CCPPP - The City of Saint John – Safe, Clean Drinking Water Project

The City of Saint John – Safe, Clean Drinking Water Project

Location: Saint John, NB

Status: Operational

Value of Partnership: $217 million

Type of P3: DBFOM and DBF

Financial close: February 2016

Substantial completion: November 2018

Handback: 2048

The $217-million project, completed in Canada’s oldest city in 2018, is the single largest municipal infrastructure investment in New Brunswick’s history and the first large-scale drinking water P3 in Canada.

The project was developed using a unique P3 agreement that combined a DBFOM model for the primary infrastructure (treatment plant and reservoirs) and a DBF model for the additional infrastructure dams and distribution system. Service to residents needed to be maintained during the project’s construction and care was taken to inform customers and stakeholders throughout the process about using the P3 model.

The new infrastructure means residents no longer endure boil water advisories and will be provided with high-quality drinking water for many years to come. Prior to this project, the city did not filter its water. Treatment consisted only of coarse screening and chlorination, and disinfection byproducts did not meet current and proposed provincial standards.

The project included:

The development of a new 75 million litre per day water-treatment plant, located on a site owned by the city adjacent to Little River Reservoir Lake;
Three new storage reservoirs with a total capacity of 33 million litres; and
A number of other high impact and critical water transmission system improvements, including the replacement of 22.4 kilometres of pipes and rehabilitation of an additional 19.3 km of water pipes.

In addition, the P3 agreement includes the operations and maintenance of the facility by the private consortium for 30 years. On expiry of the agreement, responsbiluty for the primary infrastructure will be returned to the city.

As a result of using the P3 model, the project had an estimated total cost savings of $24.1 million NPV. This unique approach can be helpful for other municipalities searching for a model to modernize water treatment and distribution systems.

Distribution from the new state-of-the-art Loch Lomond Drinking Water Treatment Facility started in September 2018, with the official opening ceremony held in 2019. It has transformed the drinking water system for 70,000 residents and hundreds of businesses across Saint John.

Read More: Case Study

Partners:

Public: City of Saint John

Private: Port City Water Partners (PCWP), a general partnership of Brookfield (PCWP) Inc., Acciona Agua International Inc. and NAC (PCWP)

Other Participants:

Public Sector: PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP – Financial Advisor; CBCL Limited – Technical Advisor; Partnerships New Brunswick – P3 Process Advisor; Torys LLP – Legal Advisor

Private Sector: Brookfield Financial Securities LP – Lead Developer, Financial Advisor, Equity Sponsor (50% through Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP); Acciona Agua – Equity Sponsor (40%), Design-Build Joint Venture (50%), Design Team Member, Operations-Maintenance-Rehabilitate (OMR) Team Member; Acciona Infrastructure Canada Inc. – Design-Build Joint Venture (50%); North America Construction – Equity Sponsor (10%), Design-Build Subcontractor; Amec Foster Wheeler (now “Wood”) Environment and Infrastructure – Design Team Member; Stantec Consulting Ltd. – Design Team Member; SIMO Management Inc. – OMR Team Member; FCC Construction – Design-Build Subcontractor; Gulf Operators Ltd. – Design-Build Subcontractor; Revolution Strategy – Communications Manager; Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP – Legal Advisor

Awards: National Awards for Innovation & Excellence in P3s' Silver Award in Project Development, 2017