Lexpert®Ranked Lawyers
P3 Realities | 15
Gibson, QC, Byran
McCarthy Tétrault LLP
(604) 643-7941
bgibson@mccarthy.ca
Mr. Gibson advises
proponents and
fi nanciers of
infrastructure
projects, including
transportation,
energy, health, justice,
recreation and defence
developments in BC,
Alberta, Ontario, New
Brunswick and the
federal sector.
Gilbert, Geoffrey G.
Norton Rose Fulbright
Canada LLP
(613) 780-3764
geoffrey.gilbert@
nortonrosefulbright.
com
Mr. Gilbert practises
in the area of project
fi nance, with an
emphasis on public-
private partnerships
and infrastructure
transactions. He
regularly advises
project sponsors and
lenders, among others,
on large and innovative
projects in Canada.
Godber, H. John
Borden Ladner
Gervais LLP
(514) 954-3165
jgodber@blg.com
Mr. Godber focuses
on M&A, corporate
fi nance, private
equity, securities and
international joint
ventures for closely and
widely held companies,
and regularly advises
clients on infrastructure
and network
transmission projects.
Gilain, Guy
De Grandpré Chait,
s.e.n.c.r.l. • LLP
(514) 878-3221
ggilain@dgclex.com
Specialized in
construction law,
including litigation and
contractual issues,
Mr. Gilain represents
industry participants of
all sizes, such as public
and private companies,
contractors, equipment
suppliers and
construction industry
organizations.
Glaholt, Duncan W.
Glaholt LLP
(416) 368-8280
dwg@glaholt.com
Mr. Glaholt, C.Arb, is
one of Canada's most
highly recommended
construction lawyers,
with experience in
energy, infrastructure
and mining projects. He
is a fellow of the CCCL,
ACCL and IACL, and
author of leading titles
on construction law
and ADR.
Goldman, Paul L.
Goodmans LLP
(604) 608-4550
pgoldman@
goodmans.ca
Mr. Goldman's
domestic and
international
corporate practice
embraces PPPs,
project development
and fi nancing. His
clients have included
the Alberta and BC
governments and
companies in the
mining, fi nancial and
real estate sectors.
bridges and roads, things like bus garages. That's opened
the markets for smaller players and projects of maybe $50
million, $200 million or $300 million. That's a lot different
from a billion-dollar project."
But P3s are not risk-free and rural municipalities and
other smaller local authorities, including First Nations
groups, thinking of using the structure for the first time,
should understand that putting the wrong project out for
tender is an exercise that can waste millions of taxpayers'
dollars, says Garrett.
"We were involved in a multi-billion-dollar P3 project a
couple of years ago to put toll roads into fairly remote areas
of Kazakhstan," he says. "The government couldn't finance
those roads or maintain those roads itself. But nobody bid
because there wouldn't have been enough traffic on the back
end to justify it.
"And I think local authorities here, especially where
there's not enough critical mass of population, could fall
into the same trap. They think this is a great way of financ-
ing infrastructure, but the reality is that unless it has a mini-
mum usage it's just not going to work."
The costs in putting small projects out to tender are also
proportionately higher.
"The costs of running a bid
project – putting the project
paperwork into place, getting
all the approvals that are neces-
sary, First Nations consultations
issues where required – are the
same whether it's a $10-billion
project or a $10-million project.
You still have to go through all
those steps. The costs don't re-
ally change.
"So make sure there's going
to be enough demand. If there's
one lesson I've learned, it is that
there's no point in using a PPP
model to build infrastructure if
the usage doesn't make market
sense. That doesn't mean you don't need to build the hos-
pital or road in a remote or sparsely populated area. But you
can't finance that through a PPP. It won't work."
The public also still has some misconceptions about the
structure that can cause problems, says Tobor Emakpor, a
partner at Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP.
PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK
