Lower Churchill Project
| Muskrat Falls Generation Facility | |
|---|---|
 Location of Muskrat Falls in Newfoundland and Labrador
|
|
| Location |
Canada Newfoundland and Labrador |
| Coordinates | 53°14′44.3″N 60°46′22″W / 53.245639°N 60.77278°WCoordinates: 53°14′44.3″N 60°46′22″W / 53.245639°N 60.77278°W |
| Construction began | 2013 |
| Opening date | Expected 2019 |
| Construction cost | C$3.69 billion |
| Owner(s) | Nalcor Energy |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Type of dam | Roller compacted concrete |
| Impounds | Churchill River |
| Elevation at crest | 39.5 m |
| Spillways | 2 |
| Spillway type | 1 overflow spillway and 1 spillway with submerged radial gates |
| Spillway capacity | 5930 m3/s |
| Reservoir | |
| Normal elevation | 39 m |
| Power station | |
| Turbines | 4 x 206 MW Kaplan turbines |
| Installed capacity | 824 MW |
| Annual generation | 4.5 TWh/yr |
The Lower Churchill Project is a planned hydroelectric project in Labrador, Canada, to develop the remaining 35 per cent of the Churchill River that has not already been developed by the Churchill Falls Generating Station. The Lower Churchill's two installations at Gull Island and Muskrat Falls will have a combined capacity of over 3,074 MW and have the ability to provide 16.7 TWh of electricity per year.
The Muskrat Falls Generation Facility will consist of a dam, a spillway, and a powerhouse with four Kaplan turbines and a total generating capacity of 824 MW. The concrete dam will be built in two sections (on the north and south abutments of the river): the north dam will be 32 m high and 432 m long, the south dam 29 m high and 325 m long. The reservoir will be 59 km long with an area of 101 km2. The area of inundated land will be 41 km2 at full supply level. Four 315 kV AC transmission lines will connect the powerhouse to the Muskrat Falls switchyard.
Construction of the Muskrat Falls Generation Facility began in 2013 and was expected to take four to five years. As of 2016 first power from the dam and hydro station is expected to be delayed until December, 2019.
Emera and Nalcor will form a joint venture to construct transmission facilities from Labrador to Newfoundland at a cost of $2.1 billion.
The Labrador-Island Link will be a 900MW 1,100 km High-voltage direct current (HVdc) bipole from the Muskrat Falls switchyard in central Labrador to an area near Soldiers Pond on the Avalon Peninsula. This work will result in at least one million person hours of engineering and project management employment and 2.5 million person hours of construction employment in the province.
Key components include the following:
Construction of the submarine crossing of the Strait of Belle Isle began in 2014, with cable installation expected in 2016. The contractor for the overhead transmission lines, Quanta Services subsidiary Valard Construction, was announced on August 11, 2014 and expects to complete construction during the summer of 2017.
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