What We Do

The AST project is the installation of Rail Track 5 including rail switches, access roads, crossings and all other facilities to expand the rail storage at the Bethune mine site. KPCL was subcontracted by the joint venture group to perform the earthworks and grading scope of the new rail storage track. KPCL’s scope of work involved extending all the through grade drainage culverts along the existing rail line and moving all existing crossing and approaches back from the track to make room for the new rail line and access road.  The project required over 11,000 cubic meters of excavation nearly 25,000 tonnes of sub-ballast material to build 3.5 kilometers of new access road to railway specifications and convert the existing access road into an additional rail storage track.  KPCL also assisted the rail crews with switch installs and ballast hauling through site.

Key challenges included a one-month delay at the start of the project, which pushed back the earthworks mobilization until September of 2019.  KPCL was able to make up some of the lost time by working closely with KSPC operations to modify site access and traffic patterns, accelerating the schedule which allowed the new storage track to be installed and completely operational by December of 2019.

The Mile 55.5 Bridge Rehabilitation Project involved upgrading several components of CN’s 115-year-old bridge (built 1905) that crosses the South Saskatchewan River near Warman, SK.  The old truss girders were replaced with deep steel plate girders, new concrete piers were added, and foundational support was added to existing piers. The project was required to be completed in two phases with cofferdams being built into the river from both the east and west riverbanks as not to impede flow and allow for the river to be navigated. KPCL’s scope on the project included the construction of two earth fill cofferdams in flowing water, seepage cutoff trenches around the perimeter of each, seepage collection systems, settling ponds for pumped water, detailed pier excavations, access road construction, crane pad construction and armouring of temporary and permanent works, and all erosion control and riprap. Significant environmental protection controls were implemented throughout construction along with extensive water testing while working instream.

The Mile 55.5 bridge replacement required a 17-meter-deep road cut through the west valley wall to provide access to the river’s edge. A geotechnical investigation was conducted to provide data for slope stability analysis and excavation design. Key challenges included close proximity of the railway and a SaskPower transmission line.  In addition, the CN rail track remained operational during construction, with minimal outages to track usability. Intra till sand layers posed seepage and erosion concerns, which were planned for in design and successfully managed during construction.

This project involved the construction of 30.5 kilometers of rail subgrade from the CP mainline near Belle Plaine towards the K+S Potash Mine near Findlater, Saskatchewan. The scope of work included 11.6 million cubic meters of excavation and fill (in excess of 55,000 cubic meters moved per day), 72,800 cubic meters of sub-ballast processing and placement, 31,000 cubic meters of riprap processing and placement up to 1 meter in diameter, 2,900 meters of CSP drainage pipe up to 2 meters in diameter, 1,900,000 lineal meters of vertical wick drains, an 88 meter long by 9.7 meter diameter multiplate tunnel, 6,000 meters of 10 inch HDPE subdrain pipe with 23 precast manhole structures and 13,700 meters of HDPE weeping tile pipe in cut slopes to manage post construction aquifer seepage. The project also required the management of 31 utility crossings and relocations, and the diversion of the Qu’Appelle River with pumps to facilitate rip rap placement under the spurs Qu’Appelle river bridge crossing.

Challenges on the project included a compressed construction schedule, an incomplete design at the time of construction start including multiple alignment and grade revisions, utility relocation delays and management of significant groundwater flow to facilitate 25 and 35-meter cuts adjacent to the south and north valley walls. Opportunities for KPCL included completing the largest project in company history as the prime contractor overseeing multiple subcontractors.

Situated on the Canadian side of the U.S.-Canada border at Northgate, Saskatchewan, the Commodity Logistics Hub included the construction of a major grain terminal, a trans-loading facility and 13 kilometers of rail loop and track connecting the facility to the Burlington Northern Railway.  Through the Steward Southern Railway on the Canadian side, the Hub facilitates shipments of grain and petroleum projects from Saskatchewan to the U.S. and Mexico.

KPCL was contracted for the construction of all project earthworks up to the underside of rail ballast and including the supply of rail ballast. Excavation and granular backfills totaled approximately 1 million cubic meters, with 1,500 lineal meters of large culvert installations. Key challenges included soil conditions being significantly different from design assumptions with poor, near surface soils having to be replaced with suitable, non-frost susceptible material sourced from deep borrow pits within the confines of the owner’s property. In addition, an unanticipated high-water table necessitated the inclusion of unforeseen drainage measures to ensure the project schedule was maintained.

The rail car maintenance facility located near Nutrien’s Lanigan operations provides all-weather light repair and wheel maintenance services for Canpotex’s railcar fleet totalling 5,000 cars at the time of completion. KPCL was subcontracted by PCL Construction for grading the site and the construction of the rail bed, maintenance building foundation, and HDPE lined sewage lagoon. Challenges involved working with poor silty, sandy, saturated soils and a near surface water table that caused trafficability and constructability problems throughout construction. To improve foundations for the rail grade, geotextiles and geogrid materials were used extensively on the project.