The economy of Prince George in the first decade of the 21st century has come to be dominated by service industries. The Northern Health Authority, centred in Prince George, has a $450 million annual budget and is investing more than $100 million in infrastructure over the coming years, as Prince George builds the BC Cancer Agency: Centre for the North, which will include radiation therapy facilities and associated buildings for modern cancer care.
Education is another key dominant part of this city. With the University of Northern British Columbia, the College of New Caledonia and School District #57, education adds more than $780 million into the local economy annually.
Forestry dominated the local economy throughout the 20th century, including plywood manufacture, numerous sawmills and three pulp mills as major employers and customers. The Mountain pine beetle epidemic of the late 1980s and 1990s resulted in a short term boom in the forest industry as companies rushed to cut dead standing trees before the trees lost value. Sawmill closures and the creation of 'supermills' is already being seen in the area and more closures are expected. Mining exploration and development may become the future of Prince George. Initiatives Prince George estimates that the Nechako Basin contains over 5,000,000 barrels (790,000 m) of oil.
Other industry includes two chemical plants, an oil refinery, brewery, dairy, machine shops, aluminium boat building, log home construction, value added forestry product and specialty equipment manufacturing. Prince George is also a staging centre for mining and prospecting, and a major regional transportation, trade and government hub. Several major retailers are expanding into the Prince George market, a trend expected to persist. In recent years, several market research call centres have opened in Prince George.
Heritage, College Heights, Hart Highlands and St. Lawrence Heights are prime residential areas, both
