Power Demand Surge Pushes B.C. to Consider New Hydroelectric Dams
BC Hydro projects 20% electricity demand increase by 2030; two potential dam sites now in early consideration stages.
The day's top stories, food & events — every morning at 7. Unsubscribe anytime.
Less than a year after the John Horgan Dam reached full power generation capacity, British Columbia is exploring two additional major hydroelectric dam projects to meet surging electricity demand.
BC Hydro's revised forecast projects electricity demand in the province will surge 20 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2050, with peak demand increasing 44 percent on the coldest days of the year. The utility announced Monday that two potential large, publicly-owned hydroelectric sites are in very early consideration.
One site would be on the Peace River in northeastern B.C., about 60 km east of the John Horgan Dam near the B.C.-Alberta border where the Peace River meets the Alces River. It would generate up to 750 megawatts of capacity and produce roughly 3,000 gigawatt hours of electricity annually. This would be Site E, the fourth hydroelectric dam on the Peace River—a plan cancelled in the early 1980s due to opposition.
A second site would be on the Homathko River near Bute Inlet, about 250 km northwest of Vancouver. It would consist of up to four dams and three powerhouses, generating an estimated 500 to 900 megawatts of capacity and producing 3,000 to 4,500 gigawatt hours per year. This project could also include new transmission lines reaching Williams Lake and Vancouver Island.
For comparison, the $16-billion John Horgan Dam has 1,100 megawatts of capacity and produces 5,100 gigawatt hours annually, enough to power about 500,000 homes. BC Hydro emphasizes no decisions have been made on the two sites under consideration, noting such projects take years to design, plan, and build due to environmental and ecological tradeoffs.