by 0.5% of per capita income since 2005." Low start-up costs are attributed in part to how fast businesses can get up and running. With only one procedure needed to start a business, Canada beats all G20 nations.

QUICK FACTS

• The Ernst & Young study focuses on the entrepreneurship environment of G20 countries through the lens of five fundamental enablers: entrepreneurship culture; education and training; access to funding; regulation and taxation; and coordinated support.
  
  
• Business climate indicators in Ontario – employment, business confidence, corporate profits – reveal a history of solid growth and ongoing investments. At the national level, the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) April 2011 economic outlook forecasts Canada's gross domestic product to grow 2.8 per cent this year and 2.6 per cent in 2012.
  
  
• According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, Global Business Rankings Canada is the best place for doing business among the G7 over the next five years. Canada ranked third overall out of 82 countries for the forecast period 2010-14.

LEARN MORE

• Read the Ernst & Young report on Canada
• About Why Ontario is a great place for business growth and investment

Celestica, a leader in delivery of innovative supply chain solutions to a variety of industries, has locations in the Americas, Asia and Europe.

The investment from the province will be made over a 5-year timeframe as Celestica continues to diversify its markets and maintain its competitiveness in the global marketplace by expanding its services to include:

• solar panel and inverter manufacturing for clean energy
  
  
• specialized electronics for aerospace and defence
  
  
• commercialization and after-market services, including tablets, smart phones and other personal communication devices.

Ontario, Canada's advanced manufacturing sector is built on its leadership and expertise in the aerospace, wind, solar, renewable energy and other growing sectors. Ontario has over 400 companies in the advanced manufacturing sector, employing over 33,000 people and exporting over $1 billion in goods and services. Ontario manufacturers can take advantage of generous R&D support to create efficient solutions for customers around the world.

"Ontario maintains its commitment to creating jobs and growing the economy," said Brad Duguid, Minister of Economic Development and Innovation. "Award-winning Celestica is among a growing number of Ontario companies that have distinguished themselves in the global marketplace for their commitment to productivity and R&D, and their superior customer service."

QUICK FACTS

• Based in Toronto, Celestica delivers innovative supply chain solutions to a number of markets and employs approximately 35,000 people around the globe.
  
  
• Approximately 75,000 Ontarians work in nearly 500 advanced manufacturing and machinery companies.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario was named a top destination for foreign direct investment in North America, second only to California. The province attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Clean Technology Industry
• About Ontario's Aerospace Industry
• About Ontario's Automotive Industry
• About Ontario's Information Technology Industry

The province is partnering with Apex Fund Services Ltd., a financial services provider, to expand its Canadian subsidiary and offer specialized fund services to Canadian fund managers such as:

• international best practices
  
  
• real-time middle office administrative services, and
  
  
• operation risk reporting services.

"Apex is proud to help put Canada firmly on the map as one of the world's fast growing financial centres," said Peter Hughes, Group Managing Director, Apex fund Services Ltd.

"As a global company, Apex sees Canada to be a key location for the expansion of its personalized services for fund managers – domestically and internationally," said Alex Chapman, Managing Director, Apex Fund Services (Canada) Ltd. "With the current commitment to the Canadian fund industry, this is a tremendous opportunity for Apex to lead the financial services sector and support new fund strategies."

QUICK FACTS

• Apex Bermuda has 23 offices around the globe administering funds and asset classes over $16-billion.
  
  
• The hedge fund administration services market is expected to grow as investors diversify their portfolios from traditional mutual funds to alternative strategies available in hedge funds.
  
  
• Over 524,000 jobs have been created in Ontario since October 2003.
  
  
• Ontario's financial and insurance sector employs more than 293,000 people.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario was named a top destination for foreign direct investment in North America, second only to California. The province attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects, which created more than 11,200 jobs.
  
  
• Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Financial Services Industry.

McCloskey International plans to invest approximately $10 million, including a $750,000 investment from Ontario, and add 60 new jobs to the 173 existing positions at the Peterborough, Ontario-based company. This investment by Ontario will build upon the 97,700 net new jobs that have already been created in Ontario so far this year alone.

McCloskey International, which provides solutions and services for crushing, screening and recycling equipment, will invest in robotic welding technology, develop a prototype cone crusher chamber and install a new automated paint line system. Partnering with local businesses is a key component of the Ontario government's plan to create and support new and existing jobs and to strengthen local economies.

"This is one example of Ontario's investment in home-grown companies," said Brad Duguid, Minister of Economic Development and Innovation. "McCloskey is developing new products and replacing imported components with made-in-Ontario parts. This is the kind of growth we want to see in local manufacturing."

QUICK FACTS

• Previous support from the province in 2009 helped McCloskey created 80 new jobs - 30 more than the company's original job creation commitment - and helped the company build infrastructure, purchase equipment and expand production.
  
  
• Founded in 1985, McCloskey International Limited manufactures portable conveyors and screening equipment for use in the aggregate, landscaping and recycling sectors.
• Since October 2003, Ontario has created 524,100 net new jobs.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario was named a top destination for foreign direct investment in North America, second only to California. The province attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects, which created more than 11,200 jobs.
  
  
• Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States.

Comprised of the Keenan Research Centre and the Li Ka Shing International Healthcare Education Centre, the new facility will house classrooms, offices, lab benching, lounges, a library, simulation centre, a 200-seat auditorium. Teams of leading researchers will be focused on key areas of research:

• organ injury/critical care (including brain injury and trauma, lung injury, cardiovascular, diabetes and kidney, blood and others),
  
  
• inner city health (including homelessness, mental illness, HIV/AIDS and others),
  
  
• global health (including large scale epidemiology, international health ethics, tuberculosis and others), and
  
  
• knowledge translation (the science of translating relevant research to practice, with a focus on chronic disease management, public engagement and leveraging research, education and clinical care).

The research will improve care and make health care systems around the world more efficient. Additionally, as a centre of excellence with connections to leading edge researchers in the Pacific Rim, the U.S. and Europe, these partnerships will attract the best and brightest while fostering a global network of exchange between Canada and the international community.

The Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute
The Canadian Press Images

Ontario already has one of North America's highest concentrations of research talent and facilities, with top-ranked scientists working in virtually every field. The province spends more than $13.9 billion on R&D every year. Ontario has more than 100,000 people engaged directly in R&D.

Within the life sciences sector alone, 10,000 scientists, clinical investigators and other researchers at 25 research and academic hospitals conduct $850 million in research annually. Bringing together all these public and private-sector researchers are collaborative networks and organizations that help new ideas converge.

"We are very grateful to Mr. Li and the provincial government, as well as our other donors, for their financial contributions to this building. Their help allowed us to design a world-class building that allows researchers, educators and clinicians to work in close proximity to create new possibilities that will improve patient care," said Dr. Robert J. Howard, President and CEO of St. Michael's Hospital.

This concentration of talent and facilities helps our innovative companies meet the challenges and leverage the opportunities of global markets.

QUICK FACTS

• Hong Kong entrepreneur Li Ka-shing donated $25 million to the institute that bears his name.
  
  
• Construction of the building took four years.
  
  
• The Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute is linked by a pedestrian bridge to St. Michael's Hospital, which broadens the network to include the hospital's clinicians.
  
  
• The institute trains approximately 3,000 new health professionals every year.

LEARN MORE

• About the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute.
• About Ontario's life sciences industry.

The idea came from a desire to give more organizations a chance to make use of this way of communicating. The new technology will be especially useful for smaller businesses and not-for-profits that may find the customary costs of mobile app development too expensive.

Computer programmers and web designers Andrew Holden and Rob Porter started a web design company in Hamilton, Ontario in 2010. In the course of their web design work, they noted that it was difficult if not impossible for many of their clients to afford to build apps. Companies use apps to provide clients with highly tailored, customized mobile experiences. They are increasingly used by firms but they are often expensive and time consuming to make. Companies can get quotes for as high as $25,000 to $100,000 from programming firms.

The Weever Apps Inc. team

The realization inspired Holden and Porter's big idea: a web-based plug in, called Weever Apps, which would allow users to build their own apps at a fraction of the cost of hiring a programmer. Weever also dramatically cuts the time it takes to build apps and, because it's web-based, it works on a wide variety of already available platforms, devices and browsers. The new service turns almost any site into a true "web app" instantly and affordably. The company soon realized that its client base had extended to large enterprises drawn by the service's cross platform capability and unique optional features.

Holden says that they've gotten tremendous support from the city of Hamilton. They have also received support from the Innovation Factory (iF), a not-for-profit Regional Innovation Centre (RIC) at McMaster Innovation Park. iF helps entrepreneurs commercialize, and it is networked across North America and committed to building Ontario’s innovation community. iF is funded by the Ontario Network of Excellence (ONE), which is focused on strengthening the next generation of wealth and jobs generators. Since its launch Weever Apps has garnered impressive industry and media attention. It also won the grand prize at the Lion's Lair, a celebration of entrepreneurship in Hamilton, Ontario during which aspiring entrepreneurs and innovators face a panel of Hamilton’s top business executives and solicit up to $100,000 to get their companies off the ground.

Tim Richard, Weever Apps' V.P. of Operations says that thanks to Ontario's generous R&D tax credits, Weever Apps has been able to hire graduates from nearby McMaster University and Mohawk College. The new hires add to the firm's developer compliment.

Tim adds, “the advantage of working in Ontario is the high calibre of IT talent, low taxes, proximity to enterprise and corporate head offices.”

Ontario ICT companies are leading the world to new frontiers, thanks to innovative minds and world-class research facilities. The province's industry is recognized globally for its expertise in every sector, including software and systems, wireless and telecommunications, microelectronics, photonics, digital media and green IT.

Ontario offers everything leading ICT companies need to succeed: a smart, skilled workforce, outstanding researchers and research facilities, exceptional R&D tax credits, the lowest business costs in the G7 and an enviable quality of life that is needed to attract top talent. Ontario also has a government that's making ICT research and commercialization a priority.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's ICT industry includes more than 16,000 innovative companies that generate annual revenues of $75 billion+.
  
  
• Thousands of researchers at Ontario universities and colleges work in every area of ICT, including photonics, bioinformatics, 3D imaging, broadband/satellite/mobile/wireless communications and next generation e-devices.
  
  
• Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) Tax Incentive Program is a federal tax incentive program that encourages Canadian businesses of all sizes, and in all sectors to conduct research and development (R&D) in Canada. Ontario tops up the SR&ED tax program with additional tax incentives such as the Ontario Research and Development Tax Credit (ORDTC), the Ontario Innovation Tax Credit (OITC) and the Ontario Business-Research Institute (OBRI) tax credit.
  
  
• Organizations such as the Centre of Excellence for Communications and Information Technology, the Canadian Microelectronics Corporation and MaRS facilitate technology transfers and multi-party ICT partnerships.

LEARN MORE

• About Weever Apps Inc.
• About Innovation Factory (iF)
• About The Ontario Network of Excellence (ONE)
• About Ontario's ICT Industry

Canada leads business globally, and Ontario is Canada's hub for global business. Ontario is home to 58% of all foreign-controlled Canadian head offices operating in Canada. World leading companies in the automotive industry, life sciences, telecommunications and financial services have invested billions to start or expand their operations in Ontario.

Forbes lauds Canada's tax policies, especially, as a key factor of the country's success: "Credit a reformed tax structure with a Harmonized Sales Tax introduced in Ontario and British Columbia in 2010. The goal is to make Canadian businesses more competitive. Canada's tax status also improved thanks to reduced corporate and employee tax rates."

Ontario, Canada, is the pillar of Canada's economy. Ontario generates more than 38 per cent of Canada's total GDP. Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States.

The influential magazine cites Canada's relative stability during the global recession, singling out Canada's globally renowned banking centre, which, "emerged from the financial crisis of 2008-09 among the strongest in the world, owing to [it]'s tradition of conservative lending practices and strong capitalization."

"Canada's economy has held up better than most," states Forbes. "The $1.6 trillion economy is the ninth biggest in the world and grew 3.1% last year. It is expected to expand 2.4% in 2011, according to the Royal Bank of Canada."

"As an affluent, high-tech industrial society in the trillion-dollar class," Forbes states, "Canada resembles the US in its market-oriented economic system, pattern of production, and affluent living standards."

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's GDP, at more than US$504 billion, is larger than that of Switzerland, Belgium, Austria or any of the Scandinavian countries.
  
  
• According to a report released by the Financial Times' fDi Intelligence think-tank in spring 2011, Ontario ranked second in North America as a destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) projects. Relative to population, Ontario emerges as the top North American jurisdiction for FDI projects in 2010 with 10 projects per million of population, followed by South Carolina with nine projects per million.
  
  
• The Geneva-based, non-profit World Economic Forum found that Canada has the world's soundest banking system for the fifth year in a row in its influential Global Competitiveness Report 2012-2013. Ontario is the heart of Canada's banking system.
  
  
• The Global Competitiveness Report also gives Canada top rankings for the low number of procedures required to start a business. That means that businesses can start faster in Canada than just about anywhere else.

LEARN MORE

• The Financial Times' fDi Intelligence think-tank listed Ontario as the top North American jurisdiction for FDI projects relative to population in 2010.
  
  
• Toronto, Ontario, Canada leapt into the number two spot in the world in a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) survey of "Cities of Opportunity".
  
  
• Site Selection magazine ranked Ontario as Canada's most competitive province in an annual review of best places for investment and business development.

Ontario is a place where big ideas spark and great things happen. That's why some of the world's greatest thinkers, innovators, and entrepreneurs build one-of-a-kind institutions like the Stephen Hawking Centre at Perimeter Institute here.

Stephen Hawking Centre at Perimeter Institute
Photo by Jens Langen

Ontario is a global centre for advanced research and innovation and a go-to location for industries and businesses focused on groundbreaking advancements in fields such as physics, IT, life sciences, and advanced materials and nanotechnology.

The expanded facility will accommodate up to 250 physicists and research trainees, making Ontario's Perimeter Institute the largest centre of its kind in the world devoted to research, training and outreach in theoretical physics. It will include interaction areas for spontaneous, multi-disciplinary research activity, and presentation spaces for seminars and workshops. Also the Centre will feature state-of-the-art IT infrastructure to support scientific visualization and analysis of complex calculations. This will allow researchers to conduct distant, real-time collaborations with colleagues around the world. By adding 55,000 extra square feet the Stephen Hawking Centre doubles the size of the initial research complex to 120,000 square feet.

The construction of the newly expanded facility is just one in a series of recent, major investments that are increasing Ontario's innovation, research and development capacities. In 2011, Ontario helped the MaRS Discovery District expand to more than double its size, making it the largest urban innovation hub in the world. MaRS is a convergence centre in the heart of Toronto, Ontario's discovery district that brings together researchers, financiers, entrepreneurs and industry leaders to accelerate innovation and the commercialization of new discoveries. Earlier in the year Ciena Canada Inc., a telecommunications equipment company, announced an investment of $900 million dollars in Ontario with the goal of developing new technology and making Ottawa, Ontario the focal point of its global research and development efforts.

Companies and organizations choose Ontario and grow in Ontario because the province has what it takes to help them grow and succeed.

Stephen Hawking Centre at Perimeter Institute
Photo by Jens Langen

The Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics is an independent scientific research organization working to advance our understanding of physical laws and develop new ideas about the very essence of space, time, matter and information. Located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada – the heart of Canada's Technology Triangle (more on that, below), the Perimeter Institute also provides a wide array of research training and educational outreach activities to nurture scientific talent and share the importance of discovery and innovation among students, teachers and the general public.

Funding for the Stephen Hawking Centre at Perimeter Institute was awarded through an internationally peer reviewed infrastructure granting competition and involves a three-way public-private partnership with the Ontario government, the Canadian government, and private donations. The Perimeter Institute is a successful example of public-private collaboration in scientific research, training and outreach.

Foundational research in theoretical physics has historically led to some of the greatest advances in our fundamental understanding of the universe and matter, including advances in materials sciences such as nanotechnology. These advances hold the promise of transforming virtually every high-tech industry from advanced manufacturing to life sciences, to information technology. Unlocking and harnessing its potential requires four essential elements:

1. Great and ambitious science.
2. World-class research infrastructure.
3. Skilled workers.
4. And supportive government.

Ontario has all of that – in a positive investment climate.

Highly sophisticated, world-leading research is at the core of our ability to explore and expand on the power of nanotechnology, and Ontario is recognized worldwide for the quality of its scientific minds.

• We have hundreds of bright scientists at research centres across the province engaged in nanotechnology - many of them involved in it before it was even identified as a science.
  
  
• We're attracting top-notch researchers from around the world, drawn by our reputation for excellent science, a collaborative and intellectually challenging research environment and generous funding.

QUICK FACTS

Some Facts on Canada's Technology Triangle Inc and the Perimeter Institute

Canada's Technology Triangle Inc.

