Province hoping Albertans will download COVID-19 App called AB Trace Together

From the Province of Alberta

As part of its relaunch strategy, the Government of Alberta has launched a voluntary, secure mobile contact tracing application to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Quick tracing and containment of outbreaks is critical as the province works to gradually relaunch the economy. The ABTraceTogether app will enhance the current manual tracing process and help Albertans protect themselves and their loved ones.

“Our efforts to flatten the curve are proving to be effective, but we must continue to remain vigilant. Each one of us has a responsibility to do our part in the fight against COVID-19. ABTraceTogether was designed to help protect Albertans and prevent community spread by quickly alerting people who may be at risk. The more Albertans who use it, the better we will be able to protect individuals from being unknowingly exposed and possibly spreading the disease. Give it a try, and encourage your family and friends to do the same. By working together, we can tackle this pandemic.”

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Chief Medical Officer of Health

Contact tracing is currently performed by interviewing patients who have tested positive for COVID-19, which is resource intensive and has limitations on its effectiveness as it relies on the patient’s memory. Through wireless Bluetooth technology, mobile contact tracing will complement the work of health-care workers and drastically speed up the current manual tracing process. This means Albertans will be contacted more quickly if they are at risk.

Protecting Albertans’ privacy is paramount. Use of the app is voluntary, and users must opt-in. Only your phone number is collected at the time of registering the app. The application does not track the user’s location and does not use your GPS. Data is only stored on the user’s phone in an encrypted format for 21 days only. Users must consent to sharing their data if they have tested positive for COVID-19. The only information shared with contact tracers is a random ID of those identified as close contacts after a user is diagnosed with COVID-19 – nothing identifiable is exchanged between phones. Users must be within two metres from each other for a total duration of 15 minutes in a 24-hour period in order to be notified as a close contact.

The app is now available to download for free from the App Store and Google Play.

The application is part of the Government of Alberta’s Relaunch Strategy to safely begin to remove public health restrictions and reopen our economy. Existing public health measures remain in place to stop the spread of COVID-19. For more information, visit alberta.ca/covid-19.

Quick facts

Alberta Health submitted a privacy impact assessment to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta (OIPC), which is currently being reviewed. Upon OIPC acceptance, Alberta Health will make a summary of the privacy impact assessment publicly available.
The most important measure Albertans can take to prevent respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19, is to practise good hygiene.
- This includes cleaning your hands regularly for at least 20 seconds, avoiding touching your face, coughing or sneezing into your elbow or sleeve, and disposing of tissues appropriately.
Any individual exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19, including cough, fever, runny nose, sore throat or shortness of breath, is eligible for testing. People can access testing by completing the COVID-19 self-assessment online. A separate self-assessment tool is available for health-care and shelter workers, enforcement and first responders. After completing the form, there is no need to call 811.

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Duane Rolheiser

After 15 years as a TV reporter with Global and CBC and as news director of RDTV in Red Deer, Duane set out on his own 2008 as a visual storyteller. During this period, he became fascinated with a burgeoning online world and how it could better serve local communities. This fascination led to Todayville, launched in 2016.

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Alberta

“It’s Canada’s Time to Shine” – CNRL’s $6.5 Billion Chevron Deal Extends Oil Sands Buying Spree

Published on October 8, 2024

Todayville

From Energy Now

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.’s $6.5 billion acquisition from Chevron Corp. marks the latest in a string of deals that has helped make it the country’s largest oil producer and brought Alberta’s massive oil sands deposits almost entirely under local control.

CNRL has feasted on the oil sands assets of foreign energy producers over the past decade, snapping up stakes and operations from Devon Energy Corp. and Shell Plc as they shifted away from the higher-cost, higher-emissions oil sands business. Investors have applauded the strategy, which allows CNRL to boost output and make the operations more efficient.

That trend continued on Monday, with CNRL shares climbing more than 4% after the deal with Chevron raised its stake in a key oil sands mine and a connected upgrading facility, while also adding natural gas assets in the Duvernay formation.

“These assets build on the robustness of Canadian Natural’s assets,” said CNRL President Scott Stauth said on a conference call Monday. The deal boosts CNRL’s stake in the Athabasca oil sands project, which it first bought from Shell in 2017, to 90% from 70%.

The acquisition was largely expected and boosts CNRL’s oil and gas output by roughly 9%, adding the equivalent of 122,500 barrels of oil production per day.

