Hydro-Québec to Carry out Major Work in 2024 and 2025 on Outaouais Line
December 19, 2023
Hydro-Québec plans to carry out major work on a distribution line in Outaouais. Hydro-Québec has selected the distribution line, which supplies 1,973 customers in the municipalities of La Pêche, Low and Alleyn-et-Cawood, to test a combination of new solutions. A budget of $9.5 million has been set aside for this work designed to improve service quality.
The following work will be carried out over the next two years:
- Replacing approximately 100 wooden poles with about 100 composite poles
- Installing conductor covers
- Partial undergrounding of part of the distribution system (using the direct, or “light” burial method)
- Adding remotely controlled equipment
- Clearing and preventive pruning of at-risk trees
For safety reasons, certain operations on the grid will require de-energizing power lines. Hydro-Québec will strive to minimize the number and duration of scheduled interruptions. Affected customers will be informed in advance via voice messages.
“As representatives of the population of La Pêche, we are satisfied with the measures that will be taken to improve the reliability of the electricity service. For some years now, our residents have experienced outages caused primarily by vegetation coming into contact with power lines during weather events. We therefore hope that the population will be receptive to the vegetation control work that Hydro-Québec considers necessary,” said Mayor Guillaume Lamoureux.
“Improving service quality is one of the five priorities of the Action Plan 2035 – Towards a Decarbonized and Prosperous Québec recently filed by Hydro-Québec. We will invest on average between $4 and $5 billion each year to ensure the long-term operability of our grid and to reduce the number of power outages by 35% over the next 7 to 10 years. It is through initiatives such as this that we will reach our goal,” said Maryse Dalpé, Senior Director – Operations and Maintenance at Hydro-Québec.
