UPDATE 10 a.m. – Supply chain delays, a labour shortage, and higher construction costs have all led to a $40-million cost overrun on the second phase of the Royal Inland Hospital improvement project.

Confirmation of the ballooning costs on the project came in an email from Interior Health to Radio NL, which also said it is “working with funding partners to address the increase.”

In a subsequent email, Interior Health told Radio NL that it had budgeted $53.4 million for the Phase 2 renovations back when the project’s original budget was set in 2016, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic that impacted costs associated with capital projects across many industries.

That amount was part of the $417-million budgeted towards the construction of the Phil and Jennie Gaglardi Tower, which was opened in July 2022.

The Phase 2 renovations, which began in Sept. 2022, include extensive renovations to the emergency department at Royal Inland Hospital as well as to the post-anesthetic recovery department, the pediatric unit, and the morgue.

Earlier this month, RIH Executive Director Gerry Desilets told Radio NL that some of those renovations will be done by the end of this year.

Desilets said the post-anesthetic recovery room is expected to be completed this April, with the new pediatrics unit to follow suit in June. He also said a two-phased renovation to the morgue will be done by 2025, and all of the renovations to the ER will be completed by fall 2026.

Construction on a new $359-million cancer centre at Royal Inland Hospital is also expected to begin next year, and be “substantially” complete by 2028.

That project will also include $55-million in upgrades to existing cancer care services at RIH, including an expanded pharmacy as well as the relocation and expansion of the Community Oncology Network clinic.

Those renovations are expected to get underway in 2026 and be “substantially” complete by 2029.

– With files from Victor Kaisar