Alberta Contractors Owed Millions for Work on Unfinished Hospital

May 24, 2019

An Alberta court has ordered the province to release almost $13 million to contractors owed for work conducted at the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital. The province has $30 million sitting in a fund controlled by the court.

Since the $763 million project began in 2011, it has been plagued with delays. In September 2018, the province terminated a contract with the original project manager. Another project manager has been brought on.

In a letter to Alberta’s Minister of Infrastructure, the Grande Prairie Chamber of Commerce notes that among its members “a number of small and medium-sized sub-contractors and sub-trades [are] currently suffering financial hardship due to non-payment of construction contracts for the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital… some have even been forced to close their doors. Others have had their ability to bid on future work put in jeopardy due to credit limitations. 

“These businesses are required to pay GST on money that is owed; taxes must be paid on accrued income; interest charges must be paid if they were forced to borrow until payment is received; and, legal fees must be covered if they hope to receive payment in the future. Finally, there is no guarantee that these businesses will receive all of the monies they are owed for equipment and labour that have already been put in place.”

One suggestion proposed by the chamber is a loan guarantee program to help out contractors who have completed the work for which they were hired.

Read more from the letter HERE