Organization Profile - Canada Development Investment Corporation

Canada Development Investment Corporation

Minister of Finance

The Canada Development Investment Corporation (CDEV) was established in 1982 under the Canada Business Corporations Act, to manage investments assigned to it and to privatize its holdings when appropriate. The Corporation reports to Parliament through the Minister of Finance.

In January 1995, as a result of a government assessment of the Corporation's future role, the Corporation began to work to wind down its operations by divesting its remaining assets in an orderly fashion to ready the Corporation for eventual dissolution.

However, in November 2007, CDEV was informed by the Minister of Finance that, "going forward, the operations of CDEV should reflect a future focused on the ongoing management of its current holdings in a commercial manner, providing assistance to the government in new directions suited to CDEV's capabilities, while maintaining the capacity to divest of CDEV's existing holdings, and any other government interests assigned to it for divestiture, upon the direction of the Minister of Finance."

CDEV is a holding company that presently holds the following wholly owned subsidiaries for which it has responsibility: Canada Hibernia Holding Corporation, which owns an 8.5% interest in the Hibernia oilfield; Canada GEN Investment Corporation, which owns the business interests of the Crown in General Motors; and Canada Eldor Inc., which has no operations, but has responsibility for servicing liabilities, chiefly arising from an agreement of purchase and sale with Cameco Inc. entered into in 1988.

In August 2009, the Minister of Finance requested CDEV to participate in the Government's on-going review of corporate asset holdings.

Toronto, Ontario

Financial Administration Act

The Board of Directors consists of:

• a President (if any) appointed by GIC to hold office during pleasure for such term as the GIC considers appropriate; reappointment is possible;
• a Chairperson appointed by GIC to hold office during pleasure for such term as the GIC considers appropriate; reappointment is possible;
• not more than six directors appointed by the Minister with GIC approval, to hold office during pleasure for a term not to exceed four years as will ensure, as far as possible, the expiration in any one year of the terms of office of not more than one-half of the directors.

Where the office of a director becomes vacant during the term of the director appointed thereto, the Minister may, with the approval of the GIC, appoint a director for the remainder of the term. All directors are eligible for reappointment at expiry of term.

The majority of directors are not to be officers or employees of the Corporation or any of its affiliates.

If a director is not appointed to take office on the expiration of the term of an incumbent director, other than an officer-director, the incumbent director continues in office until a successor is appointed.

The Financial Administration Act requires that before an officer-director of a parent Crown corporation is appointed, the Minister shall consult the Board of Directors of the Corporation with respect to the appointment.

The auditor of a Crown Corporation shall be appointed annually by the Governor in Council, after the appropriate Minister has consulted the Board of Directors of the corporation, and may be removed at any time by the Governor in Council, after the appropriate Minister has consulted the Board.

The Auditor General of Canada shall be appointed by the Governor in Council as the auditor, or a joint auditor, of each Crown Corporation, unless the Auditor General waives the requirement of being so appointed.

An auditor of a Crown Corporation is eligible for reappointment on the expiration of the auditor’s appointment.

If an auditor of a Crown Corporation is not appointed to take office on the expiration of the appointment of an incumbent auditor, the incumbent auditor continues in office until a successor is appointed.

A person is disqualified from being appointed or re-appointed or continuing as an auditor of the corporation if that person is not independent of the corporation, any of its affiliates, or the directors or officers of the corporation or any of its affiliates. Expenses reimbursed in accordance with policies and procedures of the Corporation.