An 85-ton transformer may have been one of the last big steps in completing the BC Hydro Columbia Valley Transmission Project, but as many of you will have noticed, a lot of work has been done on the downtown Golden substation as well.
Last week, new towers were raised, holding the new 69 kilovolt overhead transmission line, connecting it to the new Kicking Horse Substation.
“We can anticipate work continuing, of varying degrees of intensity, until October,” said Judy Dobrowski with BC Hydro’s Stakeholder Engagement. “Then we’ll have workers there doing some clean-up afterwards.”
Work began on the substation almost one year ago. The construction has been quite noticeable as of late, but Dobrowski says that the major pieces have been put into place, and the remaining pieces will just tie everything together.
The expansion and modifications done to the substation were done not only to connect it with the new substation via overhead transmission line, but also to allow for a higher capacity of energy.
Executive Vice President of Transmission and Distribution for BC Hydro Greg Reimer says that it will now, “be able to provide reliable, clean energy for generations to come with these improvements.”
The Golden Museum, located next door to the substation, has been experiencing disruptions all summer due to the work, and has spoken to BC Hydro about their concerns.
“We’ve been talking with the Golden Museum about their concerns. We were up there with them the other day, had a really good discussion. One of the things they brought up was their concern about what the substation would look like after construction,” said Dobrowski. “We’ll definitely be sprucing up the location.”
Extensive landscaping will be part of the clean-up process, hopefully making it blend in better with the neighbourhood.