• Canada's Technology Triangle (Waterloo Region; also abbreviated "CTT") derived its name from the longstanding reputation the region has for innovation, established by resident businesses. Canada's Technology Triangle came to be used in the 1980s and the global recognition of its high technology cluster in the 1990s validated the name.
  
  
• CTT Inc is the not-for-profit, public-private regional economic development partnership marketing the Waterloo Region of Ontario including the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo. Its mandate is to attract new businesses, investment, and talent while promoting regional economic growth.
  
  
• CTT has become the "go-to" organization for businesses looking for a new location.
  
  
• It works in partnership with all municipal economic development agencies of the three cities.
  
  
• CTT specializes in external marketing building on the region's strengths and by promoting the area's universities and colleges that provide an available talent pool for employers. It advances opportunities for technological/manufacturing convergence and cost-competitiveness, based on solid research and trends analysis.
  
  
• Companies in the region include RIM (BlackBerry), OpenText, DALSA, COM DEV, Christie (digital projection) and Toyota's first, outside-Japan, luxury class car production.

Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics

• Located in Waterloo Region, the Institute was created in 1999 through a personal donation of $100 million from Mike Lazaridis, Co-CEO of RIM. He has since contributed an additional $70 million and, over the last 10 years, all levels of government and other private partners have also invested.
  
  
• The Perimeter Institute is an independent, non-profit, scientific research organization where international scientists cluster to push the limits of human understanding of physical laws and develop new ideas about the very essence of space, time, matter and information.
  
  
• The research builds upon two great 20th century advances involving Einstein's theory of general relativity describing physics on the largest observable scales of stars, galaxies and the universe itself, and quantum theory which describes the behaviour of matter and energy on the smallest scales in the atomic and subatomic worlds where fundamental particles move and interact with each other.
  
  
• Investigations into foundational areas can be transformative and, ultimately, provide the fundamental knowledge necessary to advancing society with all manner of new technologies.
  
  
• The Perimeter Institute is home to over 100 resident researchers and hosts a visitor program that attracts hundreds of other leading scientists from around the world each year.

LEARN MORE

• Visit the Perimeter Institute website
• About Ontario's Environment of Innovation
• About Nanotechnology in Ontario

Now Site Selection magazine has confirmed it. Ontario was ranked Canada's most competitive province in a recently released annual review of best places for investment and business development. In addition, Ontario garnered top rankings for the efficacy of its regional economic development groups; and four Ontario municipalities: Toronto, Hamilton, Windsor and London, are ranked among the leading Canadian metro areas in corporate facility development.

"What continues to distinguish Canada as a whole and successful Canadian communities in particular are openness to global firms and global talent, and an increasingly friendly operating environment for industry," says Adam Bruns, managing editor of Site Selection.

This recognition is on top of other recent high-profile findings. According to a report released in spring 2011 by the Financial Times' fDi Intelligence think-tank, Ontario emerged as the top North American jurisdiction for FDI projects relative to population in 2010. Then, in June 2011, Toronto, Ontario, Canada leapt into the number two spot in the world in a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) survey of "Cities of Opportunity".

The Site Selection findings are included in its fourth annual Canada Best to Invest awards and rankings, based on June 2010-May 2011 project data and the magazine's own research. Site Selection is a leading publication focused on site selection and expansion planning for international firms.

Site Selection's "Top Canadian Groups" category recognizes local economic development groups based on project data, regional partnership, proactive and innovative programming, and quality data and Web tools and resources. Half of the top ten economic development groups ranked in the Canadian Groups category are in Ontario:

• Canada's Technology Triangle (a not-for-profit, public-private regional economic development partnership that markets the competitive advantages of the Waterloo Region to the world)
  
  
• City of Hamilton – Economic Development & Real Estate Division
  
  
• London Economic Development Corp.
  
  
• City of Mississauga Economic Development Office
  
  
• Windsor Essex Economic Development Corp.

LEARN MORE

• Site Selection magazine's Canada 2011 Best to Invest report (go to page 732)
• Find out Why Ontario is the Canada's leader in business attraction and a great place to invest

With support from the province, Bluewater Biochemicals will produce clean biochemicals to replace more costly chemicals and petrochemicals that are used in a variety of industries, including automotive parts, road and runway de-icers, consumer packaging, and cosmetics. Bluewater Biochemicals Inc. is a subsidiary of U.S.-based BioAmber Inc.

Biochemicals and biosuccinic are far better than traditional types of chemicals, as they cost less to make, have a much lower impact on the environment, and are sustainable. 

Jean-Francois Huc, President, BioAmber Inc., said, "Ontario's support of bioindustries and renewable energy motivated our decision to set up our biosuccinic acid production plant in Sarnia, not to mention the fact that Sarnia is a hub for the chemical industry in Ontario. We are thankful to Ontario for its contribution."

"Developing and marketing innovative, clean technologies that reduce our carbon footprint is one of Ontario's strengths and a testimony of our growing impact in the global marketplace," said Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade. "Sarnia's new Bluewater Biochemicals plant will help move Ontario's clean technology agenda forward."

QUICK FACTS

• Bluewater Biochemicals Inc. is a subsidiary of U.S.-based BioAmber Inc., which will build, own, and operate the biosuccinic acid plant in Sarnia.
  
  
• The market for succinic acid could potentially exceed $1 billion a year by 2015.
  
  
• Biosuccinic acid is made from the fermentation of renewable feed stocks. It consumes significant amounts of CO₂ in the production process, which helps clean up our air.
  
  
• Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Chemical Industry
• Explore renewable energy in Ontario

"We are delighted to receive support from Ontario to pursue our goal of transitioning Canada's automotive design, engineering and manufacturing toward the clean economy," said Don Walker, CEO, Magna International. "Our plan aligns with Ontario's Auto Strategy, by supporting increased R&D and innovation, developing fuel efficient vehicles and technologies, and a pool of skilled auto professionals."

With the government's support, the company is launching a number of new projects including:

• electric car concept development;
• parts for hybrid electric/battery electric vehicles;
• advanced lightweight metallic components;
• an alternate energy project; and,
• advanced bio-based composite materials to reduce vehicle weight and improve fuel efficiency.

"Ontario has always been the province that leads by determining where we need to be and working to make that happen," said Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade. "Our government's investment in Magna International and Magna E-Car is one way we are making the future happen now."

QUICK FACTS

• Magna International, based in Aurora, Ontario, is the largest automotive supplier in North America and a top five global supplier.
  
  
• Magna is Ontario's leader in automotive R&D and employs 17,900 Ontarians in 44 plants across the province.
  
  
• Ontario's vision is to have one out of 20 cars in Ontario electrically powered by 2020. The province has kick-started the widespread availability of electric car charging stations.
  
  
• Ontario residents can receive between $5,000 to $8,500 for purchasing an electric vehicle and can also get "green license plates," which allow drivers to use the province's network of HOV lanes.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's Automotive Industry

With the province's support, Magellan is upgrading and enhancing its Kitchener and Mississauga, Ontario facilities to develop the next generation of aerospace products. The new equipment will help the company be more competitive in the global market and enable them to manufacture critical, precision components for aircraft.

"Magellan takes pride in being one of Canada's leading manufacturers of aerospace components," said D. Scott McCrady, JSF Program Director, Magellan Aerospace. "Magellan's Ontario facilities are playing a key role in the development of manufacturing technologies to produce advanced aerospace components for next-generation aircraft."

"Partnering with our aerospace companies will help them remain at the cutting-edge as a result of the investments they bring to the table," said Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade. "This will ensure these companies remain a fixture in the province supporting tens of thousands of direct and indirect jobs."

Ontario works to help businesses across industries — including aerospace — grow. For example, following a comprehensive initiative begun in 2009, Ontario's general corporate income tax (CIT) rate has fallen from 14 per cent in 2009 to 11.5 per cent.

With a total combined provincial and federal (15 per cent) corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent, Ontario's combined general federal-provincial CIT rate is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal-state CIT rate in the United States.

In Ontario, aerospace firms operate in a creative, top-ranked business environment that includes some of the world's most advanced manufacturers in the automotive, telecommunications and life science sector. Ontario has the people, the know-how and the business environment that makes aero innovation profitable.

QUICK FACTS

• Magellan's Kitchener facility will produce aluminum and titanium structural components for aircraft. Magellan's Mississauga facility will manufacture engine components.
  
  
• Ontario's aerospace and defence industry employs around 22,000 people with annual sales of approximately $6.5-billion.

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• About Ontario's Aerospace Industry

Cisco Canada President Nitin Kawale; Ontario Minister of Economic Development and Trade Sandra Pupatello; and Cisco Chairman and CEO John Chambers.

With provincial support, Cisco will invest in major R&D projects that will create 300 new research and development jobs in Toronto, increase research and development work in the province, and help both businesses and government increase productivity through technology.

"Cisco and the Province of Ontario share a long and successful history," said Nitin Kawale, President, Cisco Canada. "This MOU, only the third of its kind in Ontario's history, is a next stage in our collaborative relationship focused on a shared vision of deploying transformational technology to help achieve sustainable and innovative goals. There is enormous potential to build a solid R&D spring board in Ontario. Cisco is unique in our ability to draw upon the expertise, technology innovation and global best practices to further drive Ontario's dynamic innovation engine."

The provincial support will help Cisco to expand its R&D projects to:

• Further advance internet routing
• Create next-generation technology for the mobile Internet
• Develop new technology for the future of broadband Internet
• Create new ways to share online video.

"Cisco is among the many global technology leaders who continue to recognize Ontario's innovation and the talent of our highly skilled workforce," said Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade. "Cisco already conducts R&D in the province critical to their success, and this investment and the MOU are a vital part of our economic strategy."

QUICK FACTS

• Cisco's Ontario operations employ about 900 people and comprise its Canadian corporate headquarters and two R&D facilities in Toronto, plus a sales office and R&D facility in Ottawa.
  
  
• In 2010, the information and communications technology sector employed about 272,000 people in Ontario, almost half of the Canadian total.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario was named a top destination for foreign direct investment in North America, second only to California. The province attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects, which created more than 11,200 jobs.
  
  
• Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States.

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• Ontario's ICT Industry

Roche Canada was selected as a global development site, in part, because Ontario offers the environment necessary to support drug discovery and development, including an educated and capable workforce, and a favourable business environment supported by a government that places a high strategic priority on life sciences.

"Bringing a Global Pharmaceutical Development site to Roche Canada is a testament to our skilled and talented workforce," said Ronnie Miller, President and CEO, Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. (Roche Canada), "And offers tremendous opportunities to solidify Ontario's reputation as a global research hub."

Minister Pupatello joins the Roche Canada team announcing the company's facility expansion in Mississauga on August 16, 2011.

The expansion project will provide better healthcare by supporting research, which will lead to new medicines and clinical trials. The project will also create more opportunities for R&D partnerships with Ontario's research and teaching hospitals, universities and other research institutions.

Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade, stated that, "From the discovery of insulin to the development of 3D medical imaging technologies, Ontario has a proven track record in the development of new medicines and health technologies. We're proud to support Roche's latest investment, helping to bring a global pharmaceutical development mandate to Mississauga and creating new jobs for Ontario families."

The announcement is a testament to Ontario's international leadership in life sciences and biopharmaceuticals, and a result of the expertise Roche Canada has developed.

QUICK FACTS

• With this expansion, Roche will have more than 650 employees in Ontario.
  
  
• About 41,500 people work in Ontario's life sciences industry.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario was named a top destination for foreign direct investment in North America, second only to California. The province attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects which created more than 11,200 jobs.
  
  
• Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States.

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• Learn more about Ontario's life sciences industry.

The company will build an industrial-scale air treatment system at Polycon Industries in Guelph. Biorem's new high-efficiency biological-based air emissions control system eliminates volatile organic compounds (VOCs) which are harmful to the environment. Biorem's technology will be installed in the automated paint facility at Polycon, a body part manufacturing and paint division of Magna International.

The new technology will eliminate the harmful emissions produced in this process in a more environmentally friendly way. Plus, the installation will serve as a demonstration plant for Biorem's emissions control system.

"This is a cleaner, greener technology. It removes pollutants, reduces energy use and greenhouse gases and is mutually beneficial to all partners," said Peter Bruijns, President and CEO of Biorem.

The system combines biological technology with activated re-generable carbon to yield a removal rate equivalent and higher to thermal oxidizers already in place, but in a more cost effective way.

Once this demonstration plant has proven itself with a major international company like Magna's Polycon, it will generate more interest from other major manufacturing industries around the world, says Biorem's Vice President of Research & Development, Hadi Husain.

"It's a great new technology that will eliminate emissions (VOCs) and is beneficial. Because of our relationship with Biorem, we get the first benefits of using this technology," said David Gray, General Manager, Polycon Industries

Biorem's flagship municipal odour eliminating technology originated in 1991, coming out of research from the University of Waterloo. Over the last few years, Biorem has diversified its technology to widen its market potential.

"Because of the Innovation Demonstration Fund (IDF) investment, we've been able to install this demonstration facility. Without this investment, it would have been extremely difficult for us to diversify," says Husain. "In terms of market potential, we're aiming at auto part manufacturers, chemical plants, fibre glass producers, any place around the world with chemical solvents and emissions."

The technology's potential is enormous, which is why Ontario is investing in Biorem and helping to build the bio-economy in Guelph.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario is investing $1.2 million in Biorem through the Innovation Demonstration Fund.
  
  
• Biorem is a leading clean technology company that designs, supplies and distributes a comprehensive line of high-efficiency biological-based air emissions control systems.
  
  
• Biorem estimates that the global market for its technology is more than $1.6 billion annually.
  
  
• Ontario supports over 2,800 environmental industry companies that generate approximately $7 billion in revenue and employ over 65,000 people.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects worth an estimated $6.1 billion (US) capital investment and the creation of more than 11,200 jobs.
  
  
• In April, Ontario had an increase of 56,000 jobs and the unemployment rate declined to 7.9%.

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• Read more about the Innovation Demonstration Fund.
• Find out more About Ontario's Innovation Agenda.

"Toyota's decision to produce the RAV4 EV in Woodstock is one more positive result of our investment in green technology," said Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade. "Ontario will benefit by taking a leading role in the production of the next generation of green vehicles."

The Province of Ontario, in partnership with the Government of Canada, will support the production of the RAV4 EV through their investment in Toyota's recently announced Project Green Light. The total investment among all partners could reach $545 million, with Ontario and the Government of Canada each providing $70.8 million towards Project Green Light.

"We're turning a new chapter in our history and into the future. TMMC will lead the way by building the new RAV4 EV," said Ray Tanguay, Chairman of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada. "Being involved with leading edge technology is a great opportunity to motivate and develop our people. This is an excellent example of Toyota's determination to collaborate with companies with innovative technology."

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario and the Government of Canada are each providing $70.8 million towards Project Green Light. The total investment from all partners in could reach $545 million.

• The auto industry supports approximately 400,000 jobs across the Ontario.

• Ontario builds more cars than any other state or province in North America.

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• Read more about Ontario's electric vehicle infrastructure project with Better Place

• Ontario's Automotive Industry

Ontario will encourage public and private sectors to come forward with proposals to build, test and expand the availability of recharging facilities. The province will provide seed money to the projects chosen.

The investment follows the recent announcement that Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada plans to start assembling electric versions of its RAV4 sport utility vehicle in Woodstock, Ontario under a partnership with California-based Tesla Motors. The RAV4 EV will be the first electric vehicle built in Canada.

The goal is to ensure that charging stations are conveniently located in order to get more electric cars on the road. Ontario already offers drivers incentives to purchase electric cars -- including an incentive of $5,000 to $8,500 and "green license plates," which allow drivers to use the province's network of high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes.

"We're taking the next step to ensure car-charging stations are in the right place to power the next generation of vehicles," said Premier of Ontario, Dalton McGuinty. "Just as we worked hard to become North America's number one producer of cars, we're working hard to become number one in North America when it comes to clean energy. Today's announcement takes us one step closer to our vision."

Video - Ontario Leading The Way For Electric Cars

QUICK FACTS

• This announcement is part of the Ontario government's infrastructure investments of more than $35 billion over the next three years.

• Places around the world such as China, UK, Denmark, Germany, Israel, US, France, Shanghai, Vancouver, Paris, New York City, British Columbia and Quebec are all investing in the charging stations and infrastructure to support the adoption of electric cars.

• The province's vision is to have one out of 20 cars in Ontario electrically powered by 2020.

• Toyota recently announced it chose Woodstock, Ontario as the place to manufacture the RAV4 EV.

• More cars are built in Ontario than any other state or province in North America.

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• Read more about Ontario's electric vehicle infrastructure project with Better Place

• Ontario's Automotive Industry

MaRS is a convergence centre in the heart of Toronto's discovery district that brings together researchers, financiers, entrepreneurs and industry leaders to accelerate innovation and the commercialization of new discoveries.

