57th PLCA-Canada Convention Held in Hawaii

The annual Pipe Line Contractors Association of Canada (PLCAC) Convention was held April 11-15, on the island of Maui in Hawaii at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa, with more than 300 attendees. The delegates were treated to a blend of business and social activities, including the annual golf tournament at the Kaanapali Golf Resort.

2010-2011 PLCAC president Kevin Waschuk, vice president of Waschuk Pipe Line Construction Ltd., reported at the opening general meeting on the state of the Canadian Pipeline market. Waschuk noted that 2010 was an off year for mainline work, but distribution construction was steady. He indicated that smaller mainline project would be coming out in 2011, and the distribution side would stay steady.

Jim Crawford, director of engineering for Enbridge, presented a comprehensive look at Canadian pipeline work for the future. Major Enbridge projects with construction proposed to start in the last quarter of 2011 included the Norealis Pipeline, 112 km at 24 in., and the Woodland Pipeline, pegged at 140 km at 36 in. These sizable projects will be accompanied by the TransCanada Keystone XL project, at 526 km at 36 in., also proposed to start later in 2011, and the Enhanced Energy CO2 Pipeline, at 240 km at 16 in., also to start in 2011.

A rousing presentation on Canada’s oil sands was made by Ezra Levant, a best-selling Canadian author of
“Ethical Oil: The Moral Case for Canada’s Oil Sands” — a must-read for any pipeliner.

PLCAC is noted for its networking and social events and this year was no exception. Attendees had the option of going on a snorkel and whale watch, participating in a surfing school, trail riding and even off-road dune buggy riding. There was Cirque Polynesia one evening and this year’s theme party was “Hollywood Hawaii.”

The Gala Banquet was special for Barry Brown, the recently retired executive director of PLCAC. He was inducted as an honorary member of the association. Brown had more than 25 years of service with PLCAC. Also at the banquet the 2011-2012 board of directors was introduced, and Nick de Koning, President of Robert B. Somerville Co., was introduced as the 2011-2012 PLCAC President.

The 2012 convention will be held June 3-7 at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler in Whistler, British Columbia, just north of Vancouver.