Today (April 1), Caroline Wawzonek, Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, and Cory Strang, President and CEO of the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, are pleased to announce that the Taltson Hydro Unit has returned to service after being shutdown since May 2023 for a significant overhaul.
The overhaul included replacement of key components such as the turbine and turbine shaft, rotor and generator as well as upgrading of ancillary plant equipment that was also at end-of-life, such as control panels and vibration monitoring equipment. Winter road construction to Taltson over the past several years was also required to allow equipment and large components to be transported to site. The Taltson facility normally has fly-in access only.
The Taltson unit was shut down in May 2023 to allow the overhaul to start. South Slave hydro communities were powered by diesel generators while Taltson was offline. The diesel generators are still available to provide back up power but the refurbished hydro facility is once again providing primary power to Fort Smith, Fort Resolution, Hay River, Enterprise and K'atl'odeeche First Nation. The overhaul was originally intended to be completed in November 2023 but a seven-week evacuation of the site due to wildfires in 2023 followed by issues that emerged during initial commissioning in February 2024 and in early 2025 extended the project.
An interim solution to technical issues that were identified earlier this year has been put in place, allowing the hydro unit to return to commercial operation. Later this summer, the facility will be taken offline for a brief period to install the permanent solution.
The project received more than $17.8 million from the Government of Canada through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP). Final costs for the overhaul are still being assessed but are expected to be approximately $97.8 million, after federal funding. This includes approximately $70 million in project costs and approximately $45 million in fuel and other operational costs required to keep the lights in the South Slave on while Taltson Hydro was offline.
NTPC is a wholly owned subsidiary of NT Hydro, which in turn is 100 percent owned by the Government of the Northwest Territories.
Quotes
"The overhaul of the Taltson Hydroelectric Facility will help to improve reliability, avoiding future unplanned outages. Extending the life of an existing asset like Taltson is an economical way to ensure that South Slave communities continue to be powered by clean hydro for the next 50 - 60 years."
Caroline Wawzonek, Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation
"The Taltson overhaul has been one of the largest and most complex projects in NTPC's history. It faced many challenges, but our team of employees and contractors got the job done. Federal funding support was critical to making this project happen."
Cory Strang, President and CEO of the Northwest Territories Power Corporation
Quick Facts
- The Taltson Hydroelectric Facility was constructed in 1965 to support the Pine Point Mine
- The current generation capacity of Taltson is 22 megawatts, although additional transmission and distribution infrastructure would need to be installed to deliver that power to customers
- Taltson began providing power to Fort Smith and Fort Resolution in the 1960s
- Since 1986, the facility has provided primary power to other communities in the South Slave region
Related Links:
Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program
For media inquiries, please contact:
Doug Prendergast
Northwest Territories Power Corporation
867-874-5202
dprendergast@ntpc.com