Artist's rendering of Phase 2 at night.

Phase 2 of the MaRS Discovery District, a new advanced medical laboratory and technology building, will be located in the heart of Toronto. Near globally recognized universities, hospitals and research institutes, the new 20-storey building will house research organizations and businesses in the science, technology and social innovation sectors.

"The MaRS Centre has been at capacity since it opened six years ago, when we first started working with entrepreneurs building new growth companies," said Ilse Treurnicht, CEO, MaRS Discovery District. "Today the MaRS community has tremendous momentum, and our facility is bursting at the seams. This expansion of the MaRS platform offers a huge opportunity to accelerate that momentum and further strengthen our innovation economy for future generations."

Those using the expanded facility will include Public Health Ontario's central lab, which provides testing services, advice and research to help prevent and control infectious diseases, and the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, which is dedicated to the prevention, early detection, diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

Dr. Tom Hudson, President and Scientific Director, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, said that, "OICR is focused on personalized medicine for cancer and finding solutions to critical issues that will benefit patients in the next five years. Our commercialization program ensures discoveries move from the lab into the clinic. With Ontario's support, we will continue to support proof-of-principle research and early commercial development, and provide expert guidance through human trials, proof-of-concept and regulatory approval."

Located in the heart of downtown Toronto, the MaRS Centre is a vibrant, architecturally inspiring space that has become the undisputed hub of Toronto's Discovery District: every day, more than 2,300 people come to work at the 750,000 sq. ft. complex.

Ontario has one of North America's highest concentrations of research talent and facilities, with top-ranked scientists working in virtually every field. The province spends more than $13.9 billion on R&D every year, and has more than 100,000 people engaged directly in R&D.

Within the life sciences sector alone, 10,000 scientists, clinical investigators and other researchers at 25 research and academic hospitals conduct $850 million in research annually.

Research collaborations, particularly between the private and public sectors, are often the key to breakthroughs, especially today when so many innovations spring from multidisciplinary approaches. Bringing together Ontario's wealth of public and private-sector researchers are collaborative networks and organizations such as MaRS that help new ideas converge.

QUICK FACTS

• Infrastructure Ontario will provide a fully repayable loan to MaRS, which will enable MaRS to complete the project.
  
  
• Phase 2 will expand MaRS from 750,000 square feet to more than 1.5 million square feet.
  
  
• When Phase 2 is completed, more than 5,000 people will work at MaRS, with thousands more participating in workshops, conferences, and networking events.
  
  
• The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research supports the efforts of more than 1,400 investigators, clinician scientists, research staff and trainees across the province who are working to overcome cancer.
  
  
• Public Health Ontario employs over 900 people in 29 locations across Ontario to provide scientific and technical advice to those working to protect and promote the health of Ontarians.

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• About Ontario's Innovation Agenda

SunEdison Vice President and Country Manager Jason Gray said, "SunEdison is pleased to be part of building a long-term and sustainable solar market in Ontario. We believe that solar and other renewable energy solutions are key components of the province's supply mix as they create jobs and cleaner energy solutions."

"Ontario's goal is to become North America's leading manufacturing centre of excellence in solar energy production," said Sandra Pupatello, Ontario's Minister of Economic Development and Trade. "With the help of innovative, ahead-of-the-curve companies like SunEdison, our province is another step closer in developing a more reliable, cleaner energy system."

Ontario has already garnered international attention and praise for an array of innovative renewable energy, water and clean tech initiatives that have brought the province to the forefront of clean tech investment. The foundation of Ontario's innovations and leadership is that the province makes it easier for business to do clean technology business.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's clean energy economy has attracted more than $20 billion of investment.
  
  
• Since 2009, more than 30 businesses have announced they are setting up or expanding plants in Ontario to manufacture parts for the solar and wind industry.
  
  
• Ontario has the most solar energy of any jurisdiction in Canada, and Ontario is home to the 10 largest solar farms in Canada.
  
  
• Ontario forecasts that by 2018, 10,700 megawatts of renewable power from wind, solar and bio-energy will have been brought online - enough electricity each year to power more than 2 million homes.
  
  
• Ontario has conserved more than 1,700 megawatts of electricity over the past five years - the equivalent of taking more than half a million homes off the electricity grid.

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• Ontario's Clean Technology sector
• Read about Ontario's Long-Term Energy Plan
• Explore renewable energy in Ontario

With Ontario's support, the company is expanding the plant and installing state-of-the-art equipment. The upgrades will allow the company to:

• produce one billion more tablets of generic prescription medications per year,
  
  
• compete globally with new specialized generic prescription medications,
  
  
• and increase the supply of generic prescription drugs for Ontarians.

Sandra Pupatello, Ontario's Minister of Economic Development and Trade, said, "The Ontario government is proud to support Teva and the jobs accompanying this investment in Stouffville. Teva is building a one-of-a-kind facility that will give it a big edge in the global pharmaceutical industry."

"We are thrilled to receive this support from the Ontario government to expand our production of high potent generic pharmaceuticals," said Teva Canada Limited President and CEO Barry Fishman. "In addition to supporting highly skilled workers, our expanded plant and new equipment will enable us to increase our capacity to service the needs of patients in Ontario and across Canada."

Ontario is one of North America's premier centres for life sciences. The province is the Canadian home for many of the world's most innovative companies in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, advanced medical technologies, research and biomedical manufacturing.

QUICK FACTS

• Teva is one of the largest generic pharmaceutical companies in Canada, manufacturing more than six billion tablets per year for domestic and export markets.
  
  
• Teva Canada's parent company, Israel-based Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., is the world's largest generic pharmaceutical company.
  
  
• Ontario's life sciences industry employs more than 40,000 people at about  50 companies with revenues exceeding $14 billion a year.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario was named a top destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) in North America, second only to California. The province attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects which created more than 1,200 jobs.

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• Ontario's Life Sciences Industry

The General Motors of Canada Automotive Centre of Excellence (ACE) at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology recently opened in Oshawa, Ontario. The 16,300 square-meter facility provides a full range of test rooms and research space, including:

• A five storey climatic wind tunnel that tests products in extreme weather conditions ranging from - 40C to 60C, and features a solar array to replicate the sun's effects on products;
• A four-poster shaker that can simulate potholes or a drive along a specific road; and
• A five-floor integrated research and training facility with space dedicated for advanced research, education and training.

Beyond standard automotive testing, the ACE will also be used to test cleaner and alternative fuels as well as hybrid and electric vehicles. The facility is also suitable for testing any products that are subject to severe wind, humidity, snow, ice or extreme heat.

Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade, said that "Ontario's auto sector has turned an important corner with all five of the province's vehicle manufacturers recently announcing production, employment and investments increases. Through this partnership, we are creating a unique testing facility that will ensure world-class research continues to be done in Ontario."

• The ACE was developed in partnership with the University of Ontario Institute Of Technology, General Motors of Canada, the Partners for the Advancement of Collaborative Engineering Education, the Government of Ontario, and the Government of Canada.
• As part of GM's Beacon Project, Ontario supported ACE's construction with a total of $66 million investment.
• In 2010, Ontario produced over 2 million vehicles, a 39 per cent increase over 2009.
• In 2010, Ontario attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects worth an estimated $6.1 billion (US) capital investment and the creation of more than 11,200 jobs.
• Over the last couple of months, Ontario had an increase of 38,000 jobs and the unemployment rate declined to 7.9 per cent.

• Learn more about Ontario's world-renowned auto sector.
• Find out more about Ontario's colleges and universities.

• Productivity upgrades, including new machinery and equipment;
• Employee training; and
• Continuous improvement projects to increase efficiency and reduce waste.

These upgrades will support the production of cleaner, more fuel efficient vehicles at Toyota's Ontario plants. "Continuous improvement is the backbone of Toyota and we will continue to look for ways to improve our products, our processes, and our people,” said Ray Tanguay, Chairman of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada. “The strong support that we have received from both the Canadian and Ontario governments is very important because it allows us to give these initiatives priority and helps to secure our production footprint in Canada. Government partnership also helps to ensure that the Canadian automotive industry remains competitive and strong."

"We're investing in Toyota to ensure Ontario remains a leader in the global auto industry," said Sandra Pupatello, Ontario Minister of Economic Development and Trade. "Our support for automotive innovation will lead to the production of more fuel efficient vehicles at Toyota's facilities in Ontario."

The auto industry is an important driver of Ontario's economy, supporting about 400,000 jobs across the province and generating billions of dollars in economic activity.

• Ontario builds more cars than any other state or province in North America.
• Ontario is providing up to $70.8 million of the $545 million total investment in the project.
• Toyota currently manufactures the Toyota Corolla, Toyota Matrix, Toyota RAV4 and the Lexus RX 350 vehicles and has two plants in Cambridge and one plant in Woodstock.
• Toyota's Cambridge South plant recently earned the 2011 J.D. Power and Associates Platinum Plant Quality Award as the highest ranked global automotive manufacturing facility.
• Over the last couple of months, Ontario had an increase of 38,000 jobs and the unemployment rate decreased to 7.9 per cent.

• Find out more about Ontario's automotive industry. (PDF)

The province is helping aircraft engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) invest in new technology, equipment and research and development to increase its innovative and environmental technologies and diversify its product base, including the development of more electric engine technologies. This will help operators to reduce their fuel consumption and emissions, decreasing the impact of air travel on the environment. New manufacturing processes will also help to reduce waste and increase efficiency.

P&WC is investing $139.2 million in the project, with Ontario providing a grant of $13.9 million. Ontario's aerospace industry employs 22,000 people and generates annual sales of approximately $6.5 billion, about 80 per cent of which are exports.

Ontario's Minister of Economic Development and Trade, Sandra Pupatello, says, "Supporting advanced manufacturing remains a key priority for Ontario. Working with companies like Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC) to help them stay at the forefront of their field helps keep our manufacturing sector competitive."

Walter Di Bartolomeo, Vice President, Engineering, Pratt & Whitney Canada said, "Our long-standing commitment to innovation has made us a key player within Canada's aerospace industry. Pratt & Whitney Canada will be making a new investment of almost $140 million in innovation projects in Ontario between now and 2014. With the province's investment, we will continue doing things that make us a world leader in our field with a focus on product innovation and development, green technologies, employee training and process improvements."

P&WC is a world leader in the design, manufacture and service of gas turbine engines with up to 20,000 lbs. of thrust. These engines power general aviation aircraft, regional aircraft, corporate aircraft, trainer aircraft, utility aircraft, helicopters, auxiliary power units, unmanned aerial vehicles and engines for industrial applications.

Ontario's corporate income tax rates are internationally competitive. Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal–state CIT rate in the United States. The province is also ensuring that the spirit of aero innovation thrives in Ontario by providing a large and growing number of R&D support programs.

Partnering with local business is a key component of Ontario's support to business and investment. Working closely with the province's network of industrial and public-sector researchers, Ontario aerospace companies are developing lighter, stronger, more efficient next generation products using advanced polymers, bio-composites and super conductive materials.

• Ontario's well-established aerospace industry includes world leaders with global product mandates, top-of-the-line suppliers and a broad range of advanced manufacturing support services.
  
• Scientists at universities, colleges and other publicly funded research centres across Ontario are helping companies develop lighter, stronger, more efficient next generation products using advanced polymers, bio-composites and super conductive materials.
  
• The federal government also offers a range of aerospace R&D support programs through the Institute for Aerospace Research, the Canadian Space Agency, Strategic Aerospace and Defence Initiative, the Industrial Research Assistance Program and the National Research Council.

• Ontario's Aerospace Industry
• World's First Plant to Produce Jet Fuel from Wood Fibre on Commercial Scale to be Located in Ontario, Canada
• Ontario, Canada Helps Build State-of-the-Art Aerospace Facility at University of Windsor

The centre is attracting top research talent and it will continue to make life-saving vaccines and bring new products to market. Nearly 1,100 employees work at the pharma giant's Connaught Campus.

The Province invested $13.9 million to support the $101-million expansion. This cements Ontario's reputation as a global leader in biotechnology.

"This new facility establishes Sanofi Pasteur's Connaught Campus as the North American Centre of Excellence for Analytical and Bioprocess R&D," said Mark Lievonen, President of Sanofi Pasteur Limited, "and will enable our site to play a lead role in the development and production of new vaccines. Our company's 96-year history of success has been the direct result of collaboration, and we thank the Government of Ontario for partnering with us. Sanofi Pasteur's ability to research, develop and manufacture vaccines for Canada and the world makes our company a strategic national asset for the protection of public health."

Ontario is committed to commercializing innovative ideas so Ontario can be a global leader in the biotechnology industry.

One of North America's premier centres for life sciences, Ontario is the Canadian home for many of the world's most innovative companies in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, advanced medical technologies, research and biomedical manufacturing.

The province is investing billions annually in basic and applied research. Ontario's products, technologies and systems are improving lives and healthcare delivery worldwide.

QUICK FACTS

• The Connaught Campus makes a leading-edge whooping cough (acelleular pertussis) vaccine that has become the international gold standard for preventing this illness. This vaccine was researched, developed and is now manufactured in Ontario and it is exported to 62 countries.
  
  
• As part of the expansion, Sanofi Pasteur created 30 research and development jobs and about 300 skilled jobs.
  
  
• The biopharmaceutical sector employs over 16,500 Ontario researchers, scientists and other workers.
  
  
• Sanofi has been in Toronto for almost 100 years and is Canada's largest vaccine company.

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• Ontario's Life Sciences Industry
• Ontario is helping to bring life science research to market.

Leonardo Millon, a researcher at the University of Western Ontario (UWO), and his entrepreneurial minded sister, Karen Millon, a graduate of the Richard Ivey School of Business at UWO, started the company in 2009 in part with the support of Ontario.

LifeLike Biotissue's veins look, feel and behave like real live tissue

The story of the Millons and LifeLike BioTissue is a distinctly Ontario story. That's because Ontario is one of North America's premier centres for life sciences. The province is the Canadian home for many of the world's most innovative companies in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, advanced medical technologies, research and biomedical manufacturing.

While finishing his PhD in Biomedical Engineering at UWO, Dr. Millon was looking for jobs with medical device companies in the United States - the best place he thought he could find work at the time. But then, while trying to create synthetic vessels - for use in operations like coronary artery bypass surgery to treat heart attack patients - Dr. Millon and his supervisors realized his tissue lent itself to surgical training applications. At this point, there were still two obstacles - validation of the products from the medical community, and funding to get the company off the ground.

In the summer of 2009, the Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) - part of the Ontario Network of Excellence (ONE) - stepped in and told Dr. Millon he had a good shot at winning the OCE's Martin Walmsley Fellowship for Technological Entrepreneurship - a $100,000 fellowship awarded to the start-up company with the best application and most commercially viable product. He enlisted his sister's support and participation, and applied and won the fellowship. So, LifeLike BioTissue was born.

"We used the money to produce a few demonstrable products to seek validation from the medical community. We donated them to labs across Ontario and Alberta and the response was very positive. That's when we knew we had something special here," said Ms. Millon.

While continuing its efforts to build its reputation in the industry, LifeLike Biotissue went on to win an award from Health Technology Exchange (HTX) - another member of ONE. They won for the Best Medical and Assistive Technology Company in the TiEQuest 2010 competition. And, they also received support from yet another ONE member, Southwestern Ontario's TechAlliance.

Suturing a LifeLike vein to a LifeLike aorta artery for practising heart bypass surgery

The company operates out of UWO where it develops and manufactures its products. It successfully exports its products primarily to the US and Europe with a growing number of customers across the world. And, it is looking to expand its operations in the London area in order to keep up with demand.

Ms. Millon says LifeLike's success is due in large part to the enormous support they've received along the way - singling out the OCE and Dr. John Denstedt of the Canadian Surgical Technologies and Advanced Robotics (CSTAR) centre in London. "It's still a very new industry, but we plan to expand to all sectors. Our next step will be into urology," said Ms. Millon. "We are extremely fortunate and very grateful to the OCE, without their help we would not exist."

Ontario is the setting for stories like this and other innovation successes. That's because Ontario is a biomedical research powerhouse, with specialized centres across the province supporting innovation, conducting investigations into virtually every area of the life sciences, and helping to commercialize them. That's why so many companies choose to invest in Ontario, including innovative start-ups and global manufacturing giants.

QUICK FACTS

• With 25 research and teaching hospitals employing 10,000 scientists, clinical investigators and other researchers, Ontario is one of the largest biomedical research centres in North America.
  
  
• A range of industry organizations and specialized centres provide support to Ontario's life sciences industry. The Health Technology Exchange (HTX), for example, supports emerging and established Ontario-based companies to develop, produce and commercialize innovative market-leading advanced health technologies. HTX is funded by the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Research and Innovation.

