Much of the South Slave was left in the dark after a wildfire disrupted power transmission Thursday.
The fire was sparked by lightning and kicked up about 30 kilometres northeast of Fort Smith. As of Monday afternoon, it spanned an estimated 232 square kilometres. The fire created an issue with a critical transmission line near the Taltson hydroelectric facility, prompting the Northwest Territories Power Corporation to shut it down, according to company spokesperson Doug Prendergast.
SA国际影视传媒淭his required the communities to transfer to diesel for their generation of power,SA国际影视传媒� causing Fort Smith residents to lose power for most of Thursday evening, he said.
The disruption also led to a series of smaller outages reported in Fort Resolution, Hay River, Enterprise, Yellowknife and the KFN.
The transmission line connects the Taltson hydroelectric facility to the so-called Taltson Zone, which includes Fort Smith, Fort Resolution, Hay River, Enterprise and the KSA国际影视传媒檃tlSA国际影视传媒檕deeche First Nation reserve.
SA国际影视传媒淚n Fort Smith we ran into some challenges getting one of the three generators to start, which caused a lengthier delay,SA国际影视传媒� said Prendergast. SA国际影视传媒淲e did eventually restore power and it has been holding.SA国际影视传媒�
The same wildfire SA国际影视传媒� code-named SS069-22 SA国际影视传媒� which prompted an evacuation order for the Taltson dam area last month, SA国际影视传媒渉ad become active again,SA国际影视传媒� said Prendergast. SA国际影视传媒淎nd so out of caution, we de-energized the line from Taltson.SA国际影视传媒�
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources conducted a flyover of the area last week, he said. As of Monday, the fire was not threatening Fort Smith or the Taltson hydroelectric facility, where employees continued their work. Prendergast added, SA国际影视传媒渢he impact of the fire on the transmission line is being assessed.SA国际影视传媒�
SA国际影视传媒淎t this point, we are not sure when we will be able to restore full hydroelectric power to the region,SA国际影视传媒� he continued. SA国际影视传媒淲eSA国际影视传媒檝e done an initial aerial inspection of the transmission line to assess whether the reactivated fire has caused any additional damage. We will look into whether any repairs need to be made before we can safely re-energize that line.SA国际影视传媒�
BREAKER: Outage occurs on same day NTPC holds public hearing on proposed power hikes
The outages occurred on the same day the NTPC held a public hearing in Yellowknife on a series of proposed power rate hikes for customers across the territory.
The power corporation has submitted an application to the NWT Public Utilities Board, with the aim of increasing rates from 2.5 to 10 per cent in different regions over the next two years.
According to the companySA国际影视传媒檚 notice of public consultation, SA国际影视传媒渃urrent rates are not producing sufficient revenue to cover the cost of delivering electricity to customers. To address this situation, a revenue increase of approximately seven percent is required.SA国际影视传媒�
The NTPC is looking to increase rates by 20 per cent for customers in Fort Smith and Fort Resolution over the next two years while rates in the so-called Snare and Thermal Zones would go up by about five per cent.
If the increase is approved, the average customer in Fort Smith and Fort Resolution would see their monthly bill increase by about $55.
Even after the rate hike, power costs in Fort Smith and Fort Resolution SA国际影视传媒渨ill remain lower than other communities in the NWT,SA国际影视传媒� states the notice.
The notice attributes the surge in the cost of electricity in the North to things like declining sales, aging infrastructure, inflation, higher fuel prices and climate change.
