Canada's federal government publishes contract award data through the Open Government portal and the Proactive Disclosure database. For construction GCs, engineering firms, and specialty trades who work in the federal sector, this data is a primary source of competitive intelligence — it tells you who won what, at what value, and from which department. Here is a summary of Q1 2026 federal construction and infrastructure award activity, sourced from those public feeds.
The data source
Federal contract award data in Canada is published under the Proactive Disclosure of Contracts requirements of the Government of Canada. Departments and agencies publish awarded contracts above the $10,000 threshold on a quarterly basis. The data includes contracting department, vendor name, contract value, award date, and a commodity/service description. Shovel Radar processes this data weekly through the Federal Contract Awards Watch product, filtering to construction-relevant UNSPSC codes and geography.
Q1 2026 at a glance
Across the construction-relevant commodity categories in Q1 2026, federal contract awards totalled approximately $2.4 billion CAD in disclosed construction and construction-adjacent contracts. This is consistent with the Q1 2025 total of approximately $2.1 billion — a modest year-over-year increase driven primarily by DND (Department of National Defence) base infrastructure spending and Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) federal building stock work.
The data covers contracts awarded in Q1 (January 1 through March 31, 2026). Contracts are typically disclosed 30–60 days after award, so the Q1 disclosure represents some awards from Q4 2025 as well as the bulk of Q1 2026 activity.
Top categories by value
1. DND — base and garrison infrastructure ($680M aggregate)
Defence infrastructure consistently leads federal construction spending. Q1 2026 saw a significant volume of base maintenance, utilities upgrades, and facility construction awards across multiple provinces, with concentration in Ontario, Alberta, and Nova Scotia. The contract size range is wide — from routine facility maintenance at $50K to major base construction at $80M+. For GCs and trades with federal security clearances, this is the most active single category.
2. Public Services and Procurement Canada — Fit-up and renovation ($410M aggregate)
PSPC manages the federal real property portfolio — office buildings, courthouses, and Crown-owned commercial space. Fit-up and renovation contracts represent the largest contractor-accessible slice of the PSPC spend, and Q1 2026 showed continued activity on the federal office modernization mandate. Work ranges from asbestos abatement in older buildings to modern open-plan office retrofits. Ottawa and Vancouver had the highest concentration by value.
3. Infrastructure Canada — transit and active-transport infrastructure ($320M aggregate)
Infrastructure Canada transfer agreements flowing to municipalities show up in federal data indirectly through departmental contribution agreements. In Q1 2026, transit-adjacent construction awards — station construction, rapid transit corridor work, active-transport infrastructure — were concentrated in the Greater Toronto Area and Vancouver Lower Mainland. Sub-trade opportunities here are primarily civil and structural.
4. Health Canada and PHAC — facility and lab construction ($190M aggregate)
Federal health portfolio construction includes Health Canada regional offices, PHAC lab facilities, and the Border Services Agency (CBSA) fit-ups. Lab and healthcare facility construction commands premium mechanical and electrical scope. Q1 2026 saw notable awards for biosafety-related lab upgrades at federal facilities, which carry specialized HVAC, plumbing, and low-voltage requirements.
5. Canada Border Services Agency — port of entry facilities ($140M aggregate)
CBSA land border crossings and air port of entry facilities generate a steady stream of fit-up and construction awards. Q1 2026 activity was concentrated at crossings in Ontario, British Columbia, and Quebec. These facilities have specialized security infrastructure requirements alongside standard commercial construction scope.
Regional breakdown
By province of contract performance (where publicly specified):
- Ontario: ~38% of total value — federal capital region (Ottawa/Gatineau) and Toronto-area base and transit work dominates.
- British Columbia: ~17% — DND Pacific base activity and PSPC West Coast office portfolio.
- Alberta: ~12% — DND Edmonton and Calgary garrisons, energy-adjacent federal infrastructure.
- Quebec: ~11% — federal office stock in the Greater Montreal area.
- Atlantic Canada: ~8% — Halifax naval base activity and smaller provincial infrastructure contributions.
- Other / national: ~14% — contracts without specific province of performance listed.
What Q1 2026 signals for the year ahead
A few patterns in the Q1 data suggest where federal construction activity is heading through 2026:
- DND spend is accelerating. The 2% NATO commitment has translated into a materially larger base infrastructure budget. Contracts are flowing faster and at larger average values than in prior years.
- Federal office modernization continues. The PSPC fit-up and renovation program has not slowed down despite the broader post-pandemic office narrative. Federal real property is being updated, not consolidated away.
- Lab and secure facility work is growing. Federal biosafety and intelligence-adjacent facility work is a growing niche. These are specialized scopes — not accessible to all GCs — but for firms with the clearances and experience, the pipeline is active.
How to use federal award data before the award happens
The awards in the Q1 data are history — the work is already awarded. The more forward-looking use of federal contract intelligence is monitoring the solicitation feed from Buyandsell.gc.ca (CanadaBuys), which publishes open tenders and standing offer solicitations in real time. The historical award data, however, tells you who the likely bidders are in each category — critical information for deciding whether to compete as a prime or sub.
Shovel Radar's Federal Contract Awards Watch tracks historical awards, enriches them with vendor contact data, and surfaces patterns in award recurrence — identifying which vendors are repeatedly winning in specific categories and geographic areas. That intelligence informs the question: where can we compete, and who are we up against?
Federal contract award data sourced from the Government of Canada Proactive Disclosure database (open.canada.ca). Q1 2026 data includes disclosures published between approximately February 1 and May 1, 2026, covering awards from Q4 2025 through Q1 2026. Aggregate values are rounded. No individual business names are identified in this public analysis.