LEARN MORE

• LifeLike BioTissue
• Ontario's Life Sciences Industry
• A Southwestern Ontario Success Story: LifeLike BioTissue

With the province's support, PHRI is attracting global clinical trials that will improve health care. In a new clinical trial announced June 15, PHRI is partnering with Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc. to test the benefits of a new drug on more than 11,000 seniors around the world who suffer from high blood pressure.

"Novartis is proud to be launching this strategic global investment in clinical development in Ontario," said Dr. Riad Sherif B, President, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc. "Of the Novartis investment of $100 million, $40 million will remain in the province. This investment would not have happened without the partnership of the Ontario government and Dr. Yusuf, an international visionary leader in cardiovascular research. APOLLO will provide further insights on the long-term health of hypertensive patients."

Dr. Salim Yusuf, Director of the Population Health Research Institute at McMaster University and Hamilton Health Sciences, says that the Population Health Research Institute, "has attracted some of the best talent from across Canada and from several countries in the world."

Supporting made-in-Ontario technologies is part of Ontario's strategy to support investment and make innovation a driving force of the province's life science sector.

With 25 research and teaching hospitals employing 10,000 scientists, clinical investigators and other researchers, Ontario is one of the largest biomedical research centres in North America.

Ontario's universities and teaching hospitals spend almost $2 billion annually on health research - roughly 30 per cent of all the health research done across Canada by governments, industry, academics and the non-profit sectors.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's $4-million investment is helping support the project, which has a total global budget of more than $100 million.
  
  
• PHRI is a joint institute of Hamilton Health Sciences and McMaster University.
  
  
• High blood pressure (hypertension) affects one in five Canadians and costs the Canadian health care system $2.4 billion each year. It can cause strokes, heart attacks, heart and kidney failure, and is linked to dementia and sexual problems.
  
  
• The APOLLO (Aliskiren Prevention of Later Life Outcomes) study will test the benefits of aliskiren (marketed as Rasilez) on more than 11,000 seniors.
  
  
• Ontario's biopharmaceutical sector employs more than 16,500 people in high-quality, good-paying jobs.
  
  
• Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc. invested close to $100 million in research and development in Canada in 2010 alone.
  
  
• Over the last couple of months, Ontario had an increase of 38,000 jobs and the unemployment rate declined to 7.9 per cent.

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• Ontario's Life Sciences Industry

Paul Lucas, President and CEO, GlaxoSmithKline Inc. said that the recent announcement, "Reflects a shared commitment to biopharmaceutical innovation and advanced manufacturing by GSK and the Ontario government. I am proud of the role that GSK in Canada is playing in improving lives around the world, which is now enhanced as a result of this partnership."

The GlaxoSmithKline plant produces more than 75 different prescription products, most of which are exported to about 100 markets worldwide. This expansion will help bring new products to market and enable the global supply of the company's dermatological products such as creams, ointments, lotions, and foams - the first capability of its kind in Ontario.

With 25 research and teaching hospitals employing 10,000 scientists, clinical investigators and other researchers, Ontario is one of the largest biomedical research centres in North America. Supporting made-in-Ontario technologies is part of Ontario's strategy to make innovation a driving force of economic growth and further establish the province as a premier location for life sciences investment and business success.

"This investment supports our place in the global network as a global supplier of foams, ointments, lotions, liquids and other niche products," said Sue West, Vice President, Global Manufacturing & Supply, GlaxoSmithKline Inc. "It is a direct result of the strength of our Canadian manufacturing team that we are able to continue delivering products of value to our customers and patients around the world, enabling them to do more, feel better and live longer."

Ontario is the Canadian home for many of the world's most innovative companies in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, advanced medical technologies, research and biomedical manufacturing. Some 900 life sciences companies employ 41,500+ people in the pharmaceutical, biotech, advanced medical technologies and contract services sectors, making the province one of North America's premier centres for life sciences.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario is supporting the expansion of the state-of-the-art manufacturing facility with $3.6 million - GlaxoSmithKline Inc. is providing more than $30 million towards the project.
  
  
• Ontario's biopharmaceutical sector is among its most research-intensive industries - investing more than a billion dollars in R&D and employing over 16,500 Ontarians.
  
  
• GlaxoSmithKline Inc. currently employs over 1,150 people in Ontario.
  
  
• In 2010, Ontario attracted a total of 127 Foreign Direct Investment projects worth an estimated $6.1 billion (US) capital investment and the creation of more than 11,200 jobs.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Life Science Sector
• Explore Ontario's Innovation Agenda
• Find out more about GlaxoSmithKline Inc.

Ontario's proposed wood allocation to Rentech's "Olympiad Project" is the largest ever awarded in the Provincial Wood Supply Competitive Process administered by the province. This kind of collaborative, innovative and supportive approach to industry – in this case, aerospace – should come as no surprise to investors and others who do business in Ontario. That's because Ontario offers all of the right conditions needed for business success: a focus on innovation, a commitment to supporting the development of sustainable, clean and environmentally friendly solutions, and effective collaborations between all levels of government that help companies do innovative things.

Rentech's arrival in Ontario is a testimony to what its chief of product development, Robert Freerks, calls the 'continuity and purpose' of the different levels of the Canadian government. "You can't build a business like this without regulatory authorities," says Freerks, who is looking forward to seeing the first industrial-sized use of the technology to which he has devoted much of his life. Collaboration has been and will continue to be key to the success of the Olympiad Project. For D. Hunt Ramsbottom, President and CEO of Rentech, it will be "the first plant of its kind in the world where the province, the federal government, local communities and a private company come together".

But what may be most surprising is the out-of-the-box thinking that will turn underutilized wood fibre into eco-friendly jet fuel. That thinking is likely the primary reason why Rentech was awarded the proposed wood allocation – the largest ever awarded in a competition to commercialize wood supplies that can be sustainably harvested, but are not being used.

"The entire wood product is converted into energy," says Freerks. "There's no aromatics, sulfur or other contaminants. It's really just diesel fuel without all the bad agents in it."

Ontario has already garnered international attention and praise for an array of innovative clean tech initiatives that have brought the province to the forefront of clean tech investment. The foundation of Ontario's innovations and leadership is that the province makes it easier for business to do clean technology business. Ontario is also committed to protecting the environment. It has implemented a forestry stewardship policy to administer and regulate sustainable forest management practices on Crown land through arrangements with its business partners.

The wood fibre will come from the boreal forest surrounding the Pic River First Nation and Pic Mobert in northern Ontario. The region's potential commercial value was untapped until the federal government's Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) agency and Rentech began discussing the possibility of a biomass facility that could turn wood pulp into energy. SDTC is reviewing Rentech's application for up to C$200 million from SDTC's NextGen Biofuels Fund to help fund capital construction. Rentech intends to build its jet fuel facility where an idle Domtar plant sits in the Town of White River.

At a time when, as Rentech CEO Ramsbottom puts it, airlines "are clamouring for these fuels", Ontario also offers quick rail access to the Toronto International Airport, where the 85 million litres to be produced annually at the plant will find ready buyers.

What does a story like Rentech's say about what Ontario has to offer aerospace investors? It says that Ontario has the business environment not only to make aero innovation profitable but also groundbreaking.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's more than 350 aerospace firms sell more than $4 billion annually and employ over 19,000 skilled and talented workers.
  
  
• Made-in-Ontario components are used in more than 100 global aerospace programs. The Airbus A380, Boeing 787 and the U.S.-led Joint Strike Fighter (F-35) use made-in-Ontario components.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Aerospace Industry
• Ontario Aerospace Council

A new 'clean room' at the University of Windsor's new Centre of Engineering Innovation will provide space for students to learn and conduct groundbreaking research. A 'clean room' is a specialized facility with an atmosphere-control system that regulates the temperature, humidity and level of contaminants to the exact standards needed for aerospace manufacturing and for scientific research.

Dr. Alan Wildeman, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University says, "We are grateful to the Ontario government for today's announcement which will enable the University of Windsor to move forward with a very exciting aerospace engineering program in a region of Ontario that is witnessing a growing capacity in the aviation industry. This investment will enable the Faculty of Engineering to proceed to have the critical capacity it needs to finalize the establishment of an aerospace program to coincide with the opening of our Centre for Engineering Innovation in the fall of 2012."

Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade, stated that "As we enter the second century of flight, new innovation and expertise are required to build the next generation of aircraft. This investment will not only support Windsor's growing capability in the aviation industry, but it also builds on its existing strengths."

Ontario's leading aerospace companies have an edge that helps them win major contracts in global markets. That edge includes a deep pool of talent, competitive business costs, and a world-class commitment to innovation.

Ontario's innovation edge is part of the reason why made-in-Ontario components are involved in more than 100 aerospace programs in countries around the world. The Airbus A380, Boeing 787 and the U.S.-led Joint Strike Fighter all include high quality products manufactured in Ontario by companies such as Goodrich Landing Gear, Messier-Dowty, Honeywell, Pratt & Whitney Canada and Magellan Aerospace. The final assembly of the Bombardier CL-415, the amphibious firefighting aircraft is performed in North Bay, Ontario.

QUICK FACTS

• The broad range of aerospace activities and products in Ontario include aircraft assembly, aero-engines and parts, assembly of aircraft engines, engine systems and components, aircraft systems and parts, simulation and training, aircraft maintenance, repair, and overhaul,avionics and mission systems and space technologies.
  
  
• Ontario's more than 350 aerospace firms sell more than $4 billion annually and employ over 19,000 skilled and talented workers.
  
  
• Made-in-Ontario components are used in more than 100 global aerospace programs. The Airbus A380, Boeing 787 and the U.S.-led Joint Strike Fighter (F-35) use made-in-Ontario components.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Aerospace Industry

In its analysis, PwC ranked cities in ten categories – measures designed, as PwC describes it, to favour "holistic capital market centres with vibrant economies and strong quality of life." According to PwC, "Our thesis is that a successful city going forward will balance both social and economic strengths so the people and infrastructure support each other."

Toronto ranks particularly high in two of the categories most closely correlated with global competitiveness: Intellectual Capital & Innovation (2nd) and Health, Safety & Security (2nd). "The successful modern urban economy," says PwC, "is reliant on, if not yet solely the product of, intelligence and social well-being."

Toronto also ranks high on Demographics and Liveability (#3), Lifestyle Assets (4th), Ease of Doing Business (5th), Sustainability (5th) and Cost (5th).

The PwC report sums up with the observation that, "to sustain success, cities today must continually attract and retain highly educated, technologically adept and digitally connected knowledge workers who increasingly make up the core of their human capital and whose definition of quality of life is exacting and not easily compromised ... More than a centre of global business and finance alone, Toronto is a community in which people want to live and expect to lead rich and meaningful lives."

Earlier this year, Toronto, Ontario was ranked for the first time in the top ten on another closely followed index, the Global Financial Centres Index. Toronto was tied with Sydney, Australia, on the list, which was published in March. Toronto is also ranked among the top ten global financial centres by Britain's influential financial magazine, The Banker.

SecureKey, a privately held company, designs hardware and software solutions to enable the strong cryptographic capabilities of debit, credit and identity smartcards including those within NFC based phones to be used for online authentication and online purchases. SecureKey's products are used by financial institutions, card issuers, merchants, health care providers, government organizations and others to offer online customers the security of touch-to-pay instant checkout and strong mutual, or two-way, authentication.

Intel Capital invests in a broad range of companies offering hardware, software, and services targeting enterprise, home, mobility, health, consumer Internet, semiconductor manufacturing and clean technologies. The firm's investment in SecureKey is part of a recent spate of Intel Capital investments, totalling US $26 million, to leading tech firms, intended to drive continued innovation across the mobile hardware, software and applications ecosystems, and to enhance the user experience across a continuum of devices, including handhelds, tablets and laptops.

George Thangadurai, General Manager of Intel's PC Client Services Group says that "SecureKey's solutions provide a powerful user experience that can be delivered across platforms improving both the security and convenience of online transactions." "We are thrilled with our association with Intel." said Greg Wolfond, CEO of SecureKey Technologies. "Intel is the world leader in providing the chips and technologies that power the computing devices we use every day."

Furthermore, Intel's announcement stated that SecureKey's "focus on secure transactions aligns with Intel's vision of security as a key pillar of computing across all platforms, as more peoples' lives are conducted online."

SecureKey's system reduces online fraud by leveraging the security chips embedded in many existing credit and debit cards. The system allows users making online purchases to simply tap their credit or debit card on a physical USB device (called the SecureKey). If the card is valid, SecureKey retrieves the user's personal information and completes the website's "checkout" form.

SecureKey is one of 16,000+ ICT firms in Ontario that are creating innovative, cutting-edge products and services with global impact. Ontario's ICT industry generates annual revenues of $75 billion+ and includes leaders in every sector, from telecommunications to software development and services; digital media to microelectronics. Ontario's ICT industry is booming thanks to a well-educated and wage-competitive workforce, sophisticated R&D infrastructure, positive investment climate, and strategic location in the heart of North America

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario has one of North America`s largest concentrations of ICT leaders, including home-grown firms such as Celestica, Mitel Networks, and Research In Motion (RIM), and global giants such as Accenture, Alcatel-Lucent, AMD, Cisco Systems, Ericsson, HP, IBM, McAfee, Microsoft, Oracle and Siemens. Supporting this is a broad base of sub-suppliers – from packaging companies to legal advisors - that understand ICT industry needs.
  
  
• Four of Ontario's ICT leaders - Aastra Technologies, IBM Canada, Open Text and RIM - collectively spend more than $1.8 billion annually in R&D.

LEARN MORE

• Find out about Ontario's ICT sector

Ontario attracted a total of 127 FDI projects in 2010, 8.1 per cent of all projects into North America. This generated an estimated US$6.1 billion of capital investment (9% of capital investment into North America) and an estimated 11,211 jobs (8 per cent of jobs created by FDI into North America). At number one, California accounted for 11 per cent of investment projects in North America.

This ranking further affirms Ontario's rising stature as a global investment destination. Ontario - Canada's economic powerhouse, and the seventh largest economy in North America - has emerged especially as a North American hub for international investment. The province's stable and growing economy, skilled and reliable workforce, environment of innovation, proximity to market, competitive business costs  and quality of life have made it an investment destination of choice for leading firms across industries worldwide.

Top 20 N. American States/Provinces for FDI Projects per 1,000,000 of population in 2010

Destination State/Province	FDI Projects per 1,000,000 of population
Ontario	10.0
South Carolina	9.1
New Brunswick	8.2
Prince Edward Island	7.4
North Carolina	7.3
Indiana	7.3
Delaware	6.7
Rhode Island	6.7
Nova Scotia	6.6
New York	6.4
Alabama	6.3
Alberta	6.2
Massachusetts	6.1
Kentucky	6.0
Kansas	5.3
Saskatchewan	5.2
Georgia	5.2
British Columbia	4.9
Tennessee	4.9
Ohio	4.9

The US is the top source market for FDI into Ontario accounting for 66 projects, 52 per cent of all FDI into Ontario in 2010. Germany, UK, Spain and Japan complete the top five source countries for FDI into Ontario. Together the top five source countries accounted for 78 per cent of all FDI projects into Ontario.

Top 20 N. American States/Provinces by No of FDI Projects in 2010

Destination State/Province	No of FDI Projects
California	172
Ontario	127
New York	126
Texas	92
Florida	72
North Carolina	70
Ohio	56
Georgia	52
Indiana	47
Illinois	45
South Carolina	42
Massachusetts	40
Quebec	32
Michigan	31
Tennessee	31
Alabama	30
Virginia	30
Pennsylvania	30
New Jersey	27
Kentucky	26
Other	395
Total	1,573

The top four sectors for FDI Projects into Ontario in 2010 were electronic components, software and IT services, business services, financial services, with Ontario's FDI of projects related to electronic components comprising an impressive 22 per cent of market share of FDI into North America by percentage.

Ontario ranked as the third top destination state/province in North America in 2010, attracting a total of US$6.1 billion of capital investment through greenfield FDI. When relating this investment to the population size, Ontario attracted US$482.4m capital investment per million of the population, ranking it 6th relative to other North American states/provinces.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's GDP, at US$473 billion, is larger than that of many countries.
• Ontario is home to the majority - 58 per cent - of foreign-controlled head offices in Canada.
• Ontario offers investors excellent market access, with over 153 million consumers located within a day's drive.
• Overall, 63% of Ontario's population has a post-secondary education.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Economy Grows For Sixth Consecutive Quarter
• 2011 Ontario Budget: Planning for Economic Growth and Investment Success

Keith Thomas, for one.

And some of the world's biggest agri-chemical companies think the Ontario-based entrepreneur might just be right.

If he is, it will have a huge impact on water use by farmers around the world and significantly reduce the stress on global groundwater systems.

Agriculture consumes more than 70 per cent of the water used worldwide. Most of that is used for irrigation and spraying fertilizers, pesticides and other chemicals designed to protect crops and increase the harvest.

