Contrat de partenariat (partnership contract)

The contrat de partenariat is the new contract type Quebec wrote into the Loi sur les contrats des organismes publics (LCOP) through Bill 62 — An Act mainly to diversify the acquisition strategies of public bodies and increase their agility in carrying out infrastructure projects, assented to on 9 October 2024 (2024, chapter 28). It lets a public body bring a contractor into a public infrastructure project under a collaborative approach, with the contractor taking on design, construction and related responsibilities in one contract.

What it is

Under Bill 62's amendment of section 3 of the LCOP, a partnership contract is a contract entered into for the purposes of an infrastructure project for which a public body brings in a contractor to participate in designing and building the infrastructure and to carry out other responsibilities related to the infrastructure — such as its financing, maintenance or operation — and that involves a collaborative approach during or after the tendering process. Mixed contracts combining construction work and professional services entered into for infrastructure projects by means of a collaborative approach are considered partnership contracts, as are additional contracts the Conseil du trésor may determine by regulation. The Act specifies the rules applicable to this new type of contract, including the monetary threshold from which the contracting enterprises must hold an authorization to contract issued by the Autorité des marchés publics.

How it replaces the old P3 designation

Partnership contracts succeed the public-private partnership (P3) contract regime: Bill 62 repealed the order in council that had governed P3 contracts involving an expenditure of $5,000,000 or more, and folded the concept into the LCOP itself. Under the AMP's current thresholds, the authorization-to-contract threshold is $5 million for any contract or subcontract of construction work or public-private partnership. Bill 62 also added agility tools around this contract type — including allowing a public body, after an unsuccessful call for tenders and under certain conditions, to conclude a contract by mutual agreement without publishing a notice of intention in the electronic tendering system.

What it means for vendors

Partnership contracts open a lane for integrated teams — design-build and design-build-finance-maintain-operate style propositions — on Quebec public infrastructure, with selection hinging on collaborative capability rather than lowest price alone. Watch for the Conseil du trésor regulation that determines additional contracts treated as partnership contracts, and remember the integrity gate: if the contract value reaches the $5M construction threshold, the authorization to contract from the AMP must be in place at bid deposit. Subcontractors on these projects are covered by the same authorization rules as prime contractors.

Common questions

Is a partnership contract the same as a P3?

It is the successor concept. A partnership contract is broader and is now defined directly in the LCOP rather than through a stand-alone order in council, and it explicitly covers collaborative approaches during or after the tendering process.

Does a partnership contract still need a call for tenders?

Generally yes — the LCOP framework applies — but the Act adds flexibility, permitting a contract by mutual agreement after an unsuccessful call for tenders in the specified conditions without a notice of intention being published.

Related definitions

P3 (public-private partnership) · LCOP · Autorisation de contracter · AMP · Infrastructure Ontario