EDMONTON, ALBERTA--(Marketwired - June 5, 2017) - TELUS (TSX:T)(NYSE:TU) will invest $4.2 billion in new communications infrastructure across Alberta through 2020, including more than $900 million this year alone. This investment will extend the gigabit-enabled TELUS PureFibre network directly to thousands more homes and businesses in rural and urban communities, further strengthen 4G LTE wireless service and continue leading development and testing on next-generation 5G wireless service, and support key services including healthcare and education with new technologies. TELUS has also reached a historic milestone for Canada's 150 th Birthday: before the end of the year, the company will have invested more than $150 billion in capital and operations to build and support network infrastructure across the country since 2000.
"As Canada celebrates this significant milestone in our collective history, we have the opportunity to reflect upon the many advantages we enjoy in this exceptional country," said Darren Entwistle, TELUS President and CEO. "Indeed, I have no doubt that the unwavering commitment of the TELUS team and our investment of more than $150 billion in innovation and technology over the past 17 years have contributed significantly to Canada being one of the most connected places on earth. TELUS has evolved from a regional telephone company with western roots dating back to our nation's infancy into a globally leading telecommunications provider, delivering critical services including next-generation wireless technology such as 4G LTE advanced and 5G, and connecting Albertans and their homes, businesses, hospitals and schools directly to our gigabit-enabled PureFibre network."
TELUS recently launched an innovative program to support some of Alberta's most vulnerable populations. TELUS Internet for Good provides low-income single-parent families receiving income or disability assistance from the provincial government with high-speed Internet service for less than $10 per month, ensuring participating families have access to the countless opportunities the Internet provides, empowering them to reach their full potential in our increasingly digital society.
"Our sustained investment across Alberta underpins our unwavering commitment to this resilient province during challenging economic periods," continued Entwistle. "We are providing Albertans with access to critical technology and services to support innovation and efficiency across local businesses, while also supporting our most vulnerable citizens through our ground-breaking and life-changing TELUS Internet for Good program. By ensuring Albertans and Canadians are connected to the people, information and opportunities that matter most, our technology innovation will enable our country to compete and succeed on a global basis for the #Next150 years."
In support of the company's philosophy to give where we live, TELUS and its more than 14,000 team members and retirees in Alberta have contributed more than $125 million and over 2 million volunteer hours to charitable and community organizations throughout the province since 2000.
"Our investments in technology and infrastructure are future-proofing our nation for the next 150 years and helping us address our country's number one social challenge, healthcare efficiency and effectiveness," continued Entwistle. "We are leveraging our world-class technology to enable better health outcomes through secure and reliable access to better health information. This includes providing electronic medical records to more than 20,000 Canadian physicians and health benefit solutions to more than 40,000 extended healthcare providers, enabling them to provide better quality of care across the healthcare continuum. Our investments are helping to build a primary healthcare ecosystem that places the patient at the centre and promotes wellness through the prevention of disease, not just its remediation."
The investments announced in this media release are consistent with TELUS' capital expenditure guidance for 2017, which was issued on May 11, 2017.
About TELUS
TELUS (TSX:T)(NYSE:TU) is Canada's fastest-growing national telecommunications company, with $12.9 billion of annual revenue and 12.7 million subscriber connections, including 8.6 million wireless subscribers, 1.7 million high-speed Internet subscribers, 1.4 million residential network access lines and 1.1 million TELUS TV customers. TELUS provides a wide range of communications products and services, including wireless, data, Internet protocol (IP), voice, television, entertainment and video, and is Canada's largest healthcare IT provider.
In support of our philosophy to give where we live, TELUS, our team members and retirees have contributed over $482 million to charitable and not-for-profit organizations and volunteered more than 1 million days of service to local communities since 2000. TELUS' 12 Canadian community boards and 5 International boards have led the Company's support of grassroots charities and have contributed more than $60 million in support of 5,595 local charitable projects, enriching the lives of more than 2 million children and youth, annually. TELUS was honoured to be named the most outstanding philanthropic corporation globally for 2010 by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, becoming the first Canadian company to receive this prestigious international recognition. TELUS has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the past 16 years, a feat unequalled by any other North American telecommunications company. As detailed in our TELUS Sustainability Report , our commitment to sustainability is inspired by nature to ensure a healthier future for us all.
For more information about TELUS, please visit telus.com
Caution regarding forward-looking statements
This news release contains statements about future events and plans at TELUS (the Company) that are forward-looking, including relating to our infrastructure investment plans. By their nature, forward-looking statements do not refer to historical facts and require the Company to make assumptions and predictions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties. There is significant risk that the forward-looking statements will not prove to be accurate. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a number of factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the assumptions and predictions expressed in the forward-looking statements. Our capital expenditure levels could be impacted by our operating and financial results as well as our ability to carry out financing activities. Accordingly, this news release is subject to the disclaimer and qualified by the assumptions, qualifications and risk factors referred to in the Company's 2016 and first quarter Management's discussion and analysis, and in other TELUS public disclosure documents and filings with securities commissions in Canada (on SEDAR at sedar.com) and in the United States (on EDGAR at sec.gov). Except as required by law, TELUS disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements.
