38 LEXPERT MAGAZINE
|
APRIL 2016
COVER STORY
Boom
Building
Canada's infrastructure industry is poised
to benefit from the coming increase in federal
stimulus spending. But lawyers should also
be aware of new trade agreements, recent
court decisions and ethical bidding practices
BY SHELDON GORDON
TRANSIT. ROADS. WASTE-WATER PLANTS. CLEAN ENERGY.
ese are what the Trudeau government promises to fund in the largest new public infra-
structure program in Canadian history. During the federal election campaign, the Liberals
pledged to nearly double federal infrastructure expenditures to almost $125 billion – from
the existing $65 billion – over the next decade.
e coming federal building boom ranks as the biggest headline for engineering and
construction firms, private investors and lenders — and the infrastructure Bar. But it's not
the only big story for them. New trade agreements that Canada has negotiated (but not yet
ratified), important judicial rulings and an increased emphasis on ethical bidding practices
are also developments for Canada's infrastructure industry to heed.
THE P3 ASSET CLASS e City of Regina's new sewage treatment plant, expected to be
up and running by December 2016, typifies the new face of infrastructure procurement in
Canada. e municipal project, which has a capital cost of $181 million, is funded in part
by a $58.5-million grant from the federal government's P3 Canada Fund. e private sector
is responsible for designing, building, financing, operating and maintaining (DBFOM) the
new plant over a 30-year period.
PHOTO:
SHUTTERSTOCK
