Portage la Prairie is moving ahead with a major water treatment plant upgrade after City Council gave second and third reading to its Utility Borrowing Authority By-Law No. 24-8772 on August 11, 2025.
The bylaw authorizes the city to borrow up to $55.2 million in debentures over 30 years to help fund the $100.46-million project, which also includes $40.25 million in provincial funding and $1.75 million from the city’s utility reserve.
Major project for water capacity and quality
The upgrade will see the addition of a new raw water intake, a second ballasted flocculation system for redundancy, and four trains of dual-stage ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis membrane treatment. These changes aim to boost plant capacity and improve water quality. Repairs to the existing facility that can only be completed once the new membrane system is operational are also included in the plan.
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An updated cost estimate prepared by Stantec in September 2024 set the base figure at $96.6 million, which included a 15 per cent contingency allowance and 6 per cent for inflation. Due to significant increases in infrastructure construction costs, the city added an extra 4 per cent contingency, bringing the total projected cost to $100.46 million.
Councillor and Finance Chair Joe Masi says the numbers in the bylaw are an upper-end estimate.
“We are very optimistic that we're going to get more funding from the province and the federal government. We’ve also estimated a 7% interest rate, and we’re pretty confident it’s going to be less than that. These are just preliminary numbers, but we wanted to make sure we gave the upper-end estimate for the project.”
Funding breakdown and approvals
The city has already received its $40.25 million grant from the Manitoba Water Services Board upfront. Interest earned on that amount, estimated at $3.26 million, will also go toward the project. Along with the $1.75 million from the utility reserve, the remainder will be funded through the $55.2 million debenture.
The Public Utilities Board (PUB) has given approval in principle for the city to recover debenture payments through water rates, but final approval will come later when actual borrowing costs are known. The Manitoba Municipal Board has also issued its authorization.
Masi notes that cost-sharing already in place makes this the right time to move forward.
“This project is going to be the future for Portage la Prairie. It’s going to help us bring more economic development to our city, more reliability for water for our residents, and good, clean potable water. We’ve got good cost-sharing and that’s why we’re proceeding now.”
Impact on water bills
The city projects the borrowing could lead to about a 60 per cent increase in water rates.
For an average household using 40 cubic metres per quarter, that works out to an extra $63.20 every three months.
Rate increases would be applied as a surcharge per cubic metre, with different rates for each consumption tier:
- Step 1 (0–227 m³): $1.58
- Step 2 (228–2,273 m³): $1.31
- Step 3 (2,274–18,184 m³): $1.24
- Step 4 (18,184+ m³): $0.53
Masi adds that these figures represent an upper-end estimate and could go down if more outside funding comes through or if interest rates on the debenture are lower than anticipated.
“These numbers are what we got approval for. If we get more cost-sharing and a lower interest rate, the projected water rate increases will go down."
Timeline and next steps
Design work is already underway. The city expects the project will be completed by September 2028, although some portions could be finished sooner.
With the bylaw now passed, administration can focus on securing the most favourable borrowing terms for the debenture and finalizing project details. The city also has the flexibility to choose a different financial institution than the one named in the bylaw if a better deal can be found.
Masi remarks that this is only the beginning of the process.
“This is the start getting this bylaw approved today, and I congratulate council for their foresight to see that we get this project done at this time. It’s important that we get it done.”
Looking ahead
Once completed, the expanded facility will position Portage la Prairie to handle long-term growth and provide a more secure water supply for decades to come.
Masi continues that the benefits go beyond just keeping up with demand.
“We have to do this project. It’s a really good opportunity now though as we have cost-sharing already in place. Hopefully, the project will be a very good project like Saskatchewan Avenue, when you make that big difference in our community.”
Council’s unanimous decision marks the end of the formal approval process for the borrowing bylaw but also signals the start of one of the city’s largest infrastructure projects in years.
As Masi mentions, the combination of secured provincial funding, anticipated federal contributions, and careful financial planning could lessen the rate impact on residents while delivering a “game changer” for Portage la Prairie and the region.
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