The Skeena
These massive Site C turbines weigh 170 tonnes each, stretch 17-by-26-feet and were originally built in Brazil. They recently arrived in Prince Rupert, and this week have been on a multi-day journey that will end at the Site C worksite in B.C.’s Peace Region, whose budget is currently estimated at $12.5 billion.
Voith Hydro, a German-owned company was awarded the $470-million contract to design, supply, and install six turbines, six generators, and associated equipment for B.C.’s Site C dam in April 2016.
So big they must be transported at night, the Site C turbines were filmed as they passed through Prince George. “While most residents were sleeping,” says a new video posted to YouTube, “industry and transportation workers stayed up late to capture a unique moment in the city.”
This won’t be the last time this massive equipment rolls through the Skeena region, as Prince George Matters reports. “More shipments are expected to arrive in Prince Rupert sometime in spring 2021 and again in summer 2022.”
Watch the video of the turbines’ nocturnal journey here.
Last night’s trek took the 17-by-26-foot turbine runners from Prince George to Bear Lake, with the goal to reach the Peace Region by early tomorrow morning (Jan. 15) if the schedule stays on time.
Several residents took videos and subsequently posted them to social media, sharing with others the skills of drivers tasked with bringing them safely to BC Hydro’s site, currently estimated at $12.5 billion to build.
This is the tail end of a long journey for the turbines themselves, which weigh roughly 170 tonnes each.
The runners are the heart of a turbine where water power is changed into rotational force, driving the generator that produces hydroelectricity.
More shipments are expected to arrive in Prince Rupert sometime in spring 2021 and again in summer 2022. Work on turbine installation is expected to peak in 2022.
Site C is slated for completion by 2024.
