Close to $2.1M invested in 2013-2014
Rimouski, July 8, 2014 – Over the past year, the Fonds régionaux de solidarité FTQ in the Bas-Saint-Laurent and Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine regions invested close to $2.1 million to support the development of seven businesses, in addition to its contribution toward creating and maintaining 83 jobs. These noteworthy results, drawn from the annual financial statement of the Fonds régionaux de solidarité FTQ, demonstrate the major economic role played by this business network in Québec’s regions.
“The employees of the Fonds régionaux de solidarité FTQ in Bas-Saint-Laurent and Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine all hail from the region, as do the members of our Boards of Directors,” confirms Marc Cayouette, CEO of the Fonds régionaux de solidarité FTQ in the Bas-Saint-Laurent and Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine regions. “As such, our team is fully aware of the issues businesses and workers in the region are facing, which partly explains the added value we bring to the table.”
Thanks to the support of 614,000 Quebecers that are saving for their retirement as owner-shareholders of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ, several major projects received financial support from the Fonds régionaux de solidarité FTQ in the Bas-Saint-Laurent and Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine regions in 2013. For example, in Bas-Saint-Laurent, Érablières des Alléghanys, which exports its products to about 20 countries, received a $400,000 investment to support its automation processes, enabling the company to support growth and streamline operations that present an elevated risk of injury to its workers. In Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Pêcheries Marinard, one of the largest northern shrimp processing plants and a major employer in the region, received $700,000 to support its activities.
Present across Québec, the 16 regional funds and 83 local funds are part of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ network, and each benefits from the resources and support that are available across Québec’s territory. “The strength of our network relies on the fair and adequate integration of our global vision and our regional outlooks,” claims Luc Pinard, President and CEO of the Fonds régionaux de solidarité FTQ. With assets of $10.1 billion and more than 2,450 partner companies, the Fonds and its network have the resources required to provide solid support for the economic development of Québec’s regions.”
The network also includes the Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ, which acts as an economic catalyst by investing in real estate projects in the residential, commercial, office and industrial real estate sectors. The Fonds fulfills this role by forging partnerships with real estate developers and builders that are active across the province. At May 31, 2014, the Fonds immobilier had 30 buildings under its management and 18 million square feet of land to develop, with $54 million earmarked for affordable housing, social and community development and 30 real estate projects with a total value of $1.6 billion currently being developed. For example, in Bas-Saint-Laurent, the Fonds immobilier, already a partner of the Groupe Gedev in Mont-Joli and the OH project in La Pocatière, recently joined forces with Groupe Drapeau in Rimouski to build a commercial building valued at $10 million.
Since its inception, the Fonds de solidarité FTQ and its network have invested more than $120 million in Bas-St-Laurent, thus contributing to creating and maintaining more than 11,000 jobs. In the Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine region, investments in excess of $150 million have contributed to creating and maintaining more than 5,400 jobs.
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Information for media representatives only:
Guillaume Bérubé
Phone: 514 282-4719
Mobile: 514 883-5948
Email: guillaume.berube@citoyenoptimum.com
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