Telus wants to convert to income trust

Shares of Telus Corp. jumped almost 14per cent on Monday after the company said it plans to reorganize itself as an income trust.

Investors will vote on the conversion at a special meeting expected to be held in January 2007. At least two-thirds of Telus investors must approve the conversion for it to go ahead.

Telus sharesgained$7.25 to finish at $59.80. Shares of BCE, the parent company of Bell Canada, were up $2.33 at $29.68.

Changing its corporate structure to a trust will give investors an increased portion of the company's cash flow, Telus said in a release issued before the start of stock market trading.

"Converting Telus in its entirety to an income trust ensures that our integrated core businesses continue to drive operational excellence, differentiating Telus from our competitors," said Darren Entwistle, the company's president and CEO.

Telus is the country's second-largest telecommunications company, behind Bell Canada.

Robert McFarlane, Telus's executive vice-president and chief financial officer said the company is pursuing a trust conversion at thistime because it has recently utilized all of its tax assets and a conversion early in 2007 will optimize its future taxable position.

The company said it initially expects to pay out between $3.90 and $4.10 per unit on an annual basis.