Thursday, October 15, 2026

A $2.9-billion pipeline project has reached the ground-breaking stage in Alberta. Canadian Utilities leadership joined government officials, Indigenous leaders and industry representatives to mark the start of the Yellowhead Pipeline.

The natural gas project is expected to create about 2,000 direct construction jobs, along with an estimated 12,000 additional construction jobs and 20,000 permanent jobs annually once it is operating.

For contractors, the scale is the headline: this is major energy infrastructure moving from announcement into construction, with a large workforce expected across the project. The job numbers were released as part of the ground-breaking announcement.

Canadian softwood lumber is now facing almost 35 per cent in combined U.S. import taxes, according to the BC Lumber Trade Council.

The latest review by the U.S. Department of Commerce brings the total down from the 45 per cent rate announced in August. The council represents B.C. lumber producers, whose exports are directly affected by the change.

The revised figure keeps cross-border lumber costs in the picture for Canadian producers and material buyers as the U.S. trade measures continue to shift.