Stantec and MPE Engineering, under the joint firm Prairie Engineering Partners, will begin rehabilitation of canals near Outlook.
The Government of Saskatchewan has awarded a contract for the first phase of the Lake Diefenbaker Irrigation Project, which was revived this spring by Premier Scott Moe.
Prairie Engineering Partners, a joint venture comprised of firms Stantec and MPE Engineering, has been selected for the planning and design work on the first part of the Westside Irrigation Rehabilitation Project.
The Westside Project comprises Phase 1 and 2 of the three-phase megaproject, which is planned to rehabilitate existing canal networks near Outlook and expand the network north to Asquith and Delisle.
“Our government is committed to this project, and this is the next step in moving ahead the Lake Diefenbaker Irrigation Projects to the construction phase,” stated David Marit, the minister responsible for the Water Security Agency (WSA), in a news release issued Thursday.
The Ministry of SaskBuilds evaluated proposals from interested parties based on technical criteria, financial costs and the results of face-to-face interviews.
As the selected proponent, Prairie Engineering Partners will conduct all relevant fieldwork, planning and engineering to inform the next stage of project design.
“This project starts at the waters of Lake Diefenbaker but has the potential to create major benefits for all of Saskatchewan,” stated Marit in the release.
Contractors will begin work on Phase 1 immediately while engagement with stakeholders and Indigenous rights holders is to be conducted over the next year.
Construction is aimed to begin in 2025 or 2026.
The fruition of all three phases would see an additional 500,000 acres of irrigated land come online, equal to approximately one per cent of farmland in Saskatchewan. The economic impact of the expansion has been touted at $80 billion.
Coined as the largest infrastructure project in the province’s history, the full undertaking is expected to supply more than double the amount of irrigated land in southern Saskatchewan within 10 years.
The Westside Project would ultimately add another 260,000 acres of irrigated land, in addition to the 90,000 acres already serviced by the Westside pump station.
Phase 3, or the Qu’Appelle South Project, connects the Moose Jaw-Regina corridor between Qu’Appelle Dam and Buffalo Pound Lake.
Saskatchewan is moving forward without a commitment from the federal government to contribute funding, which leaves the cost-share model on the shoulders of the province and participating producers.
A fully costed-out figure for all three phases has not been done since 2020, according to the WSA.
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