Crop protection plays a vital role in the global food chain. Without it, an estimated 40 per cent of the world would starve.

Central to the crop protection challenge is that most herbicides and pesticides contain chemicals that can leach into the groundwater. These chemicals are needed to help the active ingredient dissolve in water so it can be absorbed by the crops.

The good news is that a remarkable new process pioneered by Ontario-based Vive Inc. simply and cleanly eliminates the need for that chemical soup.

The Vive Nano process wraps a biodegradable, nano-sized polymer cage around the active ingredient of the herbicide or pesticide which allows it to be dissolved in water. The result is the potential for cleaner water run-off from the fields and reduced groundwater contamination, which means more clean safe water is available for an increasingly thirsty world.

"We have a disruptive technology that is green from beginning to end," says Vive CEO Keith Thomas. "We make crop protection effective and environmentally friendly."

"The beauty of our process is that it is industrially robust," Thomas continues. "At the beginning, we even tested this by making components in garbage pails. Now we use vats from an old brewery."

Since Vive was launched five years ago, the company has won a number of prestigious technology awards, including a 2009 Deloitte Technology Green 15 Award and the 2010 North American Frost & Sullivan Award for Technology Innovation.

A spin-off from the University of Toronto, Vive has received financial support of almost $3.8 million from the Ontario government's Innovation Demonstration Fund and a similar amount from Sustainable Development Technology Canada.

Ontario's Innovation Demonstration Fund is one component of the provincial government's $3 billion drive to accelerate the commercialization of new technologies developed in its academic and publicly funded research labs. The broader commercialization system includes project funding for researchers, regional networks that connect ideas and expertise, and organizations such as Ontario Centres of Excellence and MaRS that help improve the success rate of technology transfers to the marketplace.

One of the key challenges is that Ontario has an exceptionally broad research community. More than 100,000 people are involved with R&D in the province. Annual R&D expenditures top $13.8 billion.

Over the years, an impressive list of scientific and technology breakthroughs have come from Ontario researchers: the BlackBerry, the discovery of stems cells, the development of 3D software, the first external pacemaker and other innovations stretching back to the discovery of insulin.

Today, Ontario has leading research centres in virtually every area including advanced materials, life sciences and digital communications. There are, for example, more than 21 research centres dedicated to solving water-related issues.

This high level of public support is backed by one of the most generous R&D tax credit programs in the G7, which is broader in scope than programs offered in most jurisdictions and provides additional tax credits for partnerships with publicly funded research institutes.

The research networks, government support and tax incentives are all terrific but there's another reason that makes Ontario a great place to grow a cutting edge company, says Vive's Thomas: the talent pool.

"We advertised for a PhD in synthetic organic chemistry, which is a very specialized niche, and we received 300 applications from all over," he says. "People want to come here. It's an amazingly diverse place to live. No matter where you come from, you'll find someone here from your home country."

The right people in the right place at the right time - it's every company's dream and, in Vive's case, it looks like they found it all in Ontario.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario has 900 water and water industry-related companies, including over 300 providing innovative, clean water technologies.
  
  
• The province is home to 21+ water-related institutes, and seven universities and colleges have research institutes working in the water sector.
  
  
• The Ontario water sector employs 22,000 people, including about 1,400 in the clean technologies sector.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Clean Water Industry
• Backgrounder: The Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act
• Ontario's Global Water Leadership Summit

In Ontario, more than 300 companies have developed innovative water technologies  and several have blossomed into world leaders in niche markets. One of the best known of these companies is TrojanUV.

Based in London, Ontario, TrojanUV develops and manufactures innovative water systems that use ultraviolet light technology to purify wastewater and drinking water. Over the past 33 years, the company has grown to become a global leader in UV technology. It has the largest installed base of UV water treatment facilities in the world, a list that includes over 7,000 municipal systems on six continents.

Today, the company has 750 employees worldwide, with manufacturing facilities in London and Guelph, Ontario, California and Germany. It's a remarkable transformation for a company that, in 1978, was a small metalworking shop whose main business was making toolboxes.

"What sets TrojanUV apart from most companies in our industry is our commitment to R&D," says TrojanUV president Marv DeVries. "We invest about five per cent of our top line in R&D and that's allowed us to expand into markets. We now have about 180 patents and patents pending."

Some of TrojanUV's research is done in-house and some has been in partnership with local universities. Ontario is internationally recognized as a centre for water research, with more than 21 institutes  dedicated to water-related research across the province. To further encourage R&D by companies, Ontario offers one of the most generous R&D tax incentive programs in the G7.

"Government support for R&D has been very important for us," says DeVries.

That's a sentiment echoed by Jodi Glover, co-founder and CEO of Real Tech Inc., a Whitby-based a start-up.

Real Tech has twice received Deloitte Technology Green 15 awards for their remarkable success in developing affordable and reliable water quality monitoring technology.

In many ways, Real Tech is a classic story of an entrepreneurial family business with a high-tech twist.

"I grew up in the water business," says Glover, explaining how her dad, Ron Hallett who worked in the water treatment sector for years before starting his own company, UV Pure, a company that develops water purification technologies using ultraviolet radiation.

Recognizing a need in the water industry for a small portable unit that could quickly test for organic contaminants, Jodi and her husband Andrew, an engineer, started Real Tech.

Recognizing a need in the water industry for a small portable unit that could quickly test for organic contaminants, Jodi and her husband Andrew, an engineer, started Real Tech. "We knew that there was a real market opportunity since traditional water quality testing can take days to complete in a central laboratory using delicate and very expensive equipment."

Andrew began researching approaches that could overcome many of the challenges faced by such analytical instrumentation. The result was Real Tech's breakthrough product, a portable, reliable and affordable water analyzer that was rugged enough to be tossed into the back of a truck. With a few minutes training, a technician could take one of the units out in the field, draw a water sample, test it and see the results on-the-spot.

Real Tech has since expanded its technology platform and product line to include real-time online quality monitoring for large treatment systems. They have also racked up sales in 32 countries to customers including the Ontario Ministry of Health, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, NASA, Coca Cola and almost every major water company, including TrojanUV.

"We wouldn't be here without the support we received from the Ontario government," says Glover. "The support for R&D, marketing, labour costs - it's amazing."

Equally vital for growing companies is the ability to attract and retain top talent, says TrojanUV's Marv DeVries. Often that comes down to quality of life and, for TrojanUV, London Ontario has what it takes.

"London offers a person a great balance of living," he says. "Housing costs are relatively low, and there are education and recreation opportunities that are important for the young people with families that we are looking to hire."

Ontario offers water technology companies research expertise, an exceptional talent pool and a range of government supports to bolster their chances of building global market leadership. Will the next generation tackled the emerging water challenges and find success? If the Ontario industry track record is any indicator, the answer is a resounding yes.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario has 900 water and water industry-related companies, including over 300 providing innovative, clean water technologies.
  
  
• The province is home to 21+ water-related institutes, and seven universities and colleges have research institutes working in the water sector.
  
  
• The Ontario water sector employs 22,000 people, including about 1,400 in the clean technologies sector.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Clean Water Industry
• Backgrounder: The Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act
• Ontario's Global Water Leadership Summit

With the need for clean fresh water growing daily, finding answers to those questions is a top priority for researchers at G360, the new Centre for Applied Groundwater Research at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada.

The state-of-the-art G360 centre has several components: a Bedrock Aquifer Field Facility, two analytical laboratories, nearly 20 field research sites in North and South America, Europe and Asia and, in the future, a Groundwater Discovery Centre on the university campus.

"Our goal is to provide a research centre where anyone in the world can come, test their theories and do research," says the G360 Centre's Director, Dr. Beth Parker, a University of Guelph engineering professor and one of Canada's leading scientists in groundwater contamination. Dr. Parker's research is supported by $5 million through the Ontario Research Fund, along with annual funding by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and private companies.

One particular focus of the new G360 institute is researching the behaviour of chlorinated solvents in fractured sedimentary bedrock. Chlorinated solvents are common industrial chemicals used in a wide variety of every day processes from dry cleaning to de-greasing equipment. As such, they are some of the most prevalent environmental contaminants in the world and particularly difficult ones to clean up.

The challenge is that the rock adsorbs the contaminants and the fractured rock structure enables the chemicals to migrate deep through natural cracks and channels in all directions through the aquifer, making environmental clean-up and remediation difficult and expensive.

Since most of the world's fresh water passes through aquifers at some point, understanding how to maintain them is a critically important global issue, especially with the growing demand for more and more clean water.

"This knowledge is needed to help us make better decisions not just in Canada but around the world," says Dr. Parker. "Understanding aquifers is directly related to water-use planning and protecting our water supply."

To discover the answers, G360 researchers are drilling a network of boreholes and wells across the University of Guelph campus and throughout the City of Guelph which sits atop one of Canada's largest bedrock aquifers. The resulting information will produce the most detailed portrait of an aquifer in an urban setting anywhere in the world. As such, it will provide an invaluable benchmarking tool for scientists and engineers worldwide who are working to solve local issues and develop more effective remediation technologies.

The project is a collaboration of three Ontario universities with expertise in water resource engineering - the universities of Guelph, McMaster and Waterloo - and includes cross-disciplinary collaborations with universities in Quebec, Switzerland and the United States.

The G360 centre is the latest addition to a network of more than 21 research institutes in Ontario that are dedicated to both finding answers to water-related issues as well as training the next generation of water scientists.

The University of Guelph, for example, is also the lead institution for the University Consortium for Field-Focused Groundwater Contamination Research. The consortium is an international scientific collaboration that involves eight Canadian and U.S. universities, connections with the U.S. Geological Survey and several European institutions, and company sponsors that include Boeing Aerospace, DuPont, Dow Chemicals, Lockheed Martin, Schlumberger Water Services, General Electric and others.

Other nearby research centres include the National Water Research Institute, which has almost 400 scientific and technical professionals conducting research into water-related environmental issues; the Water Institute  at the University of Waterloo, which brings together the expertise of more than 100 faculty members from six faculties and close to 20 departments; and the United Nations University - Institute for Water, Environment and Health, which acts as the UN's think-tank on water.

To build on this remarkable pool of expertise, the Ontario government recently passed the Water Opportunities Act. The goal is to make Ontario the leading clean water jurisdiction in North America by the development of innovative water technologies and encouraging smarter water use within the province.

Through initiatives like these, Ontario researchers and water technology companies can develop the innovative solutions needed for a world that is getting thirstier every day.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario has 900 water and water industry-related companies, including over 300 providing innovative, clean water technologies.
  
  
• The province is home to 21+ water-related institutes, and seven universities and colleges have research institutes working in the water sector.
  
  
• The Ontario water sector employs 22,000 people, including about 1,400 in the clean technologies sector.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Clean Water Industry
• Backgrounder: The Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act
• Ontario's Global Water Leadership Summit

In fact, many of these environmental benefits are just a bonus because cutting costs was the real driver behind the corporate decision to re-use and recycle the waste stream – something that comes as no surprise to Rocky Simmons, President and CEO of Eco-Tec, based in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario.

"If you can solve an environmental problem by making or saving money, it gets done," says Simmons bluntly. "If it's just a good idea, people won't do it."

Eco-Tec makes award-winning water treatment and chemical recovery equipment for industrial users. Some of their largest customers are in the northern area of Japan, which is a major manufacturing hub for the automotive industry and where the earthquake damage was greatest.

"A closed loop system is good for business and good for the environment," says Simmons.

Eco-Tec is one of Ontario's leading water technology companies, an industry that includes more than 300 firms  specializing in everything from cutting-edge purification systems to infrastructure engineering.

Winner of 20 awards for innovation, Eco-Tec started out more than 40 years ago as a joint venture between auto parts company WIX Canada and professors from the University of Toronto. The focus was on chemical recovery and Simmons, a recent PhD. graduate in chemical engineering, was Eco-Tec's first R&D manager. Since then, the company has grown with customers worldwide in the oil, gas, mining and advanced manufacturing industries.

Cracking the Japanese market can be very tough, as many companies have discovered. Simmons believes one core attribute underlies Eco-Tec's success.

"We are fanatics about quality," he says. "The Japanese market absolutely demands it."

Simmons also traces that focus on quality back to Eco-Tec's beginnings.

"We have an automotive background and a lot of the systems we use come from that industry," he says. "We use just-in-time manufacturing processes and everything is tested for quality control. Guessing is not allowed in this company – there is no such thing as an estimate. Everything is calculated and checked."

It's not surprising that Ontario's auto industry has had far-reaching impacts on the province's advanced manufacturing sector. For one thing, it's big. It includes six of the world's top automakers and more than 450 parts manufacturers. Together, they produce more vehicles than any other North American jurisdiction.

With its high engineering standards, efficient production systems and emphasis on R&D, the auto sector has helped create a business environment focused on competitive excellence that is now supporting a rapidly growing clean water industry.

Ontario's network of 20 universities and 24 colleges, for example, trains students in every field from the skilled trades to the most advanced areas of science, engineering and business. More than 35,000 students graduate each year in mathematics, engineering and science,  creating a tremendous talent pool for technology-oriented companies.

Ontario's auto sector heritage is also reflected in the R&D community, which includes not only world-leading centres of expertise in advanced materials and other manufacturing-focussed fields but is broad enough to include 21 research centres dedicated to water-related issues.  To further stimulate R&D, Ontario offers companies one of the most generous R&D tax incentive programs in the G7.

This R&D and manufacturing expertise, coupled with the availability of a highly skilled workforce, has enabled a number of Ontario clean water companies to grow into world leaders in niche markets and has helped Canada become one of the world's largest exporters of water technology.

While the Japanese earthquake may serve as an environmental wake-up call for some corporations, more companies may be persuaded to adopt "closed loop" and other clean water processes spurred by the bottom-line benefits offered by Eco-Tec and other innovative Ontario water technology companies. Either way, the forecast is for continued growth.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario has 900 water and water industry-related companies, including over 300 providing innovative, clean water technologies.
  
  
• The province is home to 21+ water-related institutes, and seven universities and colleges have research institutes working in the water sector.
  
  
• The Ontario water sector employs 22,000 people, including about 1,400 in the clean technologies sector.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Clean Water Industry
• Backgrounder: The Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act
• Ontario's Global Water Leadership Summit

Unirac, headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, makes mounting systems used to install and hold solar panels in place. The firm's new Ontario-based subsidiary will be managed by Unirac Inc.’s CEO, Doug May, and will offer solutions to enable customers to participate and meet requirements in Ontario’s groundbreaking Feed-in-Tariff (FIT) and microFIT programs.

The linchpin of solar and other renewable energy opportunities for investors in Ontario is the province's Green Energy Act (GEA), which firmly establishes Ontario as the North American leader in producing and using renewable energy. Key components of the Green Energy Act are the FIT and microFIT programs, the first in North America, which offer long-term price guarantees for renewable electricity generators. The FIT, for example, has several key benefits, including:

• a design that allows all sizes of generators, from homeowners to large developers, to participate;
• prices that are intended to cover total project costs and provide a reasonable rate of return over a 20-year contract (40 years for waterpower);
• openness to various renewable energy technologies: biogas, biomass, landfill gas, solar photovoltaic (PV), wind and waterpower;
• a straightforward process to obtain a contract for renewable electricity generation;
• differential prices reflecting different technologies and different project sizes;
• reasonable domestic content requirements.

"While we have been manufacturing in Ontario for almost a year now, establishing this full-service subsidiary ensures Unirac's ability to support Ontario customers and partners locally," said Doug May, president and CEO of Unirac. "Unirac Canada's goal is to continually exceed our Canadian customers' and partners' expectations, helping them maximize the return on their investments while creating a cleaner environment."

Last year, Ontario installed 168 megawatts of solar photovoltaic capacity, surpassing New Jersey as the second leading North American jurisdiction for new solar projects during 2010. This has provoked a flurry of investment activity, as investors seize opportunities for expansion amidst Ontario's growing network of renewable energy generators and for manufacturers of renewable energy products and services.

The GEA provides the stable investment environment required for companies to make the capital and human resource investments necessary to grow and succeed in the burgeoning renewable energy industry.

LEARN MORE

• Find out about Ontario's Green Energy Act
• Find out more about Ontario's Feed-in Tariff (FIT) and microFIT programs
• Learn more about renewable energy in Ontario

The sites have been designed to enhance the experience of users in our vital China, Germany and Japanese markets and will facilitate their understanding of the Province's investment and business opportunities.

The new websites are yet another phase in our continuous improvements to the Invest In Ontario website. Recent enhancements have included the addition of more content related to specific sectors, and most prominently the launch of Select Ontario, Ontario's award-winning geographic information system (GIS) tool.

