Ontario develops new hydroelectricity in north

 Four new hydroelectricity generating stations near Timmins in northern Ontario have been put into service by Ontario Hydro — five months ahead of schedule and on budget. Three of the stations are on the Upper Mattagami River. The fourth, the Hound Chute project , is on the Montreal River.

A Montreal consulting engineering firm, RSW, was the design engineer for the three sites on the Upper Mattagami. The sites are at Sandy Falls, Wawaitin and Lower Sturgeon.

The Redevelopment of the Hound Chute site was designed by KGS Group. It included the installation of a special Obermeyer Weir to better regulate water levels on the river.

BPR Bechtel was the owner’s engineer for Ontario Hydro for the four projects,. Together they amounted to $300 million and will provide enough power for 22,000 homes every year. Kiewit Alarie Partnership was the contractor.

Meanwhile, work on the Lower Mattagami River Hydroelectric project is now under way. It is the province’s first major hydroelectric project in 40 years and will provide 440 MW of power. It is being built over the next five years in partnershhip with the Moose Cree First Nation, which will have a 25 per cent equity share in the project