Yes, and there are multiple Canadian vendors with past experience in building just such structures (albeit smaller, perhaps) under Canadian conditions with Canadian content requirements.
Even writing the spec for HFR is new ground for Canada. There are vendors who build railway lines, off shore. The US lines are progressing but with lots of hard lessons learned. The political risks of a contract that is less than iron clad are apparent - look at Ottawa and Toronto Crosstown LRT’s, for instance.
I’m not saying it’s impossible, but for the Ottawa transport bureaucracy, even selecting a vendor and writing a contract is new territory and outside the comfort zone of many.
- Paul