The launch of these sites offers new information to give international investors more focused and immediate access to information about Ontario's wealth of competitive advantages.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

• Invest In Ontario Chinese Site
• Invest In Ontario German Site
• Invest In Ontario Japanese Site

Business climate indicators in Ontario - employment, business confidence, corporate profits - reveal a history of solid growth and ongoing investments. At the national level, the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) April 2011 economic outlook forecasts Canada's gross domestic product to grow 2.8 per cent this year and 2.6 per cent in 2012.

Fourth-quarter growth was led by strong growth in exports and continued gains in consumer spending and business investment. Business spending on machinery and equipment rose sharply in 2010 by more than 11 per cent.

Ontario has also fared well compared to most other provinces and U.S. states. Since May 2009, Ontario employment has grown 3.6 per cent, above that of the other large Canadian provinces and well ahead of all comparable U.S. states.

This reflects in part the positive impact of Ontario's efforts to make the province attractive to businesses by lowering corporate income taxes, thus making Ontario more competitive and ensuring the province continues to attract new investment.

For example, following comprehensive initiatives begun in 2009, Ontario's general corporate income tax (CIT) rate has fallen from 14 per cent in 2009 to 11.5 per cent.

With a total combined provincial and federal (15 per cent) corporate income tax rate of 26.5 per cent, Ontario's combined general federal-provincial CIT rate is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal-state CIT rate in the United States.

These tax initiatives are in addition to Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) input tax credits, capital tax elimination, Business Education Tax (BET) rate reductions and savings from a single corporate tax administration.

These comprehensive tax reforms position Ontario as one of the most attractive jurisdictions in the industrialized world for new investment.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario's real exports rose 11.2 per cent in 2010, reversing a 13.2 per cent decline in 2009.
• Real consumer spending rose 1.4 per cent in the fourth quarter, its strongest quarterly gain in three years.
• Ontario has recovered 93 per cent of jobs lost during the global recession. From May 2009 to March 2011, 239,000 net new jobs have been created.

LEARN MORE

• Read the Q4 Ontario Economic Accounts.
• See how Ontario's recent tax changes are promoting job creation by making Ontario more competitive.

Consensus among the international group of experts and stakeholders was that Canada, with its vast water resources and leading expertise in water management and technological innovation, will lead global efforts to confront conservation, drought, water quality and other concerns, according to a panel of experts.

According to experts, demand for water in many regions will exceed supply by an estimated 40 per cent in 15 to 20 years. Bernadette Conant, CWN executive director, told Postmedia news that "Canada has been the birthplace of world-changing water treatment technology, massive cleanups and changing regulations. We can tackle the problem."

Ontario, Canada, already a North American leader in developing water technologies and services, is fast becoming a global centre of clean water technology development and protection. The province will continue to play a significant role in global water initiatives and leadership. Ontario is home to over 300 innovative Ontario water technology companies, producing-leading UV and membrane technologies and next-generation smart solutions that meet the challenges of energy efficiency, aging infrastructure and water security. Ontario firms are recognized leaders in ultraviolet disinfection, compact sewage treatment, water information and systems software, and plant design and operation.

The water technology sector is valued at more than $400 billion worldwide, doubling every five to six years. Experts forecast that the market for to discover, manage, filter, disinfect and distribute water will grow to $1-trillion by 2020. Canada is a leading player within the market.

Ontario Minister of Economic Development and Trade Sandra Pupatello, who gave a keynote address at the conference, says that "Ontario companies are already leading the way globally, employing 22,000 people and selling technologies and services for water around the world. We are paving the way for the growth of Ontario's water technology sector in the rapidly expanding global market."

Ontario has already garnered international attention and praise for an array of innovative renewable energy, water and clean tech initiatives. The province's Green Energy Act, introduced in May 2009, and the Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act, introduced in November 2010, have established Ontario as a leader in renewable energy, water management and technology, biomass and clean tech development. These wide-ranging and proactive initiatives enable the province to offer communities and companies all over the world the tools they need to create a cleaner, greener future.

Ontario's water industry encompasses 900 firms and 22,000 employees. It includes well-known global players such as Veolia Water, Danaher, Trojan Technologies, Hayward Gordon, Biorem Technologies, Eco-Tec, Napier-Reid, and UV Pure Technologies.

The province's wide-ranging expertise in water should come as no surprise given that Ontario has more than 250,000 fresh water lakes and vast stretches of green forest. The province is internationally recognized for its commitment to conservation and natural resource management.

The Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act specifically encourages the creation and export of innovative clean water technologies, promotes water conservation and attracts economic opportunities in the province.

To bolster home-grown water technology development and export, Ontario has set aside $5 million over three years for the Water Technology Acceleration Project (TAP), to spur the creation of partnerships between municipalities, industry, business, and academia.

Ontario's water strategy also encourages innovation and commercialization in the water sector. For example:

• the Innovation Demonstration Fund Water Round focuses on the commercialization and demonstration of water technologies and assists water technology companies with the potential to be globally competitive in demonstrating their innovative technologies in Ontario; and
  
  
• the Ontario Research Fund-Research Excellence program includes a focus on the development of water-related solutions, and recently concluded a competition for research projects in water and wastewater technologies.
  
  

Ontario will host the first Ontario Global Water Leadership Summit in May 2011, which will provide an opportunity to demonstrate Ontario's leadership in advancing innovative solutions for global water challenges.

QUICK FACTS

• The province is home to 21+ water-related institutes, and seven universities and colleges have research institutes working in the water sector.
  
  
• Ontario has 900 water and water industry-related companies, including over 300 providing innovative, clean water technologies.
  
  
• The Ontario water sector employs 22,000 people, including about 1,400 in the clean technologies sector.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Clean Water Industry
• Backgrounder: The Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act

The move is seen as a ringing endorsement of Canada's stable and secure investment climate and the rising profile of Toronto as one of the world's leading financial centres.

Analysts perceive the CIC's decision as both practical and strategic. The Wall Street Journal cites an observer of CIC's activities, noting that Canada "consistently made [CIC] feel welcome." The location choice also facilitates CIC's interest in continuing investments in resources, metals and minerals, agriculture and infrastructure.

David Emerson, former federal Trade and Foreign Affairs Minister and advisor to CIC, is quoted as saying that CIC's move, "Is symbolically and substantively significant because it speaks of CIC taking Canada very seriously and wanting to have a permanent presence here."

Global leaders recognize the competitive advantages of doing business here. Ontario generates more than 37% of Canada’s total GDP. Our GDP, at more than US$473 billion, is larger than that of Switzerland, Belgium, Austria or any of the Scandinavian countries.

Ontario - and Toronto in particular - has become one of North America's top financial services hubs. The Banker's 2010 International Financial Centers Index ranks Toronto second of financial centers in North America and seventh of 53 centres globally. The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) is the third largest financial centre in North America by employment after New York and Chicago. Toronto and the GTA are home to five of the largest domestic banks (all rank among the world top 300); 39 foreign bank subsidiaries or branches and 129 securities firms; and five of the top 300 global pension funds (three rank among the top 50 for global AUM). Toronto is also home to the eighth largest stock exchange in the world based on domestic equity market capitalization.

A sophisticated yet stable business environment ensures Ontario is the powerhouse that drives Canadian financial services.

Rise in Green Energy Investment

The past year saw the rise of Ontario as a centre of major renewable energy investment and innovation. The advent of the Green Energy and Green Economy Act, 2009 – passed into law on May 14, 2009 – firmly established Ontario as the North American leader in producing and using renewable energy. The result has been a series of major investments by international companies in this burgeoning sector. (See "Renewable Energy" below for more details.)

The auto industry, hard hit globally by decreased demand due to the recession, as well as evolutionary change as the industry shifts to more fuel efficient technologies and designs, also saw major activity in Ontario. At year-end 2010 and year-starting 2011, Ontario's auto industry continued to bounce back with the production launch of new car models, as well as significant investments by companies in Ontario auto plants. A close look at a slew of new car models unveiled at the Detroit Auto show in January 2011 revealed that Ontario suppliers and manufacturers continue to lead the way in the North American auto sector. (Again, see below for more details.)

The year ahead promises to see continued growth and investment in a number of sectors. Select a sector to see 2010 recaps:

• Advanced Manufacturing
• Aerospace
• Automotive
• Financial Services
• ICT and Digital Media
• Environment & Alternative Energy
• Life Sciences
• Mining
• Nanotechnology

Advanced Manufacturing

Recap 2010

• Ontario attracted significant foreign investment in the advanced manufacturing sector in 2010.
• Steel produced by the industry is used primarily by global auto manufacturers operating in North America and for high strength hotrolled threadbar by the construction and mining industries.
• Late in the year, Ontario provided a $9-million loan to support Max Aicher (North America) Inc.'s plans to reopen a former steel mill. Max Aicher will invest $106.25-million to install new machinery and equipment that will improve manufacturing of new and innovative products in Canada including a finishing mill at the Hamilton site.
• Ontario Advanced Manufacturing News.

Aerospace

Recap 2010

• Mid-year 2010 saw more than 350 aerospace suppliers active in Ontario. In 2010 Ontario's aerospace sector saw continued involvement in more than 100 international projects such as the Airbus A350 and A380, Boeing 787 and the U.S.-led F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
• In July 2010, Ontario partnered with the Ontario Aerospace Council (OAC) to present the Ontario aerospace industry to the world at the Farnborough International Airshow 2010.
• Ontario Aerospace News.

Automotive

Recap 2010

• In 2010 and leading into 2011, Ontario's auto sector continues to rev up.
• Since December 2009, four of Ontario's five vehicle manufacturers have announced production, employment or investment increases at their Ontario plants.
• Between January and November 2010, Ontario produced 1.92 million vehicles, an increase of 43 per cent over the same period of 2009.
• In total, Ontario's auto industry supports about 400,000 direct and indirect jobs across the province. Statistics Canada released new data in early January 2011 that indicates Ontario has regained 96 per cent of jobs lost during the recession.
• Ontario Automotive News.

Financial Services

Recap 2010

• International efforts to recover from the global recession and to establish sound regulatory and fiscal policies only highlighted how well Canada has weathered the turbulence.
• Toronto, Ontario's role as the hub of Canada's financial markets and banking system was highlighted by two significant events:
  
  • In September 2010, the Government of Ontario, the Government of Canada and financial sector leaders announced plans to launch the Global Risk Institute in Financial Services (GRi) in Toronto. Federal and provincial governments are each providing $10 million towards the institute's initial funding. The institute will build on Canada's growing international reputation in financial risk management.
  • The year ended on a high note for Ontario's financial services sector as the Government of Ontario and partners hosted the first Toronto Financial Services Day in New York, an educational program that brought together senior executives from financial services and technology related companies in Toronto and New York to learn about and explore business opportunities between the two economies.
• Ontario Financial Services News.

ICT and Digital Media

Recap 2010

• At year-end 2010, Ontario has the third-largest entertainment and creative sector in North America, after California and New York. Ontario's digital media industry generates more than $1 billion annually.
• With 16,000+ firms and annual revenues of $75 billion+, Ontario has one of the largest concentrations of world-leading, innovative ICT companies in North America.
• In April 2010, the government of Ontario announced a $7 million grant to SiGe Semiconductor Inc., an Ottawa company, to help the firm develop innovative, advanced wireless components.
• Ontario is investing $9 million over three years to help the Canadian Film Centre continue its leadership role in developing world-class talent and to help expand its acclaimed training programs and further develop Ontario's screen-based and digital entertainment market. This provincial support builds on a $10 million investment in the film centre announced in 2005.
• In November 2010, Huawei, one of the world's leading telecommunications technology companies, announced a major investment in its Ottawa research and development centre. Huawei is investing $67 million, including a $6.5-million grant from Ontario.
• Early in 2011, Huawei officially opened its Canadian Headquarters in Markham, Ontario. The new 46,000-square-foot facility includes sales and marketing capabilities as well as a state-of-the-art test lab, which are designed to leverage local talent and capitalize on Canada's rich history as a driving force in the telecommunications industry.
• In 2010, the Ryerson Digital Media Zone (DMZ), received increased international media attention. The DMZ, a leading-edge digital technology incubator driving Ontario's high tech future with digital media innovations and solutions, has helped launch 14 companies. The DMZ is supported, in part, from over $186 million in operating funding from the Ontario government in 2009-10. Products developed at DMZ, currently on the market, include mobile photo sharing app Burstn, the service app Mobile Transit Companion for the Paris Metro system and social buying site TeamSave.
• Ontario ICT and Digital Media News.

Environment & Alternative Energy

Recap 2010

• Ontario took great strides in 2010 in implementing the Green Energy Act and attracting global investment drawn to the Feed-in Tariff (FiT) program. The province has become a go-to jurisdiction for investment in wind, solar, hydro and other renewable technologies.
• Things got started on a very high note in January 2010 when the Ontario government signed an agreement with Samsung C&T Corporation and the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO). The firms are investing $7 billion to generate 2,500 megawatts of wind and solar power. These projects will triple Ontario's output from renewable wind and solar sources and provide clean electricity to more than 580,000 households.
• Throughout 2010, Ontario was the locus of investment, growth and expansion, across the range of renewable energies by companies such as Solar Semiconductor, Bosch Solar, Enphase Energy, Sunlink, Canadian Solar Inc., ATS Automation Tooling Systems Inc., Melitron Corporation, Sustainable Energy Technologies, CS Wind, and Siemens Canada. Those are just to name a few of the companies that have entered the market.
• In November 2010, Ontario set out to further its leadership in the environment and renewables sector by introducing the Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act. The act builds on Ontario's expertise in water protection services and technology -- making our province the leading clean water jurisdiction in North America and making our expertise available to the world through the proposed Water Technology Acceleration Project (TAP) -- a technology hub bringing together industry, academics and government to develop the sector and promote it abroad.
• Ontario Environment & Alternative Energy News.

Life Sciences

Recap 2010

• In April 2010 Ontario joined forces with Merck and leading research institutions to develop new drugs to fight cancer. Ontario is supporting an oncology partnership involving Merck, the Princess Margaret Hospital and its research arm the Ontario Cancer Institute (OCI) - part of the University Health Network. The province is investing approximately $2.6 million through the Biopharmaceutical Investment Program to support the $17.3-million partnership.
• Ontario is taking a leading role worldwide in medical technology research, development and commercialization. Ontario has partnered with the Health Technology Exchange (HTX) to create a suite of programs designed to facilitate innovative healthcare delivery on a global scale and to help accelerate the development of the region's medical technology sector. Among the programs is Ontario's New Flagship Program for the Medical Technology Sector, designed to anchor multi-national enterprise (MNE) led global R&D initiatives in Ontario.
• In November 2010, Ontario took a major step to help the one million people in the province with neurological disorders and the 2.6 million Ontarians who will be affected by a neurological condition in their lifetime. The province will provide $15 million in start-up funding over the next three years to establish The Ontario Brain Institute, which will bring the province's top brain researchers together with people who know how to commercialize good ideas.
• Ontario Life Sciences News.

Mining

Recap 2010

• Ontario has been Canada’s leading metals producer for almost a century, producing more than 30 different metal and non-metal mineral products.
• Ontario produces about $10 billion worth of minerals a year from barite to zinc. Many of the northern Ontario towns and cities that produce mineral commodities are: Red Lake (gold), Hemlo (gold), Wawa (gold), Marathon (gold), Thunder Bay (gold, platinum/palladium, amethyst and agate), Timmins (gold, copper, zinc), and Sudbury (nickel, copper, platinum, palladium).
• In September 2010, Ontario appointed a new Ring of Fire Coordinator. The Coordinator will work with northerners, Aboriginal communities and the mining industry to help facilitate new mining development.
• In July, Sudbury software developer NCS Technology announced plans to introduce a new data management system to help mining companies enhance their competitiveness. The new system enhances the company's existing web-based interface that helps gather and analyze mining data.

Nanotechnology

Recap 2010

• The Quantum-Nano Centre at the University of Waterloo is a $160 million research centre that aims to propel the university and the province to the forefront of the science of the very small. When it opens in early 2011, the Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre (QNC) will be the only facility of its kind in the world – and the potential synergies produced by nano and quantum researchers working side by side promises to be truly groundbreaking.

The linchpin of solar and other renewable energy opportunities for investors in Ontario is the province's Green Energy Act (GEA), which firmly establishes Ontario as the North American leader in producing and using renewable energy. The GEA provides the stable investment environment required for companies to make the capital and human resource investments necessary to produce renewable energy in Ontario and provide it to the province's electrical grid, with prices guaranteed. Energy analyst and author Paul Gipe calls the legislation the "most progressive renewable policy in North America in three decades."

The Canadian Solar Industry Association (CanSIA) credits the Ontario government for creating forward-looking solar policies that have spurred the current installation growth. "We congratulate Ontario for being recognized globally as a leader in catalyzing the development of solar photovoltaic energy with its Feed-in Tariff program," the association's board of directors stated in Solar Vision 2025, the association's recent review of the Canadian solar industry.

