Improving Reliability in Downtown Vancouver

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The July 2008 power outage in downtown Vancouver reminded us of the importance of electricity in our daily lives. Although the existing electrical system has provided downtown Vancouver with reliable service for decades, the demand on the system has grown significantly.

Today, the 67,680 customer accounts in the downtown core consume five per cent of the total provincial demand for electricity. Not surprisingly, the underlying infrastructure requires more attention. The outage highlighted these issues and prompted an investigation into the incident. A panel of independent industry experts reviewed BC Hydro's investigation of the incident, and provided recommendations [PDF, 284 Kb] to improve the restoration capability to the downtown core.

BC Hydro has taken a number of steps to improve the reliability of the existing electrical infrastructure to downtown Vancouver. Last year, BC Hydro and the British Columbia Transmission Corporation installed a new transformer inside the Cathedral Square substation at a cost of $15 million. This transformer is an addition to the existing infrastructure, improving the reliability to the system supplied by that substation.

Since the July outage, BC Hydro has increased the number of equipment inspections in downtown Vancouver. At least 80 per cent of all downtown manholes have been inspected in the last three years alone. Maintenance crews have assessed the condition of the circuits in the area, and have identified and repaired a number of potential issues on the existing cables. Changes have also been made to our inspection program to further increase its effectiveness. We have added a fire marshal position to assess fire risks and prepare mitigation strategies, and we are installing fire suppressors within selected manholes in downtown Vancouver. These steps will help prevent problems in the first place, and allow us to deal more quickly with problems when they do happen.

BC Hydro is also working on several long-term initiatives to better serve downtown Vancouver. Efforts are underway to eliminate the overhead H-Frame structures in the alleys of 82 downtown blocks in order to upgrade the system to meet current codes and regulations. This project will be completed over the next two or three years.

While no electrical utility can guarantee uninterrupted service, BC Hydro strives to provide our customers with an efficient and reliable source of energy.

Outages and your business

Knowing what to do before, during and after a power outage is important for your safety and the safety of your staff. It's also essential for your business assets, especially your valuable electronic equipment and systems. There are a number of steps you can take to make sure your business is prepared for a power outage.

To report a power outage at your business, call 1 888 POWERON (1 888 769 3766) from your landline or *HYDRO (*49376) from any cell phone, or report it online.

Updates on a power outage in your area are available online. If you're using a web-enabled cell phone or PDA, use bchydro.com/mobile.

BC Hydro customers are also able to view outage information through Outage RSS Feeds that deliver updated information every 15 minutes. The Outage RSS Feeds will be limited to unplanned outage information (Current/Restored) grouped together by Region and/or Municipality.