Latest news with #AmitPatil
Calgary Herald
10 hours ago
- Business
- Calgary Herald
U.S.-imposed tariffs have cost the city $50,000 so far
The tariff war with the United States has cost the city roughly $50,000 so far, city councillors heard Tuesday. Article content But that number is expected to rise, according to administration's latest monthly update to council's executive committee. Article content Article content The city altered its procurement practices in late March, with a push to buy local to counteract the effect of U.S. tariffs imposed earlier this year by U.S. President Donald Trump. Article content Article content As of June 4, the tariffs now include 50 per cent duties on foreign steel and aluminum, 25 per cent on vehicle and auto parts, and 10 per cent on energy products. Canada's federal government has retaliated with its own 25 per cent tariffs on $30 billion worth of U.S. goods. Article content Article content As part of its procurement strategy, the city is using a supply chain resiliency dashboard that uses historical data to proactively identify risks or supply-chain threats, as well as a tariff exposure dashboard that uses an advanced forecasting model to estimate tariff-related effects across different commodities. Article content The city awarded 153 procurements in May, with 99.9 per cent of the value in those contracts benefiting Canadian suppliers, according to Amit Patil, the city's director of supply-chain management. Article content 'As the Canadian government has not changed its retaliatory measures, our tariff exposure will adjust minimally to reflect the inflated cost of steel,' Patil said. 'We'll continue with our resilience strategy to find alternative sources for steel and aluminum, when possible.' Article content Article content Gisele Aparicio-Hull, from the city's supply management team, told committee members the city recently avoided $8 million in direct tariff-related costs by awarding a $34-million steel pipe contract to a Mexican supplier. The steel pipes will be used for two separate feeder main construction projects, including the Belvedere feeder main and the North Calgary Water Servicing project.
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
City of Calgary to buy more local and Canadian goods, services to decrease U.S. tariff impacts
The City of Calgary will buy more local and Canadian goods and services under changes to procurement practices that kicked in Monday. The city said Monday that the changes have been put in place to help counter the effect of U.S. tariffs, and further support local and Canadian businesses. Two changes concern the city's social procurement questionnaire, which it says gives small- and medium-sized businesses a competitive advantage. The social procurement questionnaire is part of the city's social procurement program and is integrated into its regular procurement practices, says the City of Calgary. For purchases over $75,000 for goods and services, and over $200,000 for construction, the questionnaire weighting has increased to 10 per cent, up from the previous range of five to 10 per cent. For large, competitive procurements of services, including consulting and construction, the weighting will also increase up to 10 per cent when possible. The range will stay within five to 10 per cent, with the city saying it will review service procurements on a case-by-case basis. For small procurements — goods and services purchases under $75,000 and construction under $200,000 — the city will now attempt to obtain all three quotes from local suppliers when possible, instead of getting one local quote out of three. If that's not possible, the city says it will 'try to prioritize' Canadian suppliers. 'We are making conscious decisions to buy local or Canadian where we can, to decrease our reliance on U.S. suppliers, to further support our economy,' Amit Patil, the City of Calgary's director of supply management, said in a statement on Monday. 'Our strength lies in our unity': Gondek says city studying options to soften potential tariffs blow Calgary among Canadian cities that could be most impacted by U.S. tariffs Previous supply chain disruptions led to the city starting a supply chain resilience program, to 'ensure its supply chain remains strong and agile through mitigating measures,' said the city. 'We have been proactively managing supply chain challenges, including tariffs and commodity fluctuations, for several years now,' said Patil. The City of Calgary says roughly 95 per cent of its contract value is with Canadian suppliers, and about 70 per cent of that value is within Alberta. On its website, the city says five per cent of its contracts are with American suppliers or in U.S. dollars. stipper@
