Rio Tinto has commissioned a second tunnel to carry water into the Kemano Powerhouse in British Columbia in Canada, marking the end of the Kemano T2 hydropower project. The new, 16-kilometre tunnel was filled up with water and produced its first megawatt of electricity in July 2022 after its construction was completed in May 2022. Both T1 and T2 are now operating together, ensuring the long-term reliability of the power supply for Rio Tinto’s BC Works aluminium smelter in Kitimat and neighbouring communities. The original tunnel was developed in the 1950s and operated on its own for over 70 years. At the time, a 50-metre long intake stub-tunnel was also built at Tahtsa Lake, but the construction of the second tunnel only started in the early 1990s. The project was then halted in 1995 after 8.4 kilometres, then restarted in 2018 to refurbish the initial portion of the tunnel and complete the last 7.6 kilometres. This final section of the tunnel took 30 months to dig, using a 1,300 tonne tunnel boring machine named tl’ughus by the Cheslatta Carrier Nation after a legendary giant monster snake.
Rio Tinto has commissioned a second tunnel to carry water into the Kemano Powerhouse in British Columbia in Canada, marking the end of the Kemano T2 hydropower project. The new, 16-kilometre tunnel was filled up with water and produced its first megawatt of electricity in July 2022 after its construction was completed in May 2022. Both T1 and T2 are now operating together, ensuring the long-term reliability of the power supply for Rio Tinto’s BC Works aluminium smelter in Kitimat and neighbouring communities. The original tunnel was developed in the 1950s and operated on its own for over 70 years. At the time, a 50-metre long intake stub-tunnel was also built at Tahtsa Lake, but the construction of the second tunnel only started in the early 1990s. The project was then halted in 1995 after 8.4 kilometres, then restarted in 2018 to refurbish the initial portion of the tunnel and complete the last 7.6 kilometres. This final section of the tunnel took 30 months to dig, using a 1,300 tonne tunnel boring machine named tl’ughus by the Cheslatta Carrier Nation after a legendary giant monster snake.
