$1.4 billion financing closes for Fort McMurray to Edmonton power transmission line

Alberta transmission powerline Photo: Alberta Wilderness Association

Project consists of 500 kms of transmission line from Wabamun (west of Edmonton) to Fort McMurray

ATCO says it has closed the $1.4 billion financing for construction of the Fort McMurray West 500-kilovolt (kV) Transmission Project, which will be completed in 2019.

“We are very proud that we have developed a project which supports the continued growth of our province and allows us to build upon and create meaningful relationships with communities,” said Wayne Stensby, managing director, electricity with ATCO.

Alberta PowerLine, a partnership owned 80 per cent by Canadian Utilities Limited, an ATCO company, and 20 per cent by Houston, Texas-based Quanta Services, Inc., closed $1,384,678,000 of bonds with maturities ranging from June 2032 to March 2054, according to a press release.

The bonds were underwritten by CIBC World Markets Inc. and RBC Dominion Securities Inc. RBC also acted as financial advisor to Alberta PowerLine.

Follow Teo on LinkedIn and Facebook!

“This project enables the continued modernization of Alberta’s grid, increasing the capacity and reliability of our transmission network,” said Stensby.

Alberta PowerLine was selected by the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) in late 2014 through a competitive global process to design, build, finance, own, operate and maintain the Fort McMurray West 500-kV Transmission Project.

The project consists of approximately 500 kms of transmission line and associated facilities running from Wabamun (west of Edmonton) to Fort McMurray.

Construction on the project began in the summer of 2017, and will conclude when the line goes into service in 2019.

The public engagement process for the project was extensive, according to ATCO. In total, 27 Indigenous communities were engaged and more than 3,000 face-to-face meetings were conducted.

During route planning, environmental specialists were consulted to ensure that wildlife, soils, vegetation, wetlands, and historical resources were also considered.

The final route approved by the Alberta Utilities Commission incorporated feedback received during the engagement process.