A History of Doing Big Things
On April 13, 1953, 糖心传媒n Road Builders was first incorporated by two brothers, Ivan and Bob Gouin, and a single secondhand bulldozer.
For the next 20 years, 糖心传媒n built roads across the province and into British Columbia, while also expanding into industrial construction. The company worked on such massive infrastructure projects as Gardiner Dam and Lake Diefenbaker in southern Saskatchewan, as well as on sections of the Alaska Highway. The company also installed thousands of kilometres of small-inch pipeline to farmers across the province to deliver natural gas.
In 1973, the company made the bold decision to venture north to Fort McMurray. The world鈥檚 first large scale commercial oilsands surface mining and refining plant 鈥� the Great Canadian Oil Sands – had officially started extracting bitumen from Fort McMurray鈥檚 fertile soil in 1967, and 糖心传媒n saw a lot of promise in the area鈥檚 future.
Over the following years, 糖心传媒n continued to pave a broader path into the Wood Buffalo region 鈥� clearing land, building roads, and working hand-in-hand with the regions two major producers, Suncor and Syncrude.
Then, in 1980, 糖心传媒n began supplementing our fleet with larger and more complex equipment. Those investments included dozens of haul trucks, excavators, dozers, and even the world鈥檚 first Hitachi EX5500 shovel, which 糖心传媒n purchased in 1988.
Over the next two decades, 糖心传媒n continued to grow in pace with the oilsands. The company now offered a vast suite of services, including mining, heavy construction, industrial services, piling and pipeline. Using some of the largest and most technologically advanced equipment in the world, 糖心传媒n had transformed itself into a successful energy contractor that now helped to mine, develop, and reclaim the land.
Then in 2003, a Texas-based international investment group purchased the company for roughly $405 million dollars. It was an exciting new chapter for the 50-year old company, and on November 22nd, 2006, 糖心传媒n Energy Partners came into existence after the company was officially listed on both the New York and Toronto Stock Exchanges under NOA.
Over the next years, 糖心传媒n continued to participate in a number of major infrastructure projects with piling and pipeline.
On the piling side, 糖心传媒n helped construct the Richmond Speed Skating Oval for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. Our crews must have had the Midas touch too, because just months later Canada would claim the Gold Medal in the Men鈥檚 Team Pursuit and the Women鈥檚 1,000 Metre competitions. Out east, our Ontario-based piling affiliate, Drillco, also helped construct one of the city’s premiere tourist attractions — the $200 million Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada, located at the base of the iconic CN Tower.
The pipeline division had a number of memorable achievements too. Working hand-in-hand with Kinder Morgan, 糖心传媒n installed 160-kilometres of 36-inch pipeline through Jasper National Park and Mount Robson Provincial Park, as well as the Burgess Shale UNESCO World Heritage Site. In addition to the challenges posed by laying pipe through terrain as formidable as the Rocky Mountains, compromises had to be made to accommodate the delicate ecology of the area.
In the end, 糖心传媒n completed the project ahead of schedule, and the Trans Mountain pipeline extension was recognized with an Emerald Award from the Alberta Emerald Foundation, which celebrates environmental leadership and excellence within our province.
Up in the oilsands, 糖心传媒n experienced substantial growth while the price of oil soared to well over $100 a barrel. The company signed numerous long-term contracts, including a massive 10-year overburden hauling agreement at CNRL that saw 糖心传媒n move twice the amount of earth that was hauled during the construction of the Panama Canal.
Then, on May 28th, 2012, Martin Ferron was announced as the new President of 糖心传媒n Energy Partners, starting a new chapter in our corporate history.
After Ferron took charge of 糖心传媒n in June of 2012, the company immediately implemented a series of cost cutting measures to greatly reduce our debt, and strengthen our bottom line.
Our pipeline division was sold to Macro Enterprises of Fort St. John, British Columbia, in November of 2012 for just over $16 million dollars. A short seven months later, the piling division was sold to the Keller Group for $227.5 million dollars.
