Peace River Dams & Generating Stations

GM Shrum Generating Station (GMS), WAC Bennett Dam and Peace Canyon Dam and Generating Station (PCN) are located on the Peace River, near Hudson's Hope

We'll update details here of upcoming road closures in June and July 2018 while we repave the WAC Bennett Dam Crest Road.

Construction started in 2008 and is scheduled to complete in 2021.

Several projects are underway to renew aging equipment at the GM Shrum (GMS) and Peace Canyon (PCN) generating stations.

• GMS G1-10 control system upgrade: The new digital upgrade at the GMS powerhouse at the W.A.C. Bennett Dam will be increasing the monitoring of the units.
• Disconnect switches replacement: Thirty 500 kilovolt (kV) disconnect switches at GMS are aging as many were manufactured in the 1960s and 1970s.
• Exciter transformer replacement at GMS and PCN: Beginning in 2018, we're planning to install new exciter transformers to replace units 1 to 5. This equipment controls the magnetic field in the generator system and the output voltage.
• HVAC system upgrades: We'll be modernizing and making upgrades to the Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system, which has been operating since the 1960s.
• Protection upgrades: To ensure increased reliability and system stability, we'll be upgrading the protection and control equipment for PCN units 1 to 4.

We're also making some important upgrades to maintain the safety standards at WAC Bennett and Peace Canyon dams:

• Spillway gate upgrades: We'll be upgrading the electromechanical systems of the spillway gates at both dams
• Rip-rap upgrade: We're replacing and upgrading portions of the rip-rap – these are large boulder-sized rocks that protect the upstream slope of the embankment from erosion.

Operating since the 1960s, the equipment in our Peace River generation facilities is aging.

Located in northeast British Columbia, the Peace generating facilities are a cornerstone of our electrical system that supply about 30% of the electricity we generate in B.C. which is enough to power 1.5 million homes a year.

By modernizing our turbines we've added 177 gigawatt hours of electricity – enough to power 15,000 homes every year – without using additional water flow.

Approximately $600 million.

Environmental studies were undertaken on the W.A.C. Bennett Dam Rip-Rap Upgrade Project. Project activities will occupy a small footprint on land that has previously been utilized and developed for the forestry industry, with existing access roads to the site. In addition, the project has a short duration, is temporary in nature (eight months a year), has relatively low magnitude impacts, and disturbed areas will be reclaimed upon project completion.

All other projects are taking place within existing facilities.