We often hear that Hydro-Québec lacks power during peak periods. In the Becancour industrial zone there is a small natural gas power plant belonging to a Western oil company. I wonder how it never seems to work out and Hydro pays several million a year to honor their contract?
– Yvonne Dupuis, Victoriaville
It is often said that history repeats itself, and you have pointed out a good example. In 2003, Hydro-Québec president André Caillé and the Quebec government announced that Quebec was in danger of running out of power in the coming years. Building a natural gas power plant is being considered because it could come into production quickly. The first planned project, Suroît, located in Beauharnois, in Montérégie, was abandoned due to the controversy it caused. However, Hydro-Québec has government support to build a natural gas power plant in Bécancour.
A contract has been entered into with TransCanada Energy to quickly build a 500-megawatt natural gas-fired power plant. The power plant, built at a cost of $500 million, was operational in 2006 to supply electricity to Quebec for 20 years.
But in this short time the context has changed. The expected electricity shortage has turned into a surplus, such that Hydro-Québec does not need to produce the Bécancour power plant. The power plant has never been operational but since it signed a 20-year supply contract with Alberta, the state-owned company must pay as if it were buying its production.
At a rate of approximately 50 to 75 million in damages paid each year, several billion dollars have been paid to TransCanada Energy in vain.
We move forward 20 years. In 2023, the head of Hydro-Québec and the Quebec government announced that Quebec is at risk of running out of power in the coming years. Last November, Hydro-Québec published a $150 billion investment plan to increase its electricity production and meet increased demand during peak periods.
It is noteworthy that the Becancour electricity generation station will be restarted using natural gas, with its conversion to renewable natural gas.
CEO Michael Sabia's business plan states:
“We are considering converting TransCanada Energy's existing thermal power plant in Bécancour to renewable natural gas (RNG) in order to ensure grid stability during the coldest days of winter and during peak hours. In other words, it will be used in a limited way as an insurance policy. The use of CNG This backup power plant would ensure consistency with Quebec's decarbonisation target.
This is not the first time Hydro-Québec has indicated the possibility of reviving gas plant production.
Will this time be the right time? This may be so, because Quebec's hydropower requirements during peak periods continue to increase.
TransCanada Energy still owns the power plant, and the contract between Hydro-Québec and Alberta remains in place, said Maxime Howard Lefebvre, a spokesman for the state-owned company.
He explained that this contract, concluded in 2006, will expire in the fall of 2026. The factory is still in working order. He follows.
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