As climate change puts its electrical grid to the test, Hydro-Québec has set itself a goal of reducing the number of outages by 35% within 7 to 10 years. The state company wants this number to decrease this year.
Hydro-Québec is targeting a 1% reduction in 2024. It doesn't seem like much, but if we look at the past few years, the slope has been growing significantly.
Nuance, Head of Operations and Infrastructure, Claudine Bouchard, at a press conference on Tuesday.
A slight decline in power outages would end a trend of recent years. The number of breakdowns is increasing while instances of severe weather conditions are increasing in the wake of climate change. 2023 is also one of the worst 15 years for the state-owned company.
Trees grow faster because they grow longer each season
“, explains Ms. Bouchard in an interview on the sidelines of the press conference. Summer seasons last longer, so trees grow faster. So, you have to cut and prune it often.
Hydro-Quebec had already announced, in November, that it plans to invest between $45 billion and $50 billion by 2035 to improve the reliability of its network, as part of its 2035 business plan.
This represents annual spending of between $4 billion and $5 billion, nearly double the amounts spent in recent years.
Recall that the business plan also includes the goal of investing nearly $100 billion to increase network capacity, by 2035.
Ms. Bouchard said Hydro-Québec has enough staff in the short term to increase grid reliability. At this point, it may not be a matter of manpower as much as it is a matter of being in the right place at the right time with the right solution.
It notes that the state-owned company has increased its workforce by about 650 people over the past two years. If we look at operations, this represents an increase of between 7% and 8%.
The other part of the business plan will require more new workers. Approximately 35,000 construction workers will be needed annually to increase Hydro-Québec's production capacity.
Work planned for 2024
The state-owned company on Tuesday evaluated measures it will take in 2024 to improve the reliability of its network.
Hydro-Québec plans to replace 28,000 wooden poles. It also wants to install 500 composite poles, which are more resistant than wooden poles, in certain strategic locations.
It will allocate $130 million in 2024 to trim and cut trees that may pose a danger to the network. A total of 75,000 trees are expected to be cut. We want to free the equivalent of 22 thousand kilometers of lines.
In the medium term, Hydro-Québec wants to reduce the number of plant-related outages by 30% by 2028.
Batteries for homes
Hydro-Québec is also preparing for the launch Heading into spring over the next few months
Commercial demonstration of battery installation. A pilot project was implemented in about twenty residences on the West Island of Montreal.
Our trade program will aim to do two things, Ms. Bouchard explains. First, customer flexibility, so customers are more vulnerable to power outages.
Secondly, this would also be for advice, she continues. When it is very cold, customers are asked to reduce their consumption during peak periods. At this point, batteries can be an interesting tool.
Hydro-Québec has not yet set all the terms of the program. This is what we define. How will the customer buy it? Do we give him a discount when he purchases? Is it the manufacturer?
So, this is all that has to be organized with multiple stakeholders: hardware stores, battery manufacturers. We want to make sure that these products are reliable as well
she adds.
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