New 10-kilometre long tunnel to boost power at Niagara Falls

Construction of an additional tunnel at Niagara Falls’ generating facilities was due to begin in September. It is part of the ongoing efforts to boost power production at the famous site.

The new tunnel is being constructed under a design/build contract awarded to Strabag AG of Austria. Morrison Hershfield, consulting engineers of Toronto, are part of the Strabag team.

The design-build contract, worth $600 million, involves the use of a 14.4-metre diameter tunnel boring machine to excavate the tunnel about 140 metres below ground level. The tunnel is over 10 kilometres long. It will supply additional water from the falls to the Sir Adam Beck generating complex at Queenston Heights, increasing its output by an average of 1.6 Terawatt-hours a year. The power is enough to provide electricity to meet the annual needs of a city twice the size of Niagara Falls.