ALBERTA
MARCH 21, 2008 – VOL. 8, NO. 6
News Magazine
Alberta ISSN 1496-9726
PM40045817
NEWSSTAND $2
By Monte Stewart
Business Edge
Public-private partnerships (P3s) offer plenty of
opportunities for Canada’s small and medium-
sized businesses – despite concerns smaller firms
may be excluded from the process, says the head of
a P3 advocacy group.
Jane Peatch, executive-director of the To r o n t o -
based Canadian Council for Public-Private Partner-
ships (CCPPP), says small contractors shouldn’t
feel threatened by large global firms that may
serve as P3 project leaders.
“The reason (P3s) are benefiting the public in
B.C., Alberta and the other provinces that are doing
it, is because you’re trying to take the risk of b e i n g
over time and over budget – which is quite typical
in conventional projects – and pass it over to the
private sector,” Peatch says.
“(Small contractors) would find that the disci-
pline is quite different, because you’ve got a group
of investors who will pay – every day – for a project
that goes over budget. In the conventional project,
there’s no such discipline. You could be working
on a cost-plus basis. If you’re on a conv e n t i o n a l
project, you don’t care if the project gets done or
not.”
See PRINCIPLE
Page 38
P3 projects
d r aw concern
from small
c o n tr a c t o r s
Public-private deals seen
as threat in some sectors
Geared up
Bayne Stanley, Business Edge
Former professional windsurfer David Labistour grew up riding the waves off the beaches
of his native South Africa, so it only seems natural he would excel in his career in outdoor
gear retailing. As CEO of Mountain Equipment Co-op, Labistour talks about combining his
lifelong love of sports and his business goals in 20 Questions on Page 8.
New MEC boss driven by nature
Building Wealth
Through Real Estate
See Page 25
Page 2
March 21, 2008
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