City inaugurates 4th Hydro-sherbrooke substation
On Friday, the City of Sherbrooke inaugurated its fourth Hydro-sherbrooke distribution station in the presence of a number of dignitaries.
The new 120-25 kv Gaston-massé substation, located at 1620 Godin Road, will be powered by Hydro-québec and will increase processing capacity and introduce new distribution arteries to lighten the currently over-loaded lines. The Gaston-massé substation will respond to the growth of the electricity grid for at least the next 15 years.
"We are very proud to inaugurate this new distribution station,” said Sherbrooke Mayor Steve Lussier.” Originally, the project was estimated to cost $32.5 million, but the current market, combined with sound management, has saved the City of Sherbrooke more than $6.5 million to bring the total cost to $26 million. I want to thank the surrounding population for their great collaboration during construction work. We will all be winners," he commented.
The new station will receive electricity sold by Hydro-québec through 120-kv lines. The distribution station converts this voltage into 25 kv and then routes it through the Hydro-sherbrooke network.
Julien Lachance, municipal councilor and president of the Hydro-sherbrooke management committee, indicated that this new distribution station was a good opportunity. "We had three distribution stations in Sherbrooke and the demand is strong because the city is growing rapidly. With this new post, we will be able to provide even more reliable service to the west of the city," he said.
Hydro-sherbrooke's director,christian Laprise, underlined the exceptional work done by his teams throughout the construction process, which began in 2015. "This is a great achievement for Hydro-sherbrooke," he said.
Lussier symbolically gave the order to start the new station during a press conference, Friday. The official take-over of the new distribution station will take place in November and Hydro-sherbrooke customers will not experience any visible changes during the operation.
The new station is located along a 120kv transmission line from Hydroquébec, outside the urban perimeter. A 300 metre access road has been constructed and the 120 metre-squared facility has been fenced and secured.
The station currently includes three transformers, but eventually, it will have four transformers for a total capacity of 168 megawatts. The electricity will be transmitted by underground cables to the distribution arteries to the overhead network.