he Columbia Basin Trust (CBT) and Columbia Power Corporation have announced they will soon be the sole owners of the Waneta Expansion hydroelectric generating facility near Trail. Currently, FortisBC owns 51 per cent, but an agreement has been reached for the sale of its portion worth $991-million.
Johnny Strilaeff, the CBT’s President and CEO and Acting President and CEO for Columbia Power, highlights the move as beneficial for local residents and on a provincial scale as well. In the short term, the additional revenues will go towards re-paying the loan, he explains. However, over time there will be a significant increase in benefits for residents.
“I like to characterize this as really a generational opportunity that will be of much greater benefit to our kids, our grand kids, our great grand-kids for that matter because projects like this have lives of over 100 years and this project has only been in operation for just short of four.”
It will also restore ownership to the originally mandated 50/50 partnership, Strilaeff adds.
The Government of BC worked closely with the CBT and Columbia Power to make the purchase possible. Michelle Mungall, Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, feels the deal “will provide real, lasting benefits for both the people of British Columbia and residents of the Columbia Basin.”
There will be no change to operations or any key agreements. FortisBC will continue to operate the facility and purchase surplus capacity. BC Hydro will also continue to purchase the energy produced.
Strilaeff also thanks FortisBC “for our strong and collaborative relationship” and looks forward to continuing to work together. Financial close is expected in April.
Waneta Expansion, the 335-MW facility, was constructed with Fortis ahead of schedule and on budget, adding a second powerhouse immediately downstream of the Waneta Dam on the Pend d’Orieille River. It shares the existing hydraulic head and generates clean, renewable, cost effective power from water that would otherwise be spilled, and provides enough energy to power 60,000 homes. For more information, click here.
