Canada Set for More than $207 Billion in Industrial Project Construction Starts in 2016

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Canada is set to see $207.65 billion in projects begin construction in 2016, according to Industrial Info's project database, with its drilling and mining industries possibly returning to spending levels not seen since last year's sudden plunge in prices for oil and other commodities. More than 90% of the TIV is attributed to four industries: Oil & Gas Production, Metals & Minerals, Power and Petroleum Refining.

Click on the image at right for a graph showing an industry breakdown of projects that are set to begin construction in Canada in 2016.

Although it has been hindered since late last year by collapsing commodity prices, Canada's Oil & Gas Production Industry is far ahead of all other industries with $86.28 billion in projects set to kick off next year. This massive amount is at least partly due to some projects being pushed back after prices tumbled.

Royal Dutch Shell's (NYSE:RDSA.A) (The Hague, Netherlands) plan for a $25 billion natural gas liquefaction (NGL) plant near Kitimat, British Columbia, leads all other projects currently slated to begin construction in 2016. The project, which recently received conditional approval by British Columbia's government, involves the construction of two 6 million-tonne-per-year liquefied natural gas (LNG) trains and two 225,000-cubic-meter storage tanks; if construction begins as scheduled, commercial production could begin toward the end of the decade.

The Metals & Minerals Industry, which has always played a leading role in Western Canada's provinces and territories, is looking at slightly less than $72 billion in planned construction kickoffs in 2016. Total S.A.'s (NYSE:TOT) (Paris, France) planned construction of an $11 billion mining facility in Alberta's oil sands, near Fort McKay, has faced opposition from local residents and fallout from low commodity prices, but is still slated for kickoff late next year. The open pit mine will be built near the company's steam-assisted gravity drainage operation and produce 157,000 barrels per day (BBL/d) of bitumen. WorleyParsons Canada Limited (Calgary, Alberta) is performing engineering services on the project, which is set to be completed in late 2019.

The Power Industry lags far behind, but still boasts a healthy $23.36 billion in planned kickoffs for 2016. Among the largest projects is Ontario Power Generation Incorporated's (Toronto) $3.23 billion plan to refurbish and extend the life of Unit 2 at the Darlington Nuclear Power Station in Bowmanville, Ontario. The project involves refurbishing the CANada Deuterium Uranium (CANDU) pressurized water reactor and an Alstom steam turbine generator by replacing 480 pressure tubes and 900 feeder pipes and related equipment. SNC-Lavalin Incorporated (Toronto) and AMEC NSS (Toronto) are performing engineering services on the project, which also is set to be completed in late 2019.

Canada's Petroleum Refining Industry has $9.64 billion in projects slated to begin construction next year, led by North West Redwater Partnership's (Calgary) $2.6 billion extension of a bitumen upgrader at the Sturgeon Refinery near Redwater, Alberta. The company plans to expand its planned, 50,000-BBL/d upgrader to 100,000 BBL/d. The expansion is slated to begin in third-quarter 2016 and to be completed roughly two years later.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.