Canada Invests Nearly $270 Million in New Brunswick Clean Power, Extending Mactaquac Hydro Station Toward a 100-Year Life
Canada's federal government announced in Mactaquac, New Brunswick, on October 13 an investment of almost $270 million for clean and reliable energy in the province. Minister Tim Hodgson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, said the package includes a $219-million site development loan from the Canada Infrastructure Bank to NB Power and $50 million from Natural Resources Canada.
The $219-million loan supports technical studies, regulatory reviews, First Nations engagement and planning for the Mactaquac Life Achievement Project. The Mactaquac Generation Station is New Brunswick's largest renewable energy asset and NB Power's largest hydroelectric facility, at 672 megawatts, supplying 30 percent of the province's renewable energy requirements and 20 percent of its peak demand. Premature concrete deterioration has affected turbines and spillway gates, and the phased rehabilitation aims to let the station reach a 100-year lifespan.
The $50 million will fund a static synchronous compensator project at the Salisbury Terminal to strengthen southern New Brunswick's electricity system, improve grid stability and support integration of additional renewable energy. Ottawa noted that about 80 percent of electricity generation in Canada is currently non-emitting.
Source: Natural Resources Canada
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：水电站大坝 / Photo: A hydroelectric dam（Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 4.0）
