BC – BC Hydro has announced that it has signed a contract with ATCO Two Rivers Lodging Group for the design, construction, partial financing, operation and maintenance of worker accommodation at the Site C dam site.
“We are pleased to work with BC Hydro to provide their workforce with a high-quality facility that brings the comforts of home one step closer,” says Steve Lockwood, ATCO’s President & Chief Operating Officer. “ATCO’s proven expertise to build and operate a project of this magnitude will create real efficiencies and cost savings for BC Hydro, as well as jobs and opportunities for the Peace River region.”
The eight-year contract has a value of approximately $470 million. A rigorous evaluation process concluded that ATCO Two Rivers Lodging Group met BC Hydro’s requirements for Site C worker accommodation within the budget established for the contract.
“Site C construction is providing an important economic boost for the region and the province,” says Bill Bennett, Minister of Energy and Mines. “Building this work camp is going to create hundreds of jobs, while delivering a quality facility for workers within budget.”
Approximately 360 positions will be created by the construction and operation of the worker accommodation camp. ATCO Two Rivers Lodging is recruiting locally for these positions.
Two Rivers Lodging Group is a partnership of companies from across Canada. The primary partner ATCO has extensive experience in the area of designing, constructing and operating worker accommodation facilities in British Columbia, Alberta, across Canada and globally. ATCO has provided high-quality, turnkey workforce lodging solutions in British Columbia for the past 40 years, which include some of the province’s most significant resource projects.
Recently, ATCO completed a 1,700-person accommodation village for workers on the Rio Tinto Alcan Smelter Modernization Project and a 600-person lodge for the Kitimat LNG project.
Site C is just over two months into an almost decade-long construction period. There are currently about 400 workers on the Site C dam site near Fort St. John. Of these, approximately 80 per cent are from B.C.
“The worker accommodation camp is one of the most important early construction activities on Site C and I’m pleased to see the contract awarded,” says Pat Pimm, MLA, Peace River North. “I’m looking forward to seeing local workers and businesses benefit from the construction and operation of this facility.”
Employment is going to continue to ramp up over the coming months and years — there are going to be significant economic opportunities for northern and Aboriginal workers and businesses from the construction of Site C.
Several local companies have been sub-contracted to do work on the project. Petrowest Construction from Charlie Lake is doing site preparation work for the worker accommodation camp. In addition, the Fort St. John office of WSP Canada is doing surveying work, Helical Pier Systems out of Fort St. John is conducting pile work for the camp, and Northern Geo out of Fort St. John is doing compaction testing.
ATCO is participating in Site C business-to-business networking sessions and job fairs in the Peace region this week. ATCO will be recruiting for both construction and operating jobs for the facility.
The quality of worker accommodation is a key component of the project’s labour approach to attract and retain workers for the Site C project. The worker accommodation camp for Site C will be built to house up to 1,600 construction workers, with services and utilities designed to accommodate a total capacity of 2,200, if required.
To minimize the impact on nearby communities, the camp will be self-sufficient and designed to accommodate the fluctuating number of workers.
Construction of the Site C Clean Energy Project started in July 2015 and will be completed in 2024. Once built, Site C will provide clean, reliable and affordable electricity in B.C. for more than 100 years.
