Archive for the ‘Major Projects’ Category

Campbell River Major Projects Web Portal

Wednesday, December 7th, 2011

Interested in doing business or working in the Campbell River region? Vancouver Island Economic Alliance (VIEA) has partnered with BC Hydro, Vancouver Island Construction Association (VICA), and the Campbell River Chamber of Commerce to produce a Campbell River Major Projects Web Portal site. It is now up to the business community to take the lead and register with the site to promote all the business skills, trades, equipment and supplies that exist in Campbell River and surrounding area.

VIEA Director Rick Roberts says: “The Economic Alliance has been attracted to the concept of the major projects portal from the beginning as it combines a couple of key elements that we are passionate about, that is businesses and communities pooling resources for enhanced economic impact and the facilitation of business to business opportunities on and for Vancouver Island. Put simply, the portal is economic collaboration in action.”

To explore the Portal go to: http://CR.majorprojects.ca. The site profiles supplier databases and information on the John Hart project. Businesses who wish to register their company can find the “Register as a Supplier” box on the Portal Home Page, click on “read more” and follow the prompts. Businesses can view a project’s description and outline, including projected trade requirements and timelines. By making this information available, potentially years in advance of the actual awarding of the contract, local businesses are able to prepare and position themselves as an attractive resource to the prime contractor.

This website will help ensure maximum opportunity for Island-based services and materials contractors to gain business from this and other major projects on the Island in the future.

Posted in BC Hydro, Economic Development, Economy, Major Projects | No Comments »

B.C. Major Projects Inventory

Tuesday, June 28th, 2011

The March 2011 edition of the BC Major Projects Inventory has recently been released. The capital cost of all major projects currently under construction in BC is estimated at $63.1 billion, up from $61.8 billion reported in the fourth quarter of 2010. The inventory lists proposed and major projects currently under construction in BC and is a great resource for those seeking employment in the trades.

Posted in Construction, Major Projects, Trades | No Comments »

BC Hydro John Hart Generating Station Replacement Project

Friday, April 15th, 2011

One of the major proposed projects to take place on Vancouver Island over the next five years is the replacement of the three existing 12’ diameter wood-stave pipelines that bring the water from the John Hart Dam down to the generating station on the river with a 2 km tunnel through the rock to a new generating station. The John Hart Dam is one of three dams on the Campbell River and provides 10% of the power for Vancouver Island. BC Hydro presented the background to this interesting project at the Vancouver Island Economic Alliance (VIEA) conference held recently at the Parksville Community and Conference Centre.

The main drivers for this project are:

  • Seismic – the wood-stave pipeline is not likely to survive a major quake
  • Not repairable – the capacity is declining in the generating station as it was built in 1947
  • Water supply – the dam is also the only water supply for the 35,000 residents of Campbell River
  • Risk to fish – there are environmental concerns as it now exists

The project study has been underway for some time and the eight metre diameter tunnel and new power generating station are estimated to cost $1.35 billion dollars. The project is to completed over a five year period and be operational in 2016/17.

The benefits of the project will be:

  • Secure power supply
  • Seismic potential
  • Environmentally better for fish
  • Less risk for surrounding park land
  • Improved employee and public safety

Community benefits include:

  • 2000 person years of work over five years
  • Continued access to river
  • Long-term water supply

Following is the proposed schedule:

  • Spring 2011 – Environmental assessment
  • Summer/Fall 2011 – Request for Qualifications
  • Fall 2011 – BC Utilities Commission application to proceed
  • Winter 2012/13 – Request for Proposals and award contract
  • 2016/17 – project completion

This project will require lots of skilled labour. There will be lots of materials removed as a result of the tunnel, decommissioning the current pipeline and resulting remediation of the property. It is estimated that there will be 40,000 truckloads of material, up to 160/day, moved as a result of the project and some roads will have to be upgraded to accommodate this movement of materials. The successful bidder on this proposal will be encouraged to use local labour/businesses wherever possible. The economic impact of this project will have a huge impact on the Campbell River area as well as other communities on Vancouver Island. The Career Centre will continue to monitor this project and will report back on the hiring process as it unfolds.

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Posted in BC Hydro, Employment, Major Projects | 5 Comments »

Update on Oceanside Construction

Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010

Recently one of the Career Centre Employment Consultants presented to the Oceanside Construction Association on our local job market. Here is an exerpt of his presentation:

In July of 2008 there was a severe shortage of workers, not just skilled workers but all workers. We were seeing wages rise as a result and there was poaching going on in several industries as the challenge to find workers increased.

This scenario changed rapidly by the fall of 2008 when the banking system collapsed in the US creating a recession that would affect all sectors of the business world. In the Oceanside area we have not seen a lot of job loss as a direct result of the recession but there has been a significant reduction in hiring and there are also still a lot of people moving in to the Oceanside area. These are mainly families who are bringing great skills with them and are looking for a lifestyle change.

I am optimistic about the labour market both in the Oceanside area and Vancouver Island in general. I base that optimism on the following indicators:

(more…)

Posted in Construction, Major Projects, Trades | No Comments »

Major Projects in BC

Thursday, May 20th, 2010

Major projects are making the news these days and Canada’s Action Plan website has a page where you can search projects using an interactive map. If you are able to relocate and have a background in construction or the trades here are a few you may want to follow up on:

  • Site C Clean Energy Project. The province has recently announced they will move foward with this project. The Site C Project will be the third dam on the Peace River in northeastern BC and will produce enough electricity to power appoximately 410,000 homes per year. The provincial government news release indicates this project will “contribute to the local and provincial economy by creating an estimated 7,650 direct construction jobs through the construction period, and up to 35,000 direct and indirect jobs through all stages of the project.”

  • The December 2009 Major Projects Inventory for BC highlighted two large projects in our region that have started construction: Channel Ridge Village on Salt Spring Island (estimated value $200 million) and a $91 million Central Vancouver Island Transmission Reinforcement project in the Nanaimo area.

  • A May 6 News Release from the Provincial Government has announced the construction of two new major metal mines: Copper mountain outside Princeton and the New Afton Mine outside Kamloops. “Copper Mountain is expected to provide about 200 jobs during the construction and another 250 when the mine is fully operational. at New Afton, up to 5550 jobs will be created during construction and 250 when the mine is fully operational.”

    • Interested in learning more about upcoming projects in our area and other labour market information? Attend our workshop Beyond the Postings: Finding Work in Oceanside. The next date is Wednesday June 2nd, 9:30am to 12:30pm.

Posted in Employment, Major Projects, Mining | No Comments »