Ontario's Feed-in Tariff (FIT) program, a component of the Green Energy Act, was the first in North America. It is part of the province's initiative to end the province's reliance on dirty energy sources such as coal and turn Ontario into a global leader in all aspects of renewable energy.  FIT offers long-term price guarantees for renewable electricity generators, making Ontario your first choice for project development. It's expected that Ontario's FIT program will encourage billions of dollars in investment to help Ontario's energy supply mix become one of the cleanest in North America. The FIT has several key benefits, including:

• a design that allows all sizes of generators, from homeowners to large developers, to participate;
• prices that are intended to cover total project costs and provide a reasonable rate of return over a 20-year contract (40 years for waterpower);
• openness to various renewable energy technologies: biogas, biomass, landfill gas, solar photovoltaic (PV), wind and waterpower;
• a straightforward process  to obtain a contract for renewable electricity generation;
• differential prices reflecting  different technologies and different project sizes;
• reasonable domestic content requirements.

FIT payments can range from 10.3 cents per kilowatt-hour (c/kWh) for landfill gas projects larger than 10 MW to 80.2 c/kWh for residential solar rooftop projects 10 kW or smaller.

Ontario's strategy to build a renewable energy future that's great for investment is seeing progress. Before the Green Energy Act, Ontario's total solar capacity was less than two megawatts. By the end of 2010, according to Gipe, capacity reached 215 megawatts.

That phenomenal expansion shows no signs of abating, providing a wide range of economic opportunities for new and existing investors. Renewable energy consulting firm ClearSky Advisors projects the province will add 3,000 megawatts of solar power capacity over the next five years, based on current approval rates.  It says that growth rate would produce 70,000 jobs.

Meanwhile, the Green Energy Act has led to Ontario firms becoming world leaders in solar energy technology. Canadian Solar Inc. of Kitchener recently announced it will supply modules for Europe's largest ever solar project, a 70-megawatt installation to be built in northeast Italy. And Cyrium Technologies of Ottawa has just announced that it will supply its patented cells for a 200-kilowatt project in China.

LEARN MORE

• Find out about Ontario's Green Energy Act
• Find out more about Ontario's Feed-in Tariff (FIT) program
• Learn more about renewable energy in Ontario

The ICF's top seven city shortlist is comprised of "communities that provide a model of economic and social development in the 21st Century using information and communications technology to power growth, address social challenges and preserve and promote culture."

Windsor, historically dependent on the auto industry, has been hard hit by the global recession. But in recent years the city has been attracting new industries, especially in the high-tech sector. "Windsor is crafting a new, more robust economy," the ICF said in announcing its short list. "Government has collaborated with business to create a software technology alliance to attract entrepreneurs, mentor existing businesses and share resources for growth."

Windsor mayor Eddie Francis was among those who realized that the city's future depended on diversifying its economic and industrial base. "We would have failed if we came out of this recession as the same old city relying on the same old thing," Francis told the Canada's Globe and Mail newspaper.

Among the city's recent achievements, cited by the ICF, are the creation of a co-operative fibre optic network connecting government agencies with educational and institutional facilities and the establishment of a high-speed broadband system that allows Windsor medical practitioners to work side by side with colleagues in other parts of the province.

For its part, Stratford, home to the internationally renowned Stratford Shakespeare Festival, made the top seven primarily because of its 60 kilometres of optical fibre that is the backbone of a public WiFi network. That network is also responsible for attracting new businesses and connecting electronically 80 per cent of the city's family doctors in an innovative e-health portal.

Stratford mayor Dan Mathieson says making the short list recognizes the city's "commitment to innovation and continuous evolution as a leader in the knowledge economy." He told the Stratford, Ontario Beacon Herald that the recognition confirms that, "We are on the front edge and the cutting edge of where the economy is headed."

The winner is to be announced at a ceremony in New York on June 3.

LEARN MORE

• The City of Stratford, Ontario
• City of Windsor, Ontario
• The Intelligent Community Forum

According to news reports, Ciena is committed to making Ottawa the focal point of its global research and development efforts, and plans to add 353 new jobs at its Ottawa labs over five-years. Ciena, the U.S. headquarters of which are located in Maryland, is seizing the opportunity to expedite their market access and to leverage the wealth of telecom talent in the Ottawa, Ontario region in which Ciena Canada's operations are focused. Ontario’s vibrant IT industry includes leaders in every sector, including telecom equipment, software development and services, digital media and web, as well as cutting-edge technologies like VoIP, and wireless broadband.

"This partnership with Ontario is a great contribution to our technology investment in Canada, which is an important innovation centre for Ciena as we execute on our vision of bringing optical and Ethernet together to realize the full potential of communications networks worldwide," said James Frodsham, Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, Ciena Corporation.

The company's goal is to bring solutions that increase the speed and capacity of fibre optic networks. This will help meet the growing demand for high bandwidth services, such as high-definition video, mobile broadband, and support education and healthcare technology projects.

"Ontario is a leader in innovation and new technology. We need to continue to turn our research excellence into products and services that can be sold worldwide. Today's announcement gives Ciena and Ontario's ICT Sector a boost as they compete in the rapidly growing telecommunications networking field," said Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade.

This investment supports the province's five-year Open Ontario plan to create new job opportunities and help promote economic growth.

QUICK FACTS

• Ciena is a market leader in technology that increases the capacity of communications networks tenfold.
• Ciena Canada Inc. is a subsidiary of Ciena Corporation.

LEARN MORE

• About Ontario's ICT Industry

The Rovigo solar plant will create significant environmental benefits over its lifetime. In its first year of operation alone, the system is expected to generate enough energy to power more than 16,500 homes and prevent the emission of more than 40,000 tons of CO2, equivalent to the removal of 8,000 cars from the road.

"The impressive scale of this milestone European PV project is a direct testament to the high quality work by SunEdison and its partners, including Canadian Solar. We are proud that Canadian Solar's modules were selected to be a part of this major project due to our proven track record of high quality and reliability," said Dr. Shawn Qu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Canadian Solar. "Canadian Solar has already deployed over 1 GW of modules around the world in the last 8 years. We look forward to continuing to work with our customers, such as SunEdison, to promote the expansion of solar energy worldwide."

The Rovigo solar power plant was acquired by First Reserve through a previously announced joint venture between First Reserve Corporation and SunEdison. Investment programs managed or advised by Partners Group AG and Perennius Capital Partners SGR have invested in the project with the First Reserve joint venture. First Reserve recently announced the execution of a euro 276M project finance facility for the project with some of the leading European banks, including Banco Santander, Unicredit Corporate Banking, Dexia Crediop, Natixis, Societe Generale and Credit Agricole.

Kitchener, Ontario-based Canadian Solar Inc. is one of the world's largest solar companies. As a leading vertically integrated provider of ingot, wafer, solar cell, solar module and other solar applications, Canadian Solar designs, manufactures and delivers solar products and solar system solutions for on-grid and off-grid use to customers worldwide. With operations in North America, Europe and Asia, Canadian Solar provides premium quality, cost-effective and environmentally-friendly solar solutions to support global, sustainable development. For more information, visit www.canadiansolar.com.

LEARN MORE

• Find out about Ontario's Green Energy Act
• Read about Canadian Solar Inc.'s new facility in Guelph
• Get details about Ontario's Feed-in Tariff Program

Recent investments in Ontario's auto sector have included:

• Honda is adding a second shift providing 400 new jobs for Ontarians at its assembly plant in Alliston in early 2011, and increasing production from 400 to 600 vehicles a day.
• In August 2010, Chrysler announced a $27.2 million investment in its Etobicoke casting plant, which kept 280 Ontarians working in good jobs and the Etobicoke plant from shutting its doors.
• Last April GM repaid its loans to governments and re-emerged as a publicly traded company in November.  GM has added approximately 2,000 jobs in Oshawa and Ingersoll over the past 18 months, by recalling all of their laid-off workers and creating 700 new jobs.
• Toyota added a second shift to its Woodstock facility in Spring 2010, creating over 800 new jobs and allowing for a doubling production of its RAV4 to about 150,000 units per year.

Ontario's auto industry has increased by over 8,200 jobs since the sector's restructuring in June 2009.  Since 2004, Ontario remains the leading jurisdiction in North America for vehicle assembly.

Helping the province's auto sector is part of the five-year Open Ontario plan to support 89,000 working Ontarians, create new jobs and promote economic growth.

"Congratulations to Chrysler and the employees at the Brampton Assembly Plant on the production launch of three new vehicles. In 2009, our government showed its confidence in Chrysler and today Chrysler continues to demonstrate its confidence in Ontario and in our workforce," said Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade.

"Families and communities across Ontario depend on the auto sector. The production of the all-new 2011 Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger, as well as the 2011 Dodge Challenger - right here in Brampton shows that Ontario continues to be the top location for the auto and manufacturing sector in North America. Our highly skilled workers, strong infrastructure and convenient location continue to put us at the top of many companies' lists for places to invest and this helps to create jobs across the province," said Dwight Duncan, Minister of Finance.

QUICK FACTS

• Since December 2009, four of Ontario's five vehicle manufacturers have announced production, employment or investment increases at their Ontario plants.
• Between January and November 2010, Ontario produced 1.92 million vehicles, an increase of 43 per cent over the same period of 2009.
• In total, Ontario's auto industry supports about 400,000 direct and indirect jobs across the province.
• Statistics Canada released new data today that indicates Ontario has regained 96 per cent of jobs lost during the recession.

Premier McGuinty visited the Digital Media Zone (DMZ) at Ryerson University to meet the young entrepreneurs who are driving Ontario's high tech future with digital media innovations and solutions. Since the DMZ opened in April 2010, the leading-edge digital technology incubator has helped launch 14 companies creating 65 new jobs.

"Ryerson's Digital Media Zone is a model for the Ontario economy - a place where people with energy, ideas and passion come together to create technologies that people will use and create high skilled jobs," said Dalton McGuinty, Premier of Ontario.

At the DMZ, students and entrepreneurs are developing web-based, social media and high-tech applications including 3-D technology for use in entertainment, medical and community service industries.

The DMZ is an example of education and innovation coming together to create business and good jobs. Investing in postsecondary education and encouraging job creation is part of the Open Ontario Plan to grow a stronger economy.

"The Ontario government recognizes that students and young people are natural innovators and entrepreneurs. By supporting Ryerson University, the government supports the Digital Media Zone, a unique space where young entrepreneurs are given the tools and resources they need to innovate, collaborate, bring new products to market and create innovative digital solutions for industry. This is where digital innovators learn together, work together, launch businesses together and create jobs together," said Sheldon Levy, President, Ryerson University.

QUICK FACTS

• Ryerson University received over $186 million in operating funding from the Ontario government in 2009-10. The DMZ is supported, in part, from this operating funding.
• Products developed at DMZ, currently on the market, include mobile photo sharing app Burstn, the service app Mobile Transit Companion for the Paris Metro system and social buying site TeamSave.
• Through the Knowledge Infrastructure Program, Ontario is contributing $16.4 million to the renewal of the Image Arts and New Media building at Ryerson University.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario is committed to innovation.
• Meet one of the DMZ's young entrepreneurs.

The new plant is being built by Siemens Canada as part of its agreement to supply 600 megawatts (MW) of wind turbines to Samsung C&T and development partner Pattern Energy - 600 MW would be enough clean electricity each year to power more than 160,000 homes, or a city the size of Oakville.

"Samsung is very proud to work with Siemens Canada to build the province's first blade factory. This is the second of four Samsung-led facilities that will serve Ontario's growing wind power generation market and beyond. We are a proud partner in Ontario's clean energy economy and applaud the government's commitment to renewable energy," said Chi Sung Ha, President, Samsung C&T Corporation.

"Siemens is delighted to take a part in growing Ontario's clean economy. We look forward to bringing jobs and a positive impact to the Tillsonburg community. Ontario's growing renewables sector will be well served by innovations like Siemens' advanced blade technology," said Roland Aurich, President & CEO, Siemens Canada.

Ontario's clean energy plan is getting Ontario off dirty, smog-producing coal and on to cleaner energy sources like wind, solar and bio-energy. The plan is making Ontario a global clean energy leader, sparking a new industry.

QUICK FACTS

• Samsung and partners are investing $7 billion in Ontario to open four manufacturing plants, create 16,000 direct and indirect clean energy jobs and generate 2,500 megawatts of wind and solar power.
• In the last year, over $9 billion in private sector investment, creating an estimated 20,000 new jobs, has been committed to clean energy projects in Ontario.
• In 2003, Ontario had 19 dirty polluting coal units and just 10 wind turbines; today, the province has over 700 wind turbines and by 2014 all coal units will be closed or converted to biomass or natural gas.
• Ontario is Canada's leader in wind and solar capacity, home to the largest wind farms in Canada and currently home to the largest solar PV farm in the world.
• To date, more than 20 businesses have announced they are setting up or expanding plants to manufacture parts for the solar and wind industry, creating new jobs in Ontario.

LEARN MORE

• Read Building Our Clean Energy Future, Ontario's updated long-term energy plan.
• Learn more about renewable energy in Ontario.
• Find out how Ontario is phasing out coal-fired generation.
• Explore Ontario's Feed-in Tariff (FIT) and microFIT programs.

"We are very pleased to help bring a new wind manufacturing facility to Ontario. This facility will play a key role in the Windsor community to create jobs, and will serve Ontario's growing wind power generation market and beyond. We are proud to play this role in growing Ontario's clean energy economy and supporting the province's commitment to renewable energy," said Chi Sung Ha, President, Samsung C&T Corporation.

"We are proud to bring our steel manufacturing expertise to Ontario and to work with Samsung and Partners to provide the towers for Ontario-made wind turbines. CS Wind looks forward both to using Ontario steel in the manufacture of our products and to being a new employer in the Windsor community," said S.G. Ghim, Chairman, CS Wind.

Samsung and partners intend to use 100 per cent Ontario steel to manufacture all of their towers. The total projected consumption will be 200,000 tonnes of domestic steel with a face value of $140 million.

Ontario's clean energy plan is getting Ontario off dirty, smog-producing coal and on to cleaner energy sources like wind, solar and bio-energy. The plan is making Ontario a global clean energy leader, sparking a new industry and further positions Ontario as a preferred location for manufacturers of sustainable, alternative energy technologies and related components, service providers and project developers.

"We are thrilled to welcome CS Wind and this new wind tower plant to Windsor. Ontario's clean economy is playing a very big part in helping us move successfully into the future and to become a city of choice in which to invest and create jobs," said Eddie Francis, Mayor of Windsor.

• Samsung and partners are investing $7 billion in Ontario to open four manufacturing plants, create 16,000 direct and indirect clean energy jobs and generate 2,500 megawatts of wind and solar power.
• In the last year, over $9 billion in private sector investment, creating an estimated 20,000 new jobs, has been committed to clean energy projects in Ontario.
• In 2003, Ontario had 19 dirty polluting-coal units and just ten wind turbines; today, the province has over 700 new wind turbines and by 2014 all coal units will be closed or converted to biomass or natural gas.
• Ontario is Canada's leader in wind and solar capacity, home to the largest wind farms in Canada and currently home to the largest solar PV farm in the world.
• To date, more than 20 businesses have announced they are setting up or expanding plants to manufacture parts for the solar and wind industry, creating new jobs in Ontario.

• Read Building Our Clean Energy Future, Ontario's updated long-term energy plan
• Learn more about renewable energy in Ontario.
• Find out how Ontario is phasing out coal-fired generation.
• Explore Ontario's Feed-in Tariff (FIT) and microFIT programs.
• Learn more about Samsung Renewable Energy.

The government's 20-year energy plan, Building Our Clean Energy Future, makes the essential investments to keep the lights on in our homes, businesses, schools and hospitals. It creates a balanced mix of clean power sources and shuts down all dirty smog-producing coal plants.

Ontario is building a clean energy future by:

• Closing all coal units by 2014 and fast-tracking the closure of two more coal units in 2011, three years ahead of schedule;

• Creating 50,000 jobs in Ontario's growing clean energy economy;

• Increasing Ontario's power supply coming from renewable sources like wind, solar and bio-energy to 13 per cent by 2018, up from 3 per cent today;

• Building the largest expansion in hydroelectric power in almost 40 years with projects to get more power from Niagara Falls and the Lower Mattagami River;

• Securing clean and reliable nuclear power as a baseload for half of Ontario's power supply;

• Moving forward immediately with five priority transmission projects to bring more clean power online, to serve changing demand, and to ensure reliability;

• Reducing costs for consumers and making our power system more efficient through conservation, saving 7,100 MW of power.

To keep the lights on with energy powered by clean sources, residential and small business electricity bills are forecasted to increase by 3.5 per cent annually over the next 20 years. Industrial rates are forecasted to increase by 2.7 per cent annually over the same timeframe.

