Telus announces $3B investment in B.C.

Telus says it will invest $3 billion in advanced technology and new facilities in B.C. over the next three years, including a splashy new office and residential complex in downtown Vancouver that the company says will be a leader in green design.

Telus President Darren Entwistle says much of the money will be spent on expanding wireless and broadband connections, delivering the world's fastest wireless service to almost 90 per cent of B.C. residents by the end of this year.

The company says it will be hiring hundreds of new staff, including 800 alone to support the expansion of its wireless division and its Optik TV service.

Telus has also provided more details of a project announced last year to build a 22-storey office tower and 46-storey residential tower in downtown Vancouver.

The company says the $750 million development, dubbed Telus Garden, will be built to the highest environmental standards, featuring a system to transfer excess heat between the two buildings as needed, the use of solar power panels and using rainwater for toilets and garden irrigation.

Telus says when the project is completed in 2014 it will use at least 30 per cent less energy than a standard development of its size.