Montreal advised CDPQ Infra Inc. on an automated light-rail transportation system for C$6.3bn

Our Montreal office advised CDPQ Infra Inc., a subsidiary of Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, in connection with the Réseau express métropolitain (REM) project, an automated light-rail transportation system in the Greater Montreal area.  Construction of the REM project has officially started, and comprises of 67 kilometres of railway and 26 stations. Once complete, this project will be one of the largest automated transportation system in the world. For the greater Montreal area, the REM also represents the largest public transportation infrastructure since the metro was inaugurated in 1966. Instead of a standard public-private partnership (P3) project, where a private consortium participates as a source of project financing and is responsible for project construction and operation, this will constitute Québec’s first “public-public” partnership project as CDPQ Infra Inc. is simultaneously the owner and the primary investor, and will delegate the construction works and operation to private partners.

We advised CDPQ Infra Inc. on the legal and tax structuring and the contractual aspects of the project including the agreements with the various levels of government and the relevant transit authorities as well as the procurement of the engineering and construction services and the rolling stock, systems and long term management services.

Our team in Canada was led by Alain Ricard and Mario Caron, and included Jules Charette, Éric Dunberry, Jean-Nicolas Prévost, Andres Garin, Catherine Martel, Melissa Devost, Miguel Manzano, Louis Roy, Antoine Desroches, François Côté, Patrick Galizia, Thierry Dorval, Claudia Déry, Charles Foucreault, Martin Valasek, Catherine Daigle, Jean-Charles René, Michèle Friel, Marie-André Thibault, Jean-Christophe Martel, Vincent Filiatrault, Marilyne Rougeau, Renée Loiselle, Lady Africa Sheppard, Pierre-Olivier Tremblay, Thomas Charest-Girard, Rachel Lesmerises, Charles-Antoine Péladeau and Alexa Biscaro, as well as the translation team including Hélène Bourque, Jacqueline El Haddad, Adriana Fioriello and Sophie Kilburn.