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Wahleach system

The Wahleach facility consists of the Jones Lake Reservoir, Wahleach Dam, Boulder Creek Diversion Dyke, Jones Lake intake structure, a power tunnel, and a single 63 megawatt (MW) unit at the Wahleach Generating Station.

The system supplies less than 1% of the province's electricity needs, however it is one of our most efficient operating plants. Storage reservoirs at Jones Lake balance outflows with energy demand, using the stored water to produce electricity throughout the year.

It, along with our other generation facilities, plays a key role in providing voltage support to our Lower Mainland transmission system.

Learn about Water Use Planning for the Wahleach system.

Wahleach Dam

The Wahleach Dam is located 30 kilometers west of Hope. Water from the Jones Lake Reservoir passes through a tunnel and penstock to the Wahleach powerhouse adjacent to Highway No. 1 and discharges into the Fraser River.

Quick facts

  • Height: 21 metres
  • Reservoir: Jones Lake
  • Reservoir size: 490 hectares
  • Max sustained generating capacity: 63 MW
  • Storage: 66 million m3

We monitor operations at the facility 24 hours a day, seven days a week to manage water flows and forecasting. Reservoir management is controlled by the our Operations Centre, and local facility maintenance and field surveillance are performed primarily by Stations Field Operations, Dam Safety, and Environmental Risk Management staff.

The Wahleach powehouse began operating in 1952. At the time, the facility had the highest elevation of any electrical facility in Canada and produced around 14% of the electricity required by the BC Electric Company, a predecessor of BC Hydro.