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REGINA – The Government of Saskatchewan has announced Prairie Engineering Partners has been awarded upcoming planning and design work on the Westside Irrigation Rehabilitation Project (WIRP).

Prairie Engineering Partners is a joint venture between Stantec and MPE Engineering.

“Our government is committed to this project, and this is the next step in moving ahead the Lake Diefenbaker Irrigation Projects to the construction phase. This project starts at the waters of Lake Diefenbaker but has the potential to create major benefits for all of Saskatchewan,” the provincial minister responsible for the Water Security Agency David Marit said in a statement.

In March Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe announced the province is moving forward with constructing the early works of the first 90,000 acres of the Lake Diefenbaker Irrigation Projects (LDIP), a release said.

The WIRP is the first part of the overall LDIP and is intended to optimize the existing infrastructure and develop new infrastructure from Lake Diefenbaker to the Ardath-Swanson area near Conquest to create 90,000 acres of irrigated land.

The ministry of SaskBuilds and procurement evaluated the proposals based on technical criteria, financial costs and face-to-face interviews, the release said. Prairie Engineering Partners will be responsible for completing the fieldwork, planning and engineering to the next stage of project design.  

The engineering, design and engagement with stakeholders and Indigenous rights holders is expected to be done over the next year with major construction of the 90,000 acres being targeted to start in 2025 to 2026, the release said.