The Legault government wishes to involve the City of Quebec in the development of the official mandate which will be entrusted to the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) in connection with the tramway project and other structuring network options in Quebec.
• Read also: QS and the PQ want to know: since when has the CAQ been discussing the tramway with the CDPQ?
As is the case every month, Prime Minister François Legault met with the CEO of the Caisse, Charles Emond, on Wednesday morning.
In particular, there was discussion of the tramway project, which the CAQ government withdrew from the hands of the City of Quebec a week ago, following a meeting with Mayor Bruno Marchand.
As previously reported by Le Journal, officially, the Fund has still not received a precise mandate for the future.
“We would like to involve the City in developing it,” the Prime Minister’s office said Wednesday afternoon.
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“For the greater Quebec region”
However, we know that this mandate will be “linked to the study of a structuring transport project for the greater Quebec region,” underlined François Legault’s press secretary, Ewan Sauves.
This indication suggests that the scope of the project could go beyond the sole territory of Quebec City, and include Lévis.
As soon as Mayor Marchand’s plan B was rejected, which consisted of the City building the tramway itself, Le Journal obtained information to the effect that the interconnection with the South Shore would also be part of the analysis . Government sources also suggested that the Caisse could become the project manager of the ultimately selected project.
“As we have already indicated, we would like CDPQ Infra to evaluate all possible options, within a maximum period of 6 months, to then make us a proposal,” recalled Mr. Sauves.
However, it remains to be seen what contribution the Marchand administration will make in determining the official mandate entrusted to the Caisse.
“As soon as the mandate is set, it will be made public,” assures Mr. Sauves.
Sequence of events
The Prime Minister’s office also clarified when the first discussions took place between the government and the Caisse concerning the tram project. This is a question raised a little earlier by Québec solidaire and the Parti Québécois.
“The first discussions with the CDPQ concerning a possible analysis of mobility in the greater Quebec region took place on October 29,” indicated Mr. Sauves.
Note here that on October 29, the City was still calling for tenders for its tram project. Mayor Marchand ended the process on November 1, announcing his plan B at $8.4 billion.
The Prime Minister then “spoke to the president of the Caisse on November 6 in view of his meeting on November 8 with Mayor Marchand,” says his press secretary.
Mr. Legault then “asked the president of the Caisse if he was open to a study of the different options in Quebec and the latter responded positively,” related Mr. Legault. Save.
“The Caisse confirmed its interest to us on November 6, and asked us to obtain the collaboration of the city of Quebec for the future,” he added.