N.W.T.’s Taltson hydro facility needs $15M repair, will stay offline until December
Recent inspection found corrosion issue ‘more serious than expected,’ says Northwest Territories Power Corp.
The Northwest Territories Power Corporation says its Taltson hydro facility won’t be back online until at least December, after a recent inspection found a significant “corrosion issue” with some of the equipment there.
And the company says it’s going to require a $15-million fix — with approximately $10 million going toward the repairs, and $5.2 million to cover the cost of diesel production for South Slave communities while the hydro unit is offline.
In a statement on Thursday, Northwest Territories Power Corp. (NTPC) president Cory Strang said aging infrastructure “poses significant challenges to NTPC as well as other Canadian utilities.”
“The remediation costs are high but the work is necessary to ensure safe operation and bring Taltson back online as quickly as possible.”
The hydro facility has been offline since August. It had only been back online for a few months at the time, after a major overhaul project.
NTPC says the work that’s needed now involves the surge tank, “a vital component of a hydroelectric facility that regulates pressure fluctuations and provides a water reserve.”
The company says the tank’s interior was inspected and mapped in 2023 using a drone, and it appeared that the tank had not deteriorated much since a 2015 inspection. In July, a more comprehensive inspection was done and “the situation was more serious than expected,” according to NTPC.
The company says remediating the existing tank is the more cost-efficient option. It says the alternative is to replace the tank, with fuel and operational costs for that option estimated to be around $80 million, while communities in the South Slave would be relying on diesel power for two more years while that work is done.
Remediating the existing tank means Taltson will only be offline now for approximately nine more weeks, into December, NTPC says. Then, a new surge tank will be installed upstream of the existing one “in the next couple of years.” That new surge tank can be built offsite and then assembled at the hydro site later, the company says.
“The advantage of this approach is that it can be completed in parallel with the already-scheduled new substation project at Taltson and some costs can be shared,” reads Thursday’s news release.
The company has applied to the Public Utilities Board for a permit to do the remediation work. It also plans to install two more rented diesel generators in Fort Smith. A rental generator was also connected earlier this month in Fort Resolution, NTPC says.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Federal government invests $6M into Iqaluit hydro project, CBC News
