PCL Wins $552M South Bay Plant Award With May 2031 Finish
The U.S. section of the International Boundary and Water Commission raised PCL Construction’s South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant award to $552 million on Oct. 13, with substantial completion set for May 2031, ENR reports.
Scope and Schedule
The revised contract expands phase 1 of a plant that is meant to eventually treat 50 million gallons per day of raw sewage from both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. PCL leads a design-build team with Stantec. The award covers primary treatment only and stays within the project’s original expected $600 million cost. Secondary treatment is not included, and U.S. IBWC spokesman Frank Fisher said additional funding is required before that work can be awarded.
Per ENR, the primary treatment work fits within a 1,643-day construction schedule. It includes:
- A new integrated headworks
- A new chemical system
- Two additional primary sedimentation tanks
- A new sludge thickening and storage system
- A new 12-kV electrical building with switchgear and transformers
The broader expansion also calls for 10 new secondary sedimentation tanks and seven new activated sludge tanks, none of which are in this award.
Scope changes in the early works package include replacing existing roofs, process equipment and piping, electrical equipment and odor control media. The package also covers new window sealants, replacement coiling doors and emergency showers and eyewash stations, and painting and coating of existing facilities. Long-lead equipment includes standby generators, medium-voltage switchgear, positive displacement blowers, submersible solids-handling pumps, dewatering centrifuges, stainless steel slide gates and stop logs.
ENR does not say why the scope grew or whether the schedule moved, and it does not cite unknown site conditions. PCL operations manager Jeff Newman said all long-lead items have been purchased and multiple early works packages are underway. Shoring, dewatering and excavation of structures begin in the next few weeks, he said.
What It Means for Subcontractors
- Major packages are largely placed. Morley Construction won the large concrete package, Southern Contracting won electrical, and Technical Systems Incorporated is the control systems integrator. PCL will self-perform mechanical work and build some ancillary facilities. Remaining sub opportunities are likely small, such as the ancillary buildings (our inference).
- Early works trades should pursue PCL now. Roofing, coatings, sealants, doors and safety fixtures sit in the revised scope, and ENR does not say who holds those packages, so confirm with PCL whether any remain open. Shoring, dewatering and excavation start in the coming weeks, so those packages are closest to execution.
- Check change-order and notice language on any scope-growth job. ENR does not tie this award’s growth to differing site conditions, but the revision shows how a design-build scope can expand mid-stream. Confirm your notice deadlines, pricing basis for added work and schedule-impact claims before signing.
- Plan backlog around the 1,643-day duration. Substantial completion is May 2031, and facilities will go online as they finish. Trades with long-duration crews on site, such as concrete, electrical and mechanical, should map demobilization against that date.
- The secondary expansion is a separate future procurement. The 10 secondary sedimentation tanks and seven activated sludge tanks have no funding and no award date, according to ENR. Don’t count them in backlog until the IBWC announces funding.
