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MARCH 18, 2019

TELUS puts Canadians first with extraordinary $215 billion investment in broadband network and operations

Near ubiquitous network coverage in Canada now will be supported by Government of Canada’s Accelerated Investment Incentive
Vancouver- TELUS today announced that it will continue its significant ongoing investment in rural and remote communities to provide broadband internet to all Canadians. TELUS has invested more than $175 billion in infrastructure since 2000, and will additionally invest approximately $40 billion over the next three years, for a total of $215 billion. These investments to date have ensured that over 99 per cent of Canadians can enjoy world-leading speed, coverage and quality from TELUS’ 4G LTE wireless network, which has earned global recognition as the best in Canada from third party organizations including OpenSignal, J.D. Power, PCMag, Tutela and Ookla. In addition, 2 million Canadian households have access to high-speed wireline broadband with TELUS PureFibre, driving increased competition for broadband and TV services and thereby providing greater consumer choice for hard-working Canadians.
Since 2013, TELUS has been accelerating its investment in state-of-the-art mobile networks and Fibre to the Home technologies for upcoming 5G networks. These TELUS network investments will now be aided and enhanced by the deferred savings made available through the Government of Canada’s new Accelerated Investment Incentive, the entirety of which TELUS will reserve for investments in communities deemed underserved by the federal government.
“The significant investments we are making in our world leading networks are enabling us to connect Canadians in rural and remote communities to the people, resources and information that make their lives better,” said Darren Entwistle, President and CEO. “The federal government’s capital cost allowance program will help us ensure all Canadians, regardless of where they live in our country, have access to the digital tools necessary to drive improved health, social and economic outcomes in their communities.Given our passion for bridging geographic and socio-economic digital divides, we will continue to expand our high-speed Internet and broadband wireless footprint across Canada to connect all Canadians.”
TELUS has a long-standing track record of investment to ensure Canadians have access to some of the top-rated networks in the world:
  • Since 2013, more than $900 million has been invested into rural communities in B.C., Alberta and Quebec, reaching more than 800,000 Canadians.
  • By the end of 2018, 76 per cent of families and businesses in TELUS’ Quebec ILEC territory had access to the TELUS PureFibre network. By 2021, 93 per cent of families and businesses in TELUS’ Quebec ILEC territory will have access to the TELUS PureFibre network.
  • In 2019 alone, $124 million will be invested in rural wireless upgrades to the radio access, transport and core segments of TELUS’ wireless network, which includes providing expanded access to Wireless High Speed Internet Access (WHSIA) to Canadians who live in locations too remote to receive wireline broadband service.
  • TELUS has connected more than 40 Indigenous communities throughout B.C. and Alberta, and will connect at least 10 more before the end of 2020.
  • TELUS developed an innovative partnership program in 2016 that brings broadband infrastructure to rural and remote communities through co-funded builds from local governments, developers, and Indigenous funding organizations.
  • TELUS’ PureFibre network footprint grew by 34 per cent in 2018, exceeding the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) average of 15 percent year-over-year growth. OECD is an intergovernmental economic organisation with 36 member countries founded to stimulate economic progress and world trade.
“According to the OECD, Canada is home to the highest per capita investment in network technology in the world and as a result, our country is recognized globally for the pervasiveness and performance of our broadband infrastructure. Indeed, these investments have enabled the building of networks across our geographically vast and rugged country that deliver speeds that consistently rank us at the top globally,” said Mr. Entwistle. “As we evolve toward a 5G world, we will continue to make accelerated investments, now with the support of the federal government, to bring the most advanced communications technology available in the world today to as many Canadians as possible. This will ensure that our citizens as well as businesses, schools and healthcare providers, no matter where they live and operate, benefit from blazingly fast, highly reliable and impeccably secure wireless and Internet services. The power of these networks will improve educational outcomes, support environmental sustainability, enable our entrepreneurial spirit and unleash human productivity.”
TELUS’ wireless network is strengthened by globally unmatched TELUS wireline fibre infrastructure that not only provides world-leading performance for Canadians at home, but will also create the backbone for a 5G-enabled world by leveraging the incredible capacity of fibre in concert with the speed and reliability of Canada’s mobile networks.
About TELUS
TELUS (TSX: T, NYSE: TU) is one of Canada’s largest telecommunications companies, with $14.4 billion of annual revenue and 13.4 million subscriber connections, including 9.2 million wireless subscribers, 1.9 million high-speed Internet subscribers, 1.2 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, video and home and business security. TELUS is also Canada's largest healthcare IT provider, and TELUS International delivers business process solutions around the globe.
In support of our philosophy to give where we live, TELUS, our team members and retirees have contributed over $650 million to charitable and not-for-profit organizations and volunteered more than 1.21 million days of service to local communities since 2000. Created in 2005 by President and CEO Darren Entwistle, TELUS’ 13 Canadian community boards and five International boards have led the Company’s support of grassroots charities and have contributed $72 million in support of 7,000 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.For more information about TELUS, please visit telus.com.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Liz Sauve
TELUS Public Relations
(604) 719-6715
[email protected]