"There is a clean energy revolution happening in Ontario, creating thousands of new, good jobs and cleaning up the air we breathe. Our energy plan is an economic plan with Ontario at the forefront of clean energy, creating a new industry and new jobs. And, we're helping Ontario families with the cost of turning on clean energy and turning off dirty coal," said Hon. Brad Duguid, Minister of Energy.

• More than 20 businesses have announced they are creating new jobs in Ontario, setting up plants to manufacture parts for the solar and wind industry.
• 8,400 megawatts of cleaner power have been brought online and more than 5,000 kilometres of transmission lines have been upgraded since 2003.
• In 2003, 67 per cent of Ontario's electricity was generated from emissions-free sources. By 2030, 92 per cent of our electricity mix will be clean and emissions-free.
• In 2003, Ontario had 19 dirty coal units and just ten wind turbines; today, the province has over 700 new wind turbines and by 2014 all coal units will be closed.
• Shutting down all of Ontario's dirty coal plants is the equivalent of taking seven million cars off the road - that's almost all of the cars in Ontario today.

• Read Ontario's Long Term Energy Plan
• Ontario Clean Energy Benefit
• Energy and Property Tax Credit
• Ontario's Long-Term Energy Plan - Highlights
• Results - Ontario's Energy Sector

With over a decade of experience producing solar energy equipment internationally, ATS is an important employer in the Region of Waterloo. It will manufacture solar panels for residential, commercial and industrial customers at its Cambridge assembly line.

"The Green Energy Act has created an ideal environment for ATS to take a leadership role in the solar energy industry with Photowatt Ontario. We look forward to not only providing turnkey solar installation, but also leading innovative projects that create 'made in Ontario' green jobs and clean energy to meet the province's growing demand for solar energy," said Anthony Caputo, CEO, ATS Automation Tooling Systems.

Ontario's clean energy plan is getting Ontario off dirty, smog-producing coal and on to cleaner energy sources like wind, solar and bio-energy. The plan is making Ontario a global clean energy leader, sparking a new industry as businesses set up to manufacture parts and equipment for wind turbines and solar panels. Those businesses, like ATS, will not only be supplying Ontario projects, but selling their high-quality products to the world.

Attracting clean energy manufacturing plants like ATS is part of the province's Open Ontario Plan to build a clean energy economy that creates jobs and protects our environment.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario leads Canada in solar capacity and is currently home to the world's largest operational solar photovoltaic farm in Sarnia.
• ATS has been involved in a number of solar projects in Ontario, including a site at the CN Tower and the head office of Ontario Power Generation.
• In 2003 Ontario had 19 polluting coal units and no solar projects online; today more than 1,300 solar projects are feeding electricity into Ontario's grid, eight coal units have already been shut down and by 2014 all coal units will be closed.

LEARN MORE

• Read about Ontario's Long Term Energy Plan: Building Our Clean Energy Future
• Read about Photowatt Ontario Inc.

The province is supporting the business as it invests $106.25-million in advanced steel production at the Hamilton site by providing a $9-million loan. The business is installing new machinery and equipment that will improve manufacturing of new and innovative products in Canada including a finishing mill.

"Our government is pleased to welcome MANA to Ontario, and we're thrilled to announce renewed steel production and workers back on the job in Hamilton. Global leaders such as MANA choose to invest in Ontario because of our competitive business environment, skilled workforce and focus on innovation," said Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Economic Development and Trade.

Producing products from Canada will boost the economy and create jobs for residents in the Hamilton region, part of the five-year Open Ontario plan.

QUICK FACTS

• Max Aicher (North America) Inc. purchased the Bar Mill and Bloom Mill land, buildings, machinery, equipment and related assets in Hamilton from U.S. Steel Canada on November 12, 2010.
• Steel produced by the business is used primarily by global auto manufacturers operating in North America and for high strength hotrolled threadbar by the construction and mining industries.

"Ontario has a long history of clean water expertise. WaterTAP is an opportunity to bring all of our water know-how together to help Ontario become the North American leader in providing sustainable technologies, real jobs and the ability to export our innovative water solutions around the world," said Glen Murray, Minister of Research and Innovation.

The new act sets the framework to:

• Make Ontario a North American leader in developing water technologies and services and making our expertise available to the world through the creation of the Water Technology Acceleration Project (TAP) -- a technology hub bringing together industry, academics and government to develop the sector and promote it abroad
• Encourage Ontarians to use water more efficiently by creating and implementing innovative approaches to protect our most valuable resource so our children and grandchildren will continue to have access to clean drinking water for generations
• Strengthen sustainable municipal water planning by helping them identify and plan for long term infrastructure needs.

The development of new water technologies will benefit Ontarians by creating good jobs and protecting our most valuable resource for our children and our grandchildren for generations. This approach is part of our Open Ontario Plan to build on Ontario's expertise in clean water technology and make the province a world leader in water innovation to help address global water challenges.

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario firms are recognized leaders in ultraviolet disinfection, compact sewage treatment, water information and systems software, and plant design and operation.
• The water technology sector is valued at more than $400 billion worldwide, doubling every five to six years.
• On average, Ontarians use 260 litres of water per day - twice as much as countries like Germany and the UK.

LEARN MORE

• Backgrounder: The Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act
• Find out more about the Water Technology Acceleration Project (PDF)

The Economic Outlook confirms Ontario's commitment to business growth by making Ontario a more attractive place to invest.

Investing in Knowledge and Skills

Ontario believes that a well-educated workforce drives the province’s economic growth and competitiveness. Investors have already discovered that they can grow and succeed with the support of Ontario's highly educated and talented workforce. That is why education, from early learning through elementary, secondary and postsecondary, is a top priority.

Because of Ontario's continuing investments in knowledge and skills, 63 per cent of Ontario adults have attained post-secondary education credentials. This is one of the best attainment rates in the world, more than 20 per cent higher than in the United States and almost twice as high as in the United Kingdom. Ontario is reaching even higher, with a new target of 70 per cent.

Over the past two years, Ontario has made significant investments in education. In February 2009, the government announced funding for an additional 3,300 graduate spaces over three years. In September 2010, Ontario made it easier for international students graduating from Master's degree programs in the province to become permanent residents, retaining knowledge here in Ontario. Through the Opportunities Ontario: Provincial Nominee Program the province can attract and retain highly-skilled international students and workers to help Ontario's businesses compete in the global economy. These changes make Ontario the destination of choice for the best and brightest international students, and the investment location of choice for investors who are looking for a highly skilled workforce.

Ontario's Auto Industry

The auto industry is a key driver of Ontario's economy. Ontario builds more vehicles than any other province or state in North America. Ontario's industry includes major vehicle assemblers and more than 400 parts manufacturing plants, accounting for over 90 per cent of the total Canadian automotive industry. There are five automakers with 12 assembly plants and one heavy-truck manufacturer in the province.

The auto industry was hit hard in the global recession. It is now on the path to profitability, as production volumes increase. For the first 10 months of 2010, total vehicle production in Ontario rose by 46 per cent, compared to the same period last year. Ontarians are expected to produce about 1.9 million vehicles in 2010. Other developments are also positive:

• Chrysler vehicle production in Ontario is up by 76 per cent compared to the same period last year.
• On August 12, 2010, Chrysler announced a $27.2 million investment in its Etobicoke Casting Plant.
• Toyota, Honda and Ford, which employ approximately 19,000 people in Ontario communities, have increased production from the previous year.

Ontario's Financial Services Industry

Ontario also continues its commitments to insuring that its financial services sector remains the world's soundest banking environment and a leading global financial services centre. Toronto is home to the head offices of globally successful banks, insurance companies, and investment and pension funds. It is the third-largest financial centre in North America based on employment.

The World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report 2010-2011 found that Canada has the world's soundest banking system third year in a row. Ontario is the heart of Canada’s banking system.

The Ontario government is partnering with leaders in the financial services industry through the Financial Services Leadership Council to implement a plan to improve the financial sector's competitiveness and regulatory oversight. The government is proposing amendments to the Ontario Securities Act to allow the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) to develop and implement a robust regulatory framework for over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives. These amendments would allow for new rules specifically designed for OTC derivatives and would also include derivatives within the scope of existing insider-trading offences.

Ontario recently announced an investment of $10 million for the Global Risk Institute in Financial Services (GRi), which will be a non-profit entity comprising industry leaders, regulators and members of the academic community. Announced in September 2010, GRi will build on Toronto’s status as a premier financial services centre.

In addition, Ontario has established the Centre of Excellence in Financial Services Education to build on the province's strong knowledge and skills base. It is working to attract foreign students and develop the best financial services sector talent.

The significant milestones outlined in Ontario's fall Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review for 2010, plus Ontario's NAFTA-accessible location, competitive business costs, and recognized stability and capacity for growth in diverse industries, should assure international businesses that Ontario will continue to be a leading investment location.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario's Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review 2010
• Read about Ontario's Green Energy Act

A new brain institute is being established in Ontario. The Ontario Brain Institute will bring the province's top brain researchers together with people who know how to commercialize good ideas. Together, they will turn health care discoveries made in the lab into products and services to help people who are affected by brain diseases and disorders.

The province is providing $15 million in start-up funding over the next three years for the new institute, which will create jobs, reduce health care costs and improve the quality of life for Ontario families.

Premier Dalton McGuinty made the announcement today at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. The Ontario Brain Institute will help the province's life sciences companies win a bigger share of the global market for products that support patients with brain diseases and disorders.

"We're turning our best research and ideas into new products and services that will create good jobs and improve the quality of life for Ontario families. We're supporting this work to help export our discoveries to the world," said Dalton McGuinty, Premier of Ontario.

One of the Ontario Brain Institute's first international partnerships will be with Israel. Premier Dalton McGuinty met with Israeli president Shimon Peres during a trade mission in May 2010, at which time Peres proposed a joint Israeli-Ontario "virtual institute" on brain research.

The Ontario Brain Institute is part of the government's Open Ontario Plan to export our expertise to the world, create jobs and provide quality care at home.

QUICK FACTS

• Brain diseases and disorders include Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, autism and schizophrenia.
• Ontario's universities and their affiliated hospital research institutes are recognized as centres of excellence in basic neuroscience research, as well as in the medical disciplines that deal with clinical neuroscience, including neurosurgery, psychiatry, and psychology.

LEARN MORE

• Ontario is getting into the brain fitness market.
• See how Ontario is supporting scientific excellence.

Based on an average company with almost 100 employees, the average cost of health care per year for an employer is US$259,000 in Ontario compared to US$783,000 per year in the US. In 2009 the Ontario average was US$286,000, or about 40% of the U.S. average of US$667,000. Ontario's public health care system continues to give a cost advantage to employers relative to the US.

Lower Healthcare Costs for Employers Compared to the US

Employer Health Costs for a Typical Firm

Notes: Typical firm defined as having approximately 97 employees
Source: MMK Consulting, 2010, Special run for Ministry of Economic Development and Trade

Ontario's healthcare cost advantage, highlighted by the KPMG report, is just one factor, along with, lower utility rates, higher educational attainment rates, and overall lower labour costs that give Ontario an overall cost advantage. Ontario is also committed to providing competitive cost advantages through tax cuts. Following a comprehensive initiative begun in 2009, Ontario's general corporate income tax (CIT) rate has fallen from 14 per cent in 2009 to 11.5 per cent.

Ontario companies have thrived for years, partly because of substantial savings for investors on labour costs when compared to US jurisdictions. Mandatory contributions in Ontario for pension, health, and unemployment for employers are among the lowest in North American jurisdictions. Ontario's offers not only competitive business costs, but also stability and capacity for growth in diverse industries such as manufacturing, ICT, life sciences, financial and professional services. These factors should continue to assure investors that Ontario remains a cost-effective North American investment location.

LEARN MORE

Learn more about the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP)

"Ottawa has long been a nurturing ground for some of the world's brightest minds in telecommunications," said Charles Ding, President of Huawei North America. "This latest investment, supported by the Ontario government, will help Huawei strengthen its North American R&D capabilities and drive technology innovation and the growth of Canada's telecommunications industry, contributing to Canada's digital economy,"

The Ontario delegation also hosted a reception where they met with potential investors and partners who are interested in Ontario's expertise in green energy and other clean technologies. Working to attract international investment and high-value jobs is part of the government's five-year Open Ontario Plan.

"Huawei's investment is great news for the city of Ottawa and the people of Ontario. It's an endorsement of Ontario's high-skilled workers and innovative researchers, and demonstrates the importance of our continued efforts to work together to create jobs and build prosperity," said Dalton McGuinty, Premier of Ontario.

QUICK FACTS

• China's central government is investing about $500 billion in energy efficiency projects across the country.
• The environmental industry in China is growing at a rate of 20 per cent annually, thanks in large part to the government's commitment to sustainable growth
• China is investing $175 billion in environmental protection between 2006 and 2010.

• Read about Ontario's Green Energy Act.
• See how Ontario is building a clean tech economy that will support future jobs

Ontario, Canada is phasing out dirty coal-fired generation and attracting new investments in clean energy projects that harness the wind, water and sun. More than 8,000 new megawatts of cleaner energy power generation have been brought online in Ontario since 2003.

Michael Carten, CEO, Sustainable Energy Technologies Ltd said, "Ontario's Green Energy Act has created a welcome climate for Canadian green energy investment. We look forward to working with Ontario partners like Melitron to build leading edge clean technology for Ontario and export markets,"

Attracting solar manufacturing plants is part of the government's Open Ontario Plan to build a clean energy economy that creates jobs and provides cleaner air.

"Our partnership with Sustainable Energy Technologies was possible because of the province’s commitment to bringing new green jobs as part of the green energy program," said Ted Turner, President and CEO, Melitron Corporation.

QUICK FACTS

• More than 1,500 megawatts of new electricity from wind, solar and water sources have been brought online since 2003.
• Another company, Canadian Solar, is building a solar module manufacturing plant in Guelph. It will employ about 500 people and is scheduled to open in early 2011.
• Ontario's combined general federal-provincial corporate income tax (CIT) rate is lower than the average of G8 and G20 countries and lower than the average federal-state CIT rate in the United States.

• Find out about Ontario's Green Energy Act
• Find out more about the Siemens/Samsung joint project
• Read about Canadian Solar Inc.'s new facility in Guelph
• Get details about Ontario's Feed-in Tariff Program

Launched in February 2010 at the Economic Developers Council of Ontario (EDCO) annual conference, Select Ontario is Canada's first provincial web-enabled site selection tool. It is an online geographic information system that provides valuable information, including detailed statistics and current data about available properties, community demographics, and workforce statistics, educational skill levels, and business clusters.

At Showcase Ontario 2010, in September, Select Ontario also garnered the Merit Award for Serving Ontario's Citizens and the Ontario 2010 Diamond Award of Excellence Judges' Choice Award. Showcase Ontario is a recognition program designed to acknowledge innovative public sector initiatives that demonstrate excellence and highlight the importance of I&IT partnerships in achieving government priorities. The Merit and Diamond awards recognize projects that showcase success in the advancement and improvement of service or service quality for the benefit of Ontario's citizens and businesses through program innovation, stakeholder engagement and/or the use of information technology.

In October, Select Ontario was recognized as an Honouree for the GTEC 2010 Distinction Awards. GTEC is Canada's Government Technology event. This award recognizes outstanding achievements by individuals or teams in developing and implementing innovative projects to improve client service delivery with a specific focus on citizens or businesses as clients of government.

Select Ontario is a business and marketing tool that enables investors and site selectors to make timely and informed decisions about where to locate their business projects in Ontario. Businesses also benefit from extended global investment outreach, improved access to high-quality information and flexible analytical capabilities. Another major benefit of the tool is that it makes it easier for Ontario's municipal partners, large and small, to market themselves internationally, freeing up valuable resources and time.

The tool has improved existing processes by providing a one-stop solution. It is an example of how GIS technology can be used to compile and present multiple data sets into one easy to use application. Site selectors no longer have to conduct individual online research, which can be time consuming.

Since its launch, reactions to the innovative site selection tool have been overwhelmingly positive. Ontario's Minister of Economic Development and Trade Sandra Pupatello said "In an increasingly competitive global economy, Ontario must take the lead in attracting the investment opportunities and high-paying jobs our families need. With the help of leading edge, online tools like the GIS, Ontario is demonstrating that it is the place to be with respect to its highly educated population, highly skilled workforce, and highly accessible business environment."

The tool serves as a strong example of partnership between OPS ministries, federal government partners, municipalities and third party suppliers which was an important objective of the project: to leverage where possible the data, skills and know how of Ontario's partners.

"Innovative, business-friendly online marketing tools like GIS, play an important role in attracting new investment opportunities to Ontario," says Aileen Murray, president of the Economic Developers Council of Ontario (EDCO). "It will also help economic development professionals better promote Ontario as a premier location for sustained economic activity."

LEARN MORE

• Find out more about Select Ontario.
• Find out more about GTEC, Canada's Government Technology Event
• Find out more about URISA-Ontario Chapter