Hydro One spending $245 million to upgrade Merivale Transmission Station

Hydro One is taking steps to upgrade its Merivale Transmission Station, one of two critical sites that help supply 60 per cent of Ottawa's total power supply.

The recent extreme weather events, including the 2018 tornado and last year's derecho storm, have had a significant impact on the hydro infrastructure, leaving tens of thousands without power. 

In an effort to prevent similar occurrences in the future, Hydro One is investing millions of dollars in the project.

"It's a $245 million project. We're looking forward to starting construction in 2023 and having the whole thing wrapped up by 2028," said Andrew Spencer, Hydro One VP Transmission and Stations.

Hydro One aims to make the Merivale Station more resilient and reliable for generations to come, given the impacts of climate change.

Hydro One's Merivale Transmission Station is one of two critical sites in Ottawa that helps supply 60 per cent of the electricity. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)

The utility plans to make room for two new 230-kilovolt transformers and a new protections and controls building. More of the facilities will be built in an indoor facility, where the equipment will be better protected from extreme weather like high winds, tornadoes, and ice storms.

"Some of the infrastructure that we see in the air that belongs to Hydro Ottawa, the egress cables, that's going to be underground. And so as soon as we underground this stretch, particularly in this area, we'll see that added bit of resilience and hopefully reliability as well," said Joseph Muglia, Hydro Ottawa Director of System Operations and Grid Automation.

Coun. Sean Devine added, "This project is also about community and Hydro One's relationship with this community."

Residents in the area were worried about an access road going through their neighborhood when the project was first announced. However, Hydro One addressed that issue. 

"The community is going to find out on Monday at a public meeting, some of their greatest concerns about how the project will impact them permanently, how the project will impact them during the construction, some of those concerns have been completely mitigated," Devine said.

Hydro One is taking steps to upgrade the Merivale Transmission Station in Ottawa's south end. Construction will be completed by 2028. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)

Hydro One says the new technology and upgrades will benefit the community and the entire city of Ottawa in the long run. 

"The benefit of this is that we should have a smaller footprint for what the station requires, and it becomes more resilient for customers who depend on it in the end," Spencer said.

Residents are invited to a town hall at the Tanglewood Community Center Monday night from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. for more information on the hydro upgrades.