WSP Named Construction Manager for the Giant Magellan Telescope Project in Chile

SANTIAGO, CHILE--(Marketwired - Jan. 11, 2018) - WSP, a global engineering and professional services consultancy, is pleased to announce that the Giant Magellan Telescope Organization Corporation ("GMTO") has named its team in Chile as their construction management firm for the development of the Giant Magellan Telescope ("GMT"), the first of the next generation of giant ground-based telescopes that promise to revolutionize our understanding of the universe. GMTO leads the planning, design and construction of the GMT on behalf of its international partners. As Construction Manager, WSP will play a leading role in executing construction activities at the site and at key contractor locations.

The GMT will be constructed at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile, an astronomical observatory owned by the Carnegie Institution for Science in the southern Atacama Desert. Commissioning of the telescope is scheduled to begin in 2023.

As construction manager, WSP will work on behalf of GMTO to oversee all aspects of the construction, including budget, schedule, cost estimation, change control and site acceptance. WSP will draw upon its global organization and capabilities to deliver this iconic project, including its US team and experts from Poch, a 730-employee engineering and environmental consulting company based in Chile that was acquired by WSP in July 2017.

"We are really pleased to be working on this landmark project, which once, completed, should be the world's largest telescope. This project truly reflects the depth and breadth of our firm," said Miguel Sánchez, Executive sponsor of the project. "Acting as an extension of the GMTO staff, the WSP construction management team will protect the client's interests in all areas of project implementation from planning and design through procurement and construction and into operation and maintenance".

The GMT is a multiple mirror telescope that will employ seven of today's largest monolithical glass mirrors. It will have a resolving power 10 times greater than that of the Hubble Space Telescope in the infrared region of the spectrum. The unprecedented light gathering power and angular resolution of the GMT will help to address many of the leading questions in 21st century astronomy.

The GMT project is the work of an international consortium of universities and science institutions. GMTO's partner institutions are Arizona State University, Astronomy Australia Ltd., The Australian National University, Carnegie Institution for Science, Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo - FAPESP, Harvard University, Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, Smithsonian Institution, Texas A&M University, The University of Texas at Austin, University of Arizona, and University of Chicago.

ABOUT WSP

As one of the world's leading professional services firms, WSP (TSX:WSP) provides technical expertise and strategic advice to clients in the Property & Buildings, Transportation & Infrastructure, Environment, Industry, Resources (including Mining and Oil & Gas) and Power & Energy sectors. We also offer highly specialized services in project delivery and strategic consulting. Our experts include engineers, advisors, technicians, scientists, architects, planners, surveyors and environmental specialists, as well as other design, program and construction management professionals. With approximately 2,400 talented people in Latin America and 42,000 people in more than 500 offices across 40 countries, we are uniquely positioned to deliver successful and sustainable projects, wherever our clients need us. www.wsp.com

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain information regarding WSP contained herein may constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may include estimates, plans, expectations, opinions, forecasts, projections, guidance or other statements that are not statements of fact. Although WSP believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. These statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties and may be based on assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. WSP's forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The complete version of the cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements as well as a description of the relevant assumptions and risk factors likely to affect WSP's actual or projected results are included in the Management's Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2016, which is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and WSP does not assume any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless expressly required by applicable securities laws.