City of Ottawa and TransitNEXT reach financial close on Stage 2 Trillium Line South Extension

On March 29, 2019, the City of Ottawa and TransitNEXT reached financial close on the Stage 2 Trillium Line south extension, a key component of Ottawa’s C$2.366 billion Stage 2 LRT project. The south extension will add 16 km of new rail and eight new stations, extending the O-Train network farther south from Greenboro Station to Limebank Station, with a link to the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport. The project also entails the maintenance of the existing Trillium Line assets, the supply of seven new light rail vehicles and the overhaul of six existing light rail vehicles.

The agreement with TransitNEXT for the Trillium Line Extension is a fixed-price contract worth C$663 million, with SNC-Lavalin providing an additional C$136 million in private capital contributions upfront. When including the long-term cost to maintain and rehabilitate both the existing Trillium Line and its new extension, the total project is valued at C$1.6 billion.

When complete, Ottawa’s Stage 2 LRT Project will bring 77% of Ottawa residents within five km of fast, efficient, clean and reliable rail. The network will result in a fully grade-separated system that spans nearly 64 km to include 41 stations, 85 vehicles and three maintenance and storage facilities.

Torys LLP was counsel to TransitNEXT (SNC-Lavalin Capital) as the successful proponent with a team that included Tara Mackay, Josh Van Deurzen, Brook Wong and Michael Jack.

Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP was counsel to the City of Ottawa as the public authority with a team that included Geoffrey Gilbert, Ethan Sinclair, Andrew Buisson, John Naccarato, Martin Masse, Andrew Pritchard, Stephen Nattrass, Ahad Ahmed, Michael Cockburn, Benedict Wray, Jason Worobetz and Meaghan Farrell.

McMillan LLP represented the lenders to SNC-Lavalin Capital Inc., The Toronto-Dominion Bank and The National Bank of Canada, with a team led by Ahsan Mirza and Julie Han (Infrastructure) and included Tim Murphy (Infrastructure) and Brent Thomas (Financial Services).