WesternOne's Modular Construction Division Awarded Phase Two of Manitoba Hydro Workforce Accommodations Contract

VANCOUVER, Aug. 19, 2014 /CNW/ - WesternOne Inc. ("WesternOne") (TSX: WEQ, WEQ.DB, WEQ.DB.C) announced today that its modular building division Britco has received approval to commence the second phase of a workforce accommodations contract for Manitoba Hydro's Keeyask Generating Station Project after regulatory approval early last week.

Britco was awarded the first phase of the project in December 2012, at which time Britco designed, built and installed 500 dorm rooms, a gymnasium, recreation centre, water treatment facilities, kitchen and dining areas. Second phase construction will commence immediately.

The second phase of the project is comprised of the design, manufacture, delivery and installation of an additional 1,500 dorm rooms for Manitoba Hydro, with an addition to the kitchen and recreation facility for a total of 387 modular units.  The total value of the second phase of the project is $100 million. Plant production is scheduled to be completed in Britco's Penticton facility by July of 2015, and on site construction and installation will be completed in March of 2016.  Manitoba Hydro's Keeyask Generating Station Project is estimated to be worth $6.2 billion.

Keeyask is located in northern Manitoba, 725 kilometers Northeast of Winnipeg on the Lower Nelson River, 30 kilometers west of Gillam and will be Manitoba's 4th largest hydroelectric generating station.

"We're extremely pleased with the success of Britco's entry into the construction of mega-camp projects, as many more continue to be planned, particularly in Western Canada" said Rob King, CEO of Western One.  "This 2,000 dorm room project showcases Britco's ability to build large, permanent, custom workforce accommodations for customers across North America in the energy, construction, infrastructure and utilities industries."

Britco has three modular manufacturing facilities located in Edmonton, Penticton and Agassiz that provide modular manufacturing services across Western Canada. Britco has a fourth manufacturing facility located in Waco, Texas that caters primarily to shale oil and gas customers from the Southern United States to the Baaken formation region of North Dakota.

Forward Looking Information

Certain statements in this press release may constitute "forward-looking" information that involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, and it may cause actual results, performance or achievements or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements or industry results expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is identified by the use of terms and phrases such as "anticipate", "believe", "could", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "plan", "predict", "project", "will", "would", and similar terms and phrases, including references to assumptions. Such information includes, without limitation, statements with respect to: the winding-down of WesternOne's Australia operations, WesternOne's global strategy of deploying management and capital resources, WesternOne's business prospects in North America, WesternOne's preliminary financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2014 and the timing of releasing of such information, and the long-term strategic plan that WesternOne will implement. Actual events or results may differ materially.

Forward-looking information contained in this press release is based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by WesternOne, including, without limitation: the outlook of WesternOne's business and the economy in Western Canada, the United States and Australia, the supply and demand for WesternOne's products and services and management's assessment of future plans and operations. Although the forward-looking information contained in this press release is based upon what the WesternOne's management believes to be reasonable assumptions, WesternOne cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with such information. Forward-looking information reflects current expectations of management regarding future events and operating performance as of the date of this press release. Such information involves significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking information, and a description of these factors can be found under "Risk Factors" in WesternOne's Annual Information Form dated March 28, 2014 and Management's Discussion and Analysis dated May 14, 2014, which are available on SEDAR (www.sedar.com).

The forward-looking information contained herein is expressly qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement. Forward-looking information reflects management's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to WesternOne. The forward-looking information is made as of the date of this press release and WesternOne assumes no obligation to update or revise such information to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required by applicable law.

About Manitoba Hydro:

Manitoba Hydro is a Provincial Crown Corporation providing hydro electric energy and natural gas to customers in the Province of Manitoba. Manitoba Hydro serves 542,000 electric customers throughout the province and 267,000 natural gas customers in various communities in southern Manitoba. The Crown Corporation exports electricity to electric utilities through participation in three wholesale markets in Canada and the mid-western United States. Manitoba Hydro generates self-renewing water power from 14 hydroelectric generating stations located primarily on the Winnipeg, Saskatchewan, Burntwood and Nelson rivers.

With annual revenues of approximately $2 billion and capital assets-in-service at original cost exceeding $13 billion, Manitoba Hydro is one of the largest energy utilities in Canada. Manitoba Hydro plans to invest almost $20 billion in new generation, transmission and upgrades and reinforcement to its existing distribution systems over the next decade.

Additional information about Manitoba Hydro is available at www.hydro.mb.ca.

About the Keeyask Project:

The Keeyask Project includes the Keeyask Infrastructure Project and the Keeyask Generating Station Project. Development of the Keeyask Project is a collaborative effort between Manitoba Hydro and four Manitoba First Nations – Tataskweyak and War Lake (acting as the Cree Nation Partners), York Factory and Fox Lake – working together as the Keeyask Hydropower Limited Partnership.

Manitoba Hydro's approved Keeyask Generating Station will be a source of renewable energy, providing approximately 695 megawatts of capacity and producing an average of 4,400 gigawatt hours of electricity each year. Manitoba Hydro began work on the Keeyask Infrastructure Project –including preliminary work on access road construction and camp development – in early 2012.

More information on the Keeyask Project can be found at: www.hydro.mb.ca/projects/keeyask/index.shtml.

About Britco

With over 700 employees, Britco is the one of the largest providers of temporary and permanent residential and commercial modular buildings in North America and has one of the largest lease fleets of office complexes, construction site offices and storage containers in Western Canada. Britco has four manufacturing facilities located in Canada and the United States; two in British Columbia, one in Alberta, and one in Texas. Britco is a leading design-builder of a wide range of innovative modular buildings for companies in the construction, energy and resource sectors in Western Canada and the United States. One of the largest and fastest growing construction companies in Western Canada, Britco is headquartered in Langley, British Columbia.

Additional information about Britco is available at www.britco.com.

About WesternOne

WesternOne seeks to acquire and grow businesses in the construction and infrastructure services sector in order to generate stable and growing dividends to its shareholders and to achieve capital appreciation.

Additional information about WesternOne Inc. is available at www.weq.ca or www.sedar.com.

THE TORONTO STOCK EXCHANGE HAS NOT REVIEWED AND DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR THE ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

SOURCE: WesternOne Inc.

Andrew Greig, Manager - Investor Relations, WesternOne Inc., Suite 910, 925 West Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC V6C 3L2, Phone: [phone], E-mail: [email protected]