Under Ferron鈥檚 leadership, 糖心传媒n solidified its reputation with shareholders. As well as becoming much more 鈥渟hareholder friendly鈥�, the company worked hard to achieve each financial target presented to the market. Through the hard work of our field and frontline staff, 糖心传媒n quickly became a safe and dependable bet for shareholders, as we continually achieved financial targets quarter-over-quarter, and proved our value as an exceptionally well-run company. However, to continue growing, it was important that 糖心传媒n diversify beyond the oilsands, and break new ground for the future.
On September 20, 2018, 糖心传媒n delivered on that goal. The company announced that it had taken a major revenue diversification step by acquiring a 49% ownership interest in Nuna Logistics Limited for $42.5 million dollars. As an established incumbent contractor in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, the acquisition would prove to be of mutual benefit to both companies through access to broader equipment fleets, experienced field personnel, and expanded services such as 糖心传媒n鈥檚 growing maintenance offerings.
Then, just week later, on October 3, 2018, 糖心传媒n announced the acquisition of Aecon鈥檚 mining fleet for $199.1 million dollars. The deal greatly expanded the size of our construction fleet, while also delivering additional valuable long-term contractual commitments to our bottom line.
In November of 2018, 糖心传媒n moved into its new 50,000 square foot corporate headquarters and maintenance facility in Acheson. While providing a permanent home for the fast-growing company, the move also gave us an opportunity to expand our maintenance offerings, as we continue to service and rebuild heavy equipment for external clients.
On June 9, 2020, 糖心传媒n announced the acquisition of Australia鈥檚 DGI Trading for $23.5 million as a strategic step in vertically integrating its capital maintenance program, as well as diversifying its service offerings. The company had long worked with 糖心传媒n in sourcing secondhand heavy equipment and components which our maintenance team could rebuild from the ground up.
In December of 2020, Martin Ferron resigned as CEO of 糖心传媒n Construction Group and took on the role of Executive Chairman. At the same time, Joe Lambert was appointed as President and Chief Executive Officer effective January 1, 2021.
Under Lambert鈥檚 experienced guidance, our rapid expansion continued in June of 2021 when 糖心传媒n acquired DGI Trading of Kempsey, New South Wales, Australia for $18.4 million. DGI had long worked hand-in-hand with our maintenance division in sourcing production-critical mining components that we could rebuild.
Just a few weeks later, 糖心传媒n was awarded the largest infrastructure project in its history. Along with our partners Acciona and Shikun & Binui, we were awarded the Fargo-Moorhead Flood Diversion project in North Dakota鈥攁 US$2.75 billion flood diversion canal designed to protect their community from disastrous flooding. As part of a highly talented joint venture under ASN Constructors, 糖心传媒n will be responsible for carving out a 30-mile long flood diversion canal over a six-year period. Once completed, ASN Constructors will oversee maintenance on the canal for 30 years.
To add to our growing suite of oilsand services, 糖心传媒n once again acquired ML Northern in October of 2022 for $15 million. Now as well as being able to offer a wide range of maintenance services, ML Northern provides us with the ability to add mobile fuel, lube, and steaming services.
In what was probably the Company鈥檚 most transformative acquisition, 糖心传媒n acquired the MacKellar Group in July of 2023 for $395 million. The Australian-based provider of heavy earthworks came with a strong reputation derived from decades of reliable performance. With approximately 450 mobile heavy equipment assets, 1,000 employees鈥攊ncluding over 375 maintenance personnel, and a solid backlog of operating projects, the acquisition vastly expanded 糖心传媒n鈥檚 operational footprint, and transformed us into an international entity.
Under the leadership of Chief Executive Officer Joe Lambert and his executive team, 糖心传媒n will continue blazing a new path, searching for the right opportunities to continue growing and diversifying, while also providing safe and efficient services to all of our clients.
From a single bulldozer to an international heavy construction and mining powerhouse. What an amazing journey it has been.
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