Just want to point out that the Honda officials have said nothing of the sort in that article.
Tanabe rubbishes the 27 and 40 BHP numbers claiming neither he nor Honda have said nothing of the sort.
The 40 bhp figure mentioned later is the impression the journalist gets from having spoken to other Honda staff, claiming the combustion improvement is substantial and is therefore likely to be around 40 BHP. Again no specific numbers mentioned by anyone from Honda. The journalist then estimates what such a power increase might translate to in Canada.
Its interesting to hear though that the upgrade was introduced in Canada despite Hartley and Gasley's earlier issues meaning it could have been delayed until later. They wanted to specifically show they could introduce a reliable substantial upgrade to pre-agreed timelines. I guess not just for internal benefit but to impress RBR too.
Also its worth noting Gasley's comments later in the article where he clearly states Honda were not as powerful as Renault prior to Canada, contrary to some of the more optimistic posts on this thread.