News

OPG reports on rehab work under way at Abitibi Canyon generating station

OPG reports on rehab work under way at Abitibi Canyon generating station

The site of Ontario Power Generation’s 349 MW Abitibi Canyon Generating Station is a hive of activity, as several rehab projects are under way at the 89-year-old facility.

Since the spring, workers have been conducting transformer upgrades, a roof repair, and replacement of copper coils in the station’s G4 unit stator. The three 39-year-old transformers have reached their end of life and are important pieces of equipment key to delivering Abitibi Canyon’s clean power to the Ontario power grid. The transformers are located on the powerhouse roof deck. Because the transformer bases must be removed to replace the roofing, the OPG team is taking this opportunity to complete that work. Both of these projects are expected to be completed later this year.

Lastly, a stator rewind on the G4 unit has been under way since June. This rewind will include replacing 396 copper coils and other equipment. Coming on the heels of a rewind on the G5 unit last year, the team expects to return the G4 unit to service in late February 2023, before taking on a stator rewind for the G3 unit in early 2023.

All of this important work will help ensure this plant, which began producing power in May 1933 on the Abitibi River to supply northern mines and pulp and paper mills, can continue to produce clean, reliable power to help meet the province’s growing electricity needs and climate change goals.

Originally, the powerhouse contained two generating units, and two more were added three years later, with a final unit installed in 1959.

All maintenance and services for the station are performed by trade staff from OPG’s Timmins Service Centre.

“Our team in the north has been hard at work on multiple concurrent projects at our Abitibi Canyon station,” said Paul Seguin, senior vice president of renewable generation at OPG. “This work will not only ensure Abitibi’s units can continue to produce clean power reliably, but it will also ensure this power can be delivered safely to Ontarians.”

OPG provides almost half the power for Canada’s largest province through one of the most diverse generating portfolios in North America. The company owns and operates 66 hydroelectric, two nuclear and two thermal generating stations, as well as one solar facility. OPG also operates four natural gas-fired generating stations and owns and operates 86 hydroelectric stations in the U.S. under the Eagle Creek Renewable Energy banner.