Pomerleau taps Abitibi Connex as WAHA logistics hub

Pomerleau, one of Canada's largest construction firms, selected Abitibi Connex to support the $1.8 billion Weeneebayko Area Health Authority (WAHA) redevelopment project in Moosonee and Moose Factory. Pinnacle Logistics Solutions, a specialty over-dimensional logistics management company, will coordinate material delivery to construct a new regional healthcare campus for patients and clients along Ontario's James Bay and Hudson Bay coasts.

The project will deliver a new hospital in Moosonee with 36 private inpatient beds, a 32-bed long-term Elder Care Lodge, a 24-hour emergency department, modern surgical suites, and more. Another ambulatory care centre in Moose Factory will provide culturally appropriate care for everyone living in the western James Bay and Hudson Bay coastal regions of Ontario.

This July, Pomerleau and Pinnacle Logistics Solutions began transferring materials to Abitibi Connex, directing construction supplies through the former paper mill site that BMI Group and Dutch investment group Business-EQ have redeveloped. Ontario Northland Rail is upgrading 11.5 km of rail spur to create a direct connection from Iroquois Falls to the Cochrane junction, where materials will travel north by rail to their destination in Moosonee.

Pinnacle Logistics views Abitibi Connex as a key strategic partner in delivering critical infrastructure to northern Ontario. Coordinating material movement for a project of this scale in a remote region requires both creative logistics and strong partnerships. By centralizing operations in a purpose-built logistics hub, Abitibi Connex enables Pinnacle and Pomerleau to efficiently move essential construction materials—ensuring that healthcare infrastructure reaches northern communities where and when people need it most.

The operation will handle approximately 3,000 rail cars through Abitibi Connex over three years and create an estimated 120 jobs during peak construction.

Frank Devries, principal and general manager of Pinnacle Logistics Solutions, said: "This partnership demonstrates the complex logistics coordination needed for major northern development, and the success partnerships like this bring to them."

This project addresses a critical service gap in northern Ontario, where residents often travel hundreds of kilometers for specialized care. Once complete, these modern facilities will provide emergency, acute, and specialty healthcare in spaces that culturally reflect local traditions and healing practices.

The Project is expected to be complete in 2030.

John Veldman, BMI Group's chief operating officer, said: "Abitibi Connex demonstrates how existing infrastructure can be re-tooled to catalyze major regional projects. Logistics infrastructure that aligns with community needs is how we, as a country, are going to realize Canada's near-north and Arctic future—supporting the WAHA redevelopment project is proof of it."

The Abitibi Connex site is being developed in close collaboration with the Town of Iroquois Falls, who have enthusiastically supported the project, and J.L. Richards & Associates, who lead the master planning process for the former mill and surrounding lands .A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new launch of Abitibi Connex will take place on July 25, 2025, at 1:30 PM. The event invites representatives from across the community.