Bell Canada and Manitoba Telecom Services (MTS) are combining two businesses into one entity to further muscle into Telus’s traditional turf in B.C. and Alberta.

The new enterprise, Bell West, combines Bell Intrigna with Bell Nexxia’s assets west of Ontario. The move will strengthen Bell’s presence in Alberta and B.C. and capitalize on opportunities in Western Canada for telecommunications services.

“The consolidation of the two companies will significantly advance our collective operations in Western Canada,” said Bill Fraser, president and CEO, MTS.

“The opportunity is extensive – the total business telecom market in Alberta and British Columbia was $3 billion in 2001, and is projected to grow to $4 billion in the next three years.”

Integration of the operations will begin immediately.

The new company will be headquartered in Calgary with offices in Edmonton and Vancouver and employ about 700.

Heavyweights Telus and Bell have been directly competing for a few years, says Telus spokesman Nick Culo.

Bell Canada first entered the western market in 1999 and Telus entered the central Canadian market in 2000.

“Bell is a strong competitor we have to respect,” Culo said. “This business is not for the meek of heart.”

But Telus’s traditional wireline in the West is “pretty resilient” to competition, he said.

MTS will own 40 per cent of Bell West and Bell Canada will own 60 per cent.

Bell West, valued at $1 billion, becomes the single point of contact for MTS and Bell Canada business customers in Alberta and B.C. for a full array of services.

The new company is well positioned to leverage its market penetration and expand its customer base, said Fraser.

Nexxia and Intrigna padded their customer base with blue-chip clients including the Government of Alberta, Canadian Pacific and the City of Calgary. Bell is part of the Alberta SuperNet initiative, which will bring high-speed Internet and broadband capabilities throughout the province. Bell is investing $102 million in building the core portion of the network, which will reach the 27 largest communities involved in the project.

Heading Bell West as president and CEO is Randy Reynolds, formerly president and CEO of Bell Nexxia. John Sheridan, president of Bell Canada, will become chairman of the board. Louise Villeneuve, formerly chief operating officer of Bell Intrigna, has been appointed COO and Murray Bamforth has been named chief financial officer.