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Good morning!  👂 Hear that jack hammering? You shouldn’t. Cure-in-place pipe liner technology is being used on major infrastructure work in St. John’s right now to great success. It requires far less tearing up, meaning businesses and residents experience much less disruption.

⏰ Today’s read: 5 minutes

MARKETS

Economy: According to a recent survey, B.C. construction firms shared that they mitigate unquantifiable project risks by adding an average contingency premium of 14.5% to their total bid prices. Although 73% of companies plan to bid on public projects in the coming year, they remain highly selective due to significant deterrents such as onerous contract clauses (43%) and unrealistic budgets (37%). 

TOGETHER WITH PROCORE

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NEED TO KNOW

The week's headlines

🗑️ Trash and treasure: It was a big week for GFL. The company announced plans to acquire SECURE Waste Infrastructure for $6.4B. Meanwhile, Toronto police charged local businessman Ilan Philosophe in connection with targeted shootings at the homes of GFL CEO Patrick Dovigi and another executive. 

⚡ Power surge: Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) has awarded long-term contracts to 12 new solar and two wind projects, marking the province's first large-scale renewable energy expansion in over a decade. Driven by a projected 90% surge in electricity demand by 2050.

🏗️ In the zone: Ontario has issued four Minister’s Zoning Orders to facilitate the development of a transit-oriented community near the Oakville GO Station, aiming to deliver over 6,800 new homes and approximately 4,400 total jobs. Partnering with Distrikt Developments, the project will transform Midtown Oakville into a mixed-use hub.

🧑‍⚖️ Historic verdict: A Paris court has found French cement manufacturer Lafarge guilty of financing terrorism, ruling that the company paid $6.5 million to jihadist groups, including ISIS, to maintain operations at its Jalabiya plant during the Syrian civil war.

THE BIG STORY

Setting sail: First MPO project breaks ground

One of Canada's largest port expansions ever just broke ground thanks to a bold new approach. Can it blaze a trail for other major projects? 

Long sail: The Port of Montreal expansion was first proposed 40 years ago and has faced delays ever since. The project lingered in planning and regulatory limbo for a generation — a symbol of exactly the kind of institutional inertia that has long frustrated investors and builders in Canada. 

Fresh start: Contrecœur is the first project to break ground since being referred to the federal government's Major Projects Office — the new mechanism Carney created to accelerate projects. Notably, the port received $1.16 billion in financing through the Canada Infrastructure Bank. Construction begins in earnest this summer, with the terminal targeted to be operational by 2030. 

Room to grow: The port’s container market has been growing for over 50 years, and its terminals on Montreal Island are approaching full capacity. The new Contrecœur terminal will be a 60% increase. With U.S. trade uncertainty reshaping supply chains, the expansion also addresses a specific strategic gap: the ability to import goods into Canada without routing them through American ports. 

What's being built: The site includes two deep-water berths, a container handling area, an intermodal marshalling yard connected to the main rail network, and a truck gate linked to the road network. Construction of critical in-water works began in October 2025 under a Pomerleau/Aecon joint venture. The design and construction of the land-based facilities are the responsibility of DP World in Canada. 

The pipeline of projects watching closely: Contrecœur is the test case, but it is far from the only project eager to follow. The Major Projects Office has a growing roster of nation-building infrastructure referred for fast-tracking — including LNG export terminals and an electrical transmission line in northwestern B.C., critical minerals mines across multiple provinces, a hydroelectric project in Iqaluit, and the Mackenzie Valley Highway.

EVENTS

Industry Icebreaker: Cask & Keys is happening May 7th in Edmonton

Hosted by John McNicoll, ICBA Alberta, and SiteNews at the Blatchford Field Air Hangar — a World War II landmark and Canada's first licensed airfield — this is an evening designed for the kind of networking that doesn't happen at a conference.

Curated spirits. Live piano. A golf simulator challenge. And a room carefully curated for Alberta's top construction and industry executives.

Tickets are on sale now. Spots are limited.

PROJECT SPOTLIGHT

Healthy design

The University of Toronto has unveiled the design for the Temerty Building, a nine-storey, 388,000-square-foot health sciences hub co-led by Diamond Schmitt and MVRDV in collaboration with Indigenous firm Two Row Architect. Located on King’s College Circle, this state-of-the-art facility will integrate researchers and clinicians from the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Arts & Science within flexible, light-filled labs and classrooms.

PROJECT UPDATES

Crews break ground on $242M interchange project in Fraser Valley

Scaffolding begins covering Centre Block and Peace Tower in Ottawa

Major Barrie sewer project resumes 

Epic B.C. film studio facility makes its debut

Toronto funds mental health treatment centres for first responders

Queensborough Bridge deck renewalhas begun

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

👷‍♀️ PODCAST: ‘I wanted to be a rock star at work and a super mom at home’

🪵 READ: B.C. wood manufacturers decry ‘broken process’

🏠 READ: White House says U.S. is short 10 million homes

💻 WATCH: How AI took my Vancouver architect job 

👮 READ: Contractor sues province over corrections centre project

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Here’s to a great rest of the week!

Disclaimer: SiteNews is an independently-operated news website. Views expressed are that of the editorial team and are based on publicly available information unless otherwise noted through sponsored content.