“It’s just been a matter of time,” Eight Capital analyst Phil Skolnick said by phone, noting that CNRL had been seen as the logical buyer for Chevron’s oil sands business.

While CNRL also boosted its dividend by 7% on Monday, Desjardins analyst Chris MacCulloch cautioned the company’s additional debt to finance the acquisition “may disappoint some investors” given it plans to temporarily slow capital returns.

Still, MacCulloch said the deal is positive overall for CNRL as it further consolidates assets in the region. “There’s no place like home,” he wrote in a note.

Chevron, for its part, is the latest in a long line of US and international oil producers — such as BP Plc, TotalEnergies SE and Equinor ASA — that have shifted away from the oil sands after spending billions to build facilities in the heavy-oil formation. That has left the oil sands largely in the control of Canadian firms including CNRL, Suncor Energy Inc. and Cenovus Energy Inc.

“There’s no remaining, obvious assets available,” Ninepoint Partners partner and senior portfolio manager Eric Nuttall said after Monday’s deal. Ninepoint owns 3.1 million shares in CNRL, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Many of those oil sands deals have been struck at prices that favor the Canadian buyers, which have consolidated land, reduced costs and boosted returns in recent years.

“It’s Canada’s time to shine,” Nuttall said, adding that he expects foreign investors will return to the country’s oil producers in the future.

Alberta

Alberta Preparing a New Regulatory Framework for iGaming

Published on October 7, 2024

Todayville Content Team

With the success of the iGaming market in Ontario, Alberta is looking to it as a blueprint for its own plans in that arena. Despite this, there will likely be differences in the way the two provinces regulate this industry. These potential differences will likely be based on the strategies laid out by Dale Nally, Alberta’s Minister of Service and Red Tape Reduction.

The manner in which Alberta eventually decides to handle its iGaming regulations will be crucial to maintaining a healthy balance for the industry there. Many other regions have begun seeing the drawbacks of over-regulation in this field. As a result, many new-age casinos operating offshore have been gaining popularity over traditional ones that are often stifled by restrictions.

This is because restrictions place more onerous burdens on operators and cause lengthy delays with everything from sign-up procedures to payout times. However, offshore casinos have become a revelation for players tied down by these restrictions. For example, crypto casinos and the perks found at sites like an instant payout casino have seen the number of players from regions like the US, UK, Asia, Europe, and even Canada soaring in recent years.

Instant payout casinos in particular have grown very popular in recent years as they offer players same-day access to their winnings. This phenomenon has been playing out amid ever-tightening regulations on iGaming sites being deployed in many prominent markets.

While reasonable regulations have their benefits, many players feel that most jurisdictions are over-regulating the industry now and players have begun to respond by flocking to offshore sites. Instant payout casinos offer a perfect refuge since platforms like these feature fewer restrictions, more expansive gaming libraries, more privacy, and more generous bonuses.

While Alberta is drawing heavily from Ontario’s regulatory guidelines, it also wants to retain some aspects that will distinguish it too. Minister Nally has indicated that Alberta will seek a less onerous regulatory regime than Ontario. However, as it is with Ontario, there won’t be a limit imposed on the number of iGaming operators permitted. These would also not require any partnerships with land-based casinos.

This approach is expected to foster a competitive online betting environment. As such, huge operators are expected to set up shop there and operate freely alongside the government-run Play Alberta—which currently holds a monopoly.

Nally’s ministry has already been busy working on these new regulations and is set to keep being so as it will also be directly responsible for overseeing iGaming regulations and their enforcement. This ensures a separate regulatory body need not be created. It also addresses concerns raised by operators that Alberta’s Gaming, Liquor, and Cannabis Commission (AGLC) would have a conflict of interest if it managed the new regime as the AGLC is a market operator since it runs the Play Alberta platform.

All in all, Alberta’s approach currently does look good and at least considers the need for making it as simple as possible for new entrants to gain access to the market. Alberta’s method to “conduct and manage” gambling activities is in direct contrast with Ontario’s, where iGaming Ontario (iGO) is simply a subsidiary of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO).

The revenue-sharing model will also be looked at. Currently, Ontario operators are taxed 20% with the province making $790 million of them last year—with more expansion on the horizon. On that note, Alberta has hinted that it may seek a higher percentage. With other things like consults with indigenous communities and other stakeholders, and setting up transition periods for “grey” market operators, there is more work to be done. However, for now, the future of the iGaming industry in Alberta looks good indeed.