The federal government has announced the awarding of four construction contracts for the rehabilitation of the Trent-Severn Waterway, as part of a massive multi-year infrastructure project.
The four separate contracts represent four bundles of work to be completed along the waterway – Central, North, South and Kirkfield – and each bundle of construction work includes several smaller projects broken down based on geography.
Maple Reinders Constructors Ltd., in joint venture with Construction Demathieu & Bard Inc., says it will complete work on the Central and South bundles. Maple Reinders Constructors Ltd. was additionally awarded the contract for the North bundle.
The Trent-Severn Waterway National Historic Site is a major network of locks, bridges and dams that traverses 386 km. through central Ontario. Water levels and flows throughout the watershed are managed by approximately 160 operable dams and water control structures, many of which are nearing the end of their lifecycle.
The goal of the overall project is to repair or replace assets in poor condition with similar structures while maintaining important cultural and heritage elements of the original construction.
The Waterways Infrastructure Investment program is one part of the Government of Canada’s $3 billion investment into Parks Canada infrastructure – the largest in the agency’s history. The Central Bundle contract specifically – at $148.5 million – is the largest single project ever awarded to Maple Reinders.
Maryam Monsef, MP for Peterborough-Kawartha and the Minister of Status of Women, made the announcement with Kim Rudd, MP for Northumberland-Peterborough South.
“This is a significant milestone for the Trent-Severn Waterway Federal Infrastructure Investment Program,” Monsef said. “These four contracts represent approximately 30 individual projects stretching the length of the waterway, which will have a positive impact for our local tourism and construction sectors. Each project will continue to bring benefits to the communities along the way, long after the work is completed in 2020.”
The project has additional significance for Maple Reinders, currently celebrating its 50th year in operation. “There is a full-circle element to being awarded this new infrastructure project on our 50th anniversary as the company’s roots are with marine projects,” Paul Kundrat, the company’s National vice-president, said in a statement. “In fact, Maple Reinders’ founder, Fred J. Reinders, did work on a dam on this very same Trent-Severn Waterway at the beginning of his professional career. We are excited to be working on the restoration of this historic waterway so that it can be enjoyed for generations of Canadians to come.”
Design work on the Trent-Severn Waterways Infrastructure project has already commenced and the project is targeted for completion in 2020.
