Cables still needed for Island power

Yakout Mansour
BC Transmission Corp.
Times Colonist
21 Feb 2005

Re: "Cable connections make for strange bedfellows," Feb. 13.

The article focused on the aging undersea cables as the "centre of debate," with regards to serving the electricity needs of Vancouver Island. The high voltage direct current (HVDC) system consists of overhead lines and undersea cables plus terminal stations at either end of the circuit. These terminals convert alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC), and then back to AC again.

It is the conversion equipment in these terminals, rather than the cables themselves, that will reach end-of-life sooner.

To serve Vancouver Island supply needs in the short-term, BCTC has a number of contingency actions that can be employed. Used in combination, these operational measures could give us a reasonable bridging mechanism, should new on-Island generation not be ready by 2007.

It is important to note that such contingency actions, while reasonable in the short-term, cannot be relied upon as reliable electricity supply for Island residents in the long-term.

The article may have incorrectly left the impression that BCTC views its transmission project as providing the same service as on-Island generation.

As an independent transmission provider, BCTC does not hold an opinion on the Duke Point power plant or, in fact, any other generation project. However, it is BCTC's view that the long-term solution to reliably serving Vancouver Island requires both on-island generation and transmission reinforcement.

- Yakout Mansour, senior vice-president, System Operations and Asset Management, British Columbia Transmission Corporation.