The Anglo-Australian mining group Rio Tinto has completed the construction of the 960 MW Kemano T2 hydropower project, located in British Columbia (western Canada), after the company commissioned a 16 km, second tunnel to carry water into the Kemano power plant. The new tunnel (T2) was filled up with water and produced its first megawatt of electricity in July 2022. Both T1 and T2 are now operational, ensuring long-term power supply for Rio Tinto’s BC Works aluminium smelter in the city of Kitimat and for neighbouring communities.
The original tunnel (T1) was developed in the 1950s and operated on its own for over 70 years. The construction of the second tunnel started in the early 1990s. The project was then halted in 1995 after 8.4 km, then restarted in 2018 to refurbish the initial portion of the tunnel and complete the remaining 7.6 km.
At the end of 2021, hydro represented nearly 55% of Canada's total installed capacity with over 82 GW, and it covered 59% of the country's power mix.