BC Hydro's new North Shore substation powers 17,500 new homes

BC Hydro's new North Vancouver substation reaching completion to power up to 17,500 new additional homes

New Capilano substation in North Vancouver reaching completion. (BC Hydro)

A new replacement and expanded Capilano substation within North Vancouver District is now approaching completion to provide electrical grid capacity for up to 17,500 new additional homes across the North Shore.

The new substation is built immediately adjacent to the 1950s-era substation it will replace, located just north of Murdo Frazer Pitch and Putt Golf Course, which is northeast of the Upper Levels Highway’s Capilano Road interchange.

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Construction on the new Capilano substation first began in 2021, and it reached the major milestone in May 2024 of the new substation being energized for the first time. Work is underway on transitioning the electrical grid’s use of the old substation to the new substation, which is a process that is expected to take about 18 months. After the transition reaches completion, the old substation will be demolished.

BC Hydro announced today it will make further investments over the coming decade to increase the capacity and reliability of the electricity grid on the North Shore, and the Sea to Sky corridor communities of Squamish, Whistler, and Pemberton.

The provincial electric utility will direct $500 million of the $36 billion 10-year province-wide investments announced in January 2024 will go directly towards improving the electric grid in these areas, which will further support new residential, commercial, and industrial uses and overall economic growth. However, the investments are also being driven by the accelerating electrification of building heating and cooling systems and the adoption of battery-electric vehicles.

The $500-million investment in the area includes projects such as adding capacity at the Squamish substation, replacing aging equipment at the Pemberton and Lynn Valley substations, seismic and reliability upgrades for the Cheakamus generating facility, and voltage-conversion projections at the Glenmore, Norgate, and Capilano substations, which include extending over 10 km of major underground infrastructure.

“In growing regions like the North Shore and the Sea to Sky corridor, where we are seeing substantial housing, building, transportation and industrial growth, we are embarking on significant upgrades to our electricity system,” said Chris O’Riley, president and CEO of BC Hydro, in a statement.

“It includes investments in our transmission lines, substations, and distribution network, as well as investments to improve dam safety and replace aging or end-of-life equipment to ensure we can continue to provide reliable and clean electricity to our customers. We are also making important changes to our customer connections process to speed up timelines for newly constructed homes and buildings.”

But improved electrical capacity serves just one piece of the North Shore’s infrastructural woes for accommodating more growth.

For instance, municipal leaders on the North Shore have frequently expressed frustration over the lack of new and improved infrastructure to accommodate population and economic growth. They are concerned about the congestion and reliability issues of the Lions Gate Bridge and the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge, which are experiencing increased heavy vehicle traffic due to new residential developments and tourism growth in the Sea to Sky corridor.

“They have simply no clue as to the traffic that goes across our Upper Levels Highway coming from Pemberton, Whistler, and Squamish,” said District of West Vancouver councillor Christine Cassidy in a public meeting on Monday related to a controversial housing decision.

“They have no idea that we cannot get off this seeming island because of the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge and the Lions Gate Bridge. And for the entire time I have lived in this community, which has been since I was a child, there has been the promise of a bridge. Well, I’ll probably be dead before that bridge is ever realized — they’re not giving us anything.”

BC Hydro’s $500-million investments over 10 years in the electrical grid on the North Shore and the Sea to Sky corridor pale in comparison to what the electric utility is planning to spend and build in jurisdictions such as Burnaby and Surrey, where very significant residential growth and economic development are forecast.

Over the coming decade, BC Hydro will spend $1.25 billion on new substation projects to support up to 170,000 new additional homes in Burnaby and another $1 billion on similar substation projects to support up to 158,000 new additional homes in Surrey.

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