Columbia Power Corporation

Growing green┬áColumbia Power recently completed one major power plant upgrade and is about to start work on another, setting the stage for it to help feed the growing demand for sustainable energy in British Columbia, as Keith Regan details.  Since it was formed in 1994, the mission of the Columbia Power Corporation has been to invest in hydroelectric power generation capacity. The provincial corporation and its joint venture partner, the Columbia Basin Trust, bought its first assetÔÇöthe Brilliant DamÔÇöin 1996.  Since then it has added assets such as the Arrow Lakes Generating Station and the Brilliant Expansion Project. After a period of relatively slow growth, the corporation is again aggressively pursuing opportunities to expand its generating capacity and ensure that British Columbia will have an ample supply of sustainable energy for the future. ÔÇ£Being able to provide for future growth without relying as heavily on foreign fuel sources is one of the more important issues in the country today,ÔÇØ says president and chief executive officer Barry Chuddy. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖve worked extensively over the past number of years to put ourselves in a position to be able to provide that green power the province needs and wants.ÔÇØCPCÔÇÖs focus on hydroelectric power and its alliance with the Columbia Basin Trust are some of the features that distinguish it from other power producers in Canada, according to Chuddy. The Trust distributes its half of the royalties generated by the hydro facilities, reinvesting in communities impacted by the dams that help drive the turbines. The Trust invests in many diverse projects and community needs such as senior housing and healthcare facilities. ÔÇ£Because residents see the investments from the Trust go forward, they understand the connection with the work weÔÇÖre doing, and they understand that it can be a benefit directly for them to see these power project developments move forward,ÔÇØ Chuddy says. Focusing on green power, meanwhile, remains a long-term need, despite recent easing of oil prices that have caused some to back off sustainable energy investments in the short term. ÔÇ£If you look at the power requirements of British Columbia and the objectives under the energy plan, the short-term anomalies are just thatÔÇöthey might have a short-term impact, but in the longer term, thereÔÇÖs no question that clean, renewable power is something thatÔÇÖs a win for all parties involved,ÔÇØ Chuddy says. CPC is wrapping up work at its Brilliant Dam expansion project, a $200 million undertaking completed by a consortium consisting of Skanska-Chant Joint Venture, SNC-Lavalin and Skanska International Civil Engineering AB. Currently, work is being completed on the tail-race portion of the project, where JJM Construction is the lead contractor. That work will help boost the facilityÔÇÖs overall generating capacity to the targeted levels. Attention is now turning to the next major strategic project, the Waneta Expansion Project, built adjacent to TeckÔÇÖs existing dam on the Pend dÔÇÖOreille River just south of the community of Trail, British Columbia. That project will create a second powerhouse to capture water that is currently being spilled over the existing dam. ÔÇ£The key thing about Waneta is that weÔÇÖre seeking to derive power from water that is already going over the spillway,ÔÇØ Chuddy points out. Several yearsÔÇÖ worth of planning and permitting are now coming to a close, setting the stage for Columbia Power to receive formal proposals for the construction. The project received its Environmental Assessment Certificate in November 2007, and during 2008 a field of interested contractors was narrowed to three teams. Those expected to submit formal proposals are Peter Kiewit Sons Co., SNC-Lavalin and a joint venture known as Bilfinger BergerÔÇôNorth America Construction. Much of the planning focused on minimizing the environmental impact, particularly on white sturgeon habitat in the area. Environmental review agencies concurred that by reducing the amount of water going over the dam and spillway at Waneta, the project would make for more favorable water conditions downstream by decreasing the total gas pressure in the river itself. The project will effectively double the generating output at the site, with two Francis turbine units capable of producing as much as 435 megawatts of electricity, effectively doubling the total generating capacity of Columbia Power once completed and giving the company $1.5 billion worth of power-producing assets under management. The power generated at the site will be sold to BC Hydro, traveling over a 10-kilometer transmission line being built as part of the project. Construction work could begin as early as the fall of 2009, with an expected timeline of about four years to complete the work. There is no firm price tag on the work as yetÔÇöwith Columbia Power hoping the competitive bid process yields favorable pricingÔÇöbut the project is expected to cost more than $500 million.┬áWork remains to be done, however, with the company expected to negotiate aggressively to get a firm and fair price on the construction work on behalf of its shareholders, while also undertaking negotiations with BC Hydro for long-term pricing on purchasing the power. ÔÇ£All those things are in the works, and based on the schedules weÔÇÖve laid out, we feel like weÔÇÖre in good shape to be calling the project ÔÇÿcommitted for constructionÔÇÖ sometime in the late summer or fall of 2009,ÔÇØ says Chuddy. Beyond the Waneta expansion, Chuddy sees additional opportunities for growth. ÔÇ£I believe there is tremendous value in Columbia Power and that the whole is much greater than the sum of its parts,ÔÇØ he says. ÔÇ£I believe there is merit in allowing us to continue to advance various developments in British Columbia, particularly since we have demonstrated that we can and will do them in a responsible way that creates positive outcomes for all parties involved. The long-term bottom line remains that the province wants to be energy self-sufficient, and hydro power is a key part of that puzzle. These are decisions yet to be taken by Columbia PowerÔÇÖs Board of Directors and its shareholders.ÔÇØ┬á