New investments in Vancouver show Olympic business strategy working, says Mayor

Mayor Robertson announced several new investments in Vancouver today as part of the 60-day update of the Metro Vancouver Commerce program, which targeted international businesses during the Olympics.

“Our work to use the Games to leverage investment in our economy is delivering results for Vancouver,” said the Mayor. “We used the exposure of the Olympics to brand our City as the Green Capital – a place where high-growth businesses in the green economy should be investing. It’s been only eight weeks and already new companies are opening in Vancouver.”

Mayor Robertson announced today five new investment deals for Vancouver following the work of the Metro Vancouver Commerce program. These include:

A partnership between Vancouver energy management company Pulse Energy with Southfacing, to license Pulse’s technology in the UK;

Greenlight PM, an international management consultant firm from Spain, will open their North American headquarters in Vancouver;

Pro-Special, a process management consulting firm from the Netherlands, will open an office in Vancouver;

EPCM, a project management company from Germany that specializes in energy and clean technology, have established an office in Vancouver;

Monetime, an American web start-up that chose to establish their head office in Vancouver over San Francisco.

Overall, the Metro Vancouver Commerce program has delivered almost $60 million in new investment throughout the region from the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver – surpassing in 60 days what MVC had aimed to achieve by November 2011. Other green business projects include a $15 million investment in the District of North Vancouver for an Air Liquide/H-Tec  plant, which will supply fuel for TransLink’s hydrogen buses.

The return on investment for the Metro Vancouver Commerce program after 60 days is 415%. More deals for Vancouver and the region will be announced in the coming weeks.

“Our work to attract and promote green businesses is making Vancouver and the region more competitive, and is helping our local economy grow,” said the Mayor. “Companies are attracted to Vancouver because they see new business opportunities, whether it’s our highly-educated diverse workforce, our budding clusters in clean tech and energy efficiency, or our proximity to the Pacific Rim. The time and effort we put in throughout the Games to attract new investment and businesses to Vancouver is paying off.”