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Current Activities

River Diversion & Forebay Impoundment

River Management is divided into 2 stages:

  • Stage 1 diversion — with the upstream Stage 1 cofferdam diverting the water over Taskinigup Falls, which allows the concrete structures to be constructed in the dry.
  • Stage 2 diversion — where the entire river flow is diverted through the completed spillway by removing a portion of the Stage 1 upstream cofferdam and the construction of the Stage 2 cofferdams across the upstream powerhouse and across Taskinigup Falls, which allows for the continued construction of the concrete structures and the construction of the main dam in dry conditions.

Preparations and ongoing monitoring ensured that everything was ready for the increase in forebay water elevation, which began in October 2011.  The forebay water level will be raised to the normal powerhouse operating elevation of 234 metres above sea level (ASL).  The rise in water level was spread over a one-week period to permit monitoring of the completed concrete and earth-fill structures.  As of October 31, 2011 the forebay water elevation was just less than 227 m ASL.

The last activity associated with the Stage 2 diversion and forebay Impoundment is the removal of the rock plug at the upstream end of the Wuskwatim Falls channel.  The rock plug removal will be completed after it has been confirmed that the concrete and earth-fill structures are performing satisfactorily.  Rock plug removal will be completed in 2012.

All cofferdams (Stage 2 upstream powerhouse and Stage 2 downstream) are now completely removed from the Burntwood River.  The entire river flow is passing through the spillway structure.

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Main Dam

The General Civil Contractor (GCC) has now finished the main dam, placing over 145,000 cubic metres of the impervious, granular and rock fill materials. 

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Service Bay / Intake / Powerhouse

The service bay, intake, and powerhouse building structures (precast wall panels, metal cladding and roofing) are now completed except for some miscellaneous work items.

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Concrete Placement

As of August 31, 2011 there have been approximately 120,336 cubic metres of concrete placed in all of the structures. The concrete pours are now complete and consist of:

  • Spillway –11,150 cubic metres;
  • Service Bay – 16,050 cubic metres;
  • Intake – 29,000 cubic metres;
  • Powerhouse – 34,200 cubic metres;
  • Tailrace – 19,075 cubic metres;
  • South Transition – 2,800 cubic metres;
  • Miscellaneous Structures – 8.061 cubic metres

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Turbine Generators

Assembly and installation of turbine components is ongoing for all 3 units at the Powerhouse. Two rotors have been completely built and installed in Unit Nos. 1 and 3. Construction of Unit No. 2 rotor was started in the second half of October and is currently ongoing in the service bay, and is expected to be completed and ready for installation by the end of December 2011. Assembly and installation of the Unit No. 2 runner was completed in November 2011. Overall, installation of major turbine components in Unit No. 2 is about 35 per cent complete.

Installation of turbine components in Unit No. 1 is nearly 99 per cent complete. Unit No. 1 alignment was done in July and the results were satisfactory. In Unit No. 3, about 85 per cent of the larger stationary turbine components have been installed. Unit No. 3 alignment was done in the second half of October and the results were acceptable.

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Electrical & Mechanical

The electrical and mechanical contractor continues to focus on the systems required for the 230,000-volt (230kV) and Unit No. 1 commissioning milestones. Electrical workers continue to focus on pulling and terminating power, control and instrumentation cables, and they have begun running fiber-optic cable through the station. Cabling to the switchgear and load centers is essentially complete and the equipment will be commissioned over the next few weeks. The Isolated Phase Bus installation for all three units is nearly complete.

Both 125-volt direct current battery banks are installed, along with associated chargers, inverters and distribution equipment.  A significant amount of the cabling for this system is complete and commissioning activities on the system have begun.

Manitoba Hydro's Communication Department is making significant progress installing and testing equipment in the station's communications room.  

Installation of the station's fire alarm system is continuing. Mechanical workers have put a major focus on the completion of the air, water, and fire standpipe systems. Cleaning and testing activities for the piping systems will commence over the next few weeks.

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Excavation Work

Final rock excavation for the tailrace is now complete. Intake channel excavation is complete with the exception of some minor rock excavation that is under the powerhouse cofferdam.

The remaining channel improvements at Wuskwatim Falls are scheduled for completion in 2012.

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