Dam Safety

BC Hydro’s $3 billion investment in capital projects includes dam seismic upgrades

BC Hydro’s $3 billion investment in capital projects includes dam seismic upgrades

BC Hydro will build more than $3 billion in capital projects on Vancouver Island over the next decade to upgrade and expand the electricity grid and provide clean power for homes and businesses in growing communities, the BC government announced.

About 98% of the power generated for British Columbia’ integrated grid comes from clean or renewable resources, primarily hydropower.

In January 2024, the province announced BC Hydro’s updated 10-Year Capital Plan, which contains $36 billion in regional and community infrastructure investments, a 50% increase in over its previous capital plan. These construction projects are forecasted to support 10,500 to 12,500 jobs annually, on average, and will increase and maintain BC Hydro’s capital investments as major projects such as Site C hydropower are completed.

The plan reflects growing demand for electricity across sectors due to population growth and housing construction, increased industrial development, and people and businesses switching from fossil fuels to clean electricity, among other factors.

“We must build out B.C.’s electrical system like never before, to power our homes and businesses, to power a growing economy and to power our future,” said Josie Osborne, Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation. “On Vancouver Island and in communities across B.C., these construction projects will create thousands of good jobs over the next decade and ensure that people have access to clean, affordable and reliable electricity, when they need it and where they need it.”

Vancouver Island is experiencing significant growth in Victoria, Saanich, Langford, Colwood and Nanaimo. To meet this growth, BC Hydro is investing in several projects as part of its 10-Year Capital Plan, including seismic upgrade projects to BC Hydro’s three dams within the Campbell River system – John Hart, Strathcona and Ladore – to maintain downstream public safety and to ensure a continuing reliable local supply of energy. All three projects are planned to be in service by 2030.

Other projects are:

  • Building a new substation in the Langford area that will power an additional 40,000 to 70,000 homes and be in service by 2030;
  • Replacing end-of-life transmission underground cables that service Victoria, Esquimalt and Saanich, increasing capacity more than 60%, enough to power more than 100,000 additional homes;
  • Major distribution investments to increase power-line capacity to support new residential housing and anticipated residential load growth in Bear Mountain and Langford Heights; Victoria, Oak Bay and Esquimalt; District of Saanich and central Saanich; and North and South Nanaimo; and
  • Upgrades of transmission capacity to Vancouver Island by replacing old undersea cables with new cables by the Gulf Islands.
  • BC Hydro also recently launched a call for power to acquire about 3,000 GWh per year of clean electricity. This is BC Hydro’s first competitive call for power in more than 15 years and will add 5% to its current supply and will be the first in a series of calls for power as BC Hydro requires more power to electrify the growing economy and reduce pollution.