On April 13, 2026, the Montréal Port Authority (MPA) reached financial close on a CA$1.16 billion loan from the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) for the Contrecœur container terminal expansion project. The transaction marks a milestone for one of Canada's most significant port infrastructure investments and the largest east coast port expansion in Canadian history. The financing enables the construction of an advanced new container terminal capable of handling up to 1.15 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) annually, equivalent to roughly 60 percent of the Port of Montreal's current throughput. The expansion directly addresses long-term capacity constraints and supports future growth in container traffic, with full commercial operations targeted for 2030.
The Contrecœur expansion is one of Canada's first "major projects" of national importance referred to the federal Major Projects Office, and the partnership with the CIB establishes a solid financial foundation for the project's construction. The Government of Quebec is contributing $130 million and Transport Canada is providing $150 million. The full financing will be repaid through autonomous revenues and the contribution of the private sector as terminal operator. Ultimately, more than 85 percent of infrastructure costs will be borne by the private sector. CIB participation helps minimize the project's cost of capital, allowing the MPA to maintain its investment-grade credit rating while preserving cash flows for ongoing operations.
The project is expected to generate roughly $750 million annually in economic benefits and strengthening supply chain resilience across Canada. The terminal will leverage existing transportation infrastructure, including Highway 30 and the CN rail connection. It has also been designed to meet 388 binding conditions set by the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada. DP World Canada is in exclusive discussions with the MPA to serve as terminal operator.
Dentons acted as principal legal advisor to the MPA on the Contrecœur expansion project. With respect to the closing of the financing agreement with the CIB, partners Heidi Clark, Claude Morency, and Mira Gauvin co-led a multidisciplinary Dentons team that included Lampros Stougiannos, Emil Vidrascu, Sabrina Mach, Anoosh Loertscher, Justin Bracaglia, Véronique Bélair and Justin Hamzo.
McMillan acted as counsel to the Canada Infrastructure Bank with a team led by Catherine Doyle, Sharon Singh, Jerry Z. Huang and Ana Grubac, with key contributions from Yonathan Petel, Julie Han, Adam Slinn, Enda Wong, Michael Friedman, Andrei Pascu, and Brienne Gloeckler, among others.