Building new gas lines for growing communities
The Okanagan region is booming, with some communities expected to grow up to 40 per cent in the next two decades. We are planning a new natural gas line in the region to help meet this growth and strengthen our system for our more than 100,000 existing Okanagan area customers.
The Okanagan Capacity Upgrade involves building about 30 kilometres of new gas line in the South Okanagan between Penticton and Chute Lake. The project is currently in the planning stages, including talking with stakeholders, Indigenous groups and communities, finalizing a route and preparing to apply to our regulator, the British Columbia Utilities Commission.
Many homes and businesses rely on access to natural gas for hot water, heating and cooking. Our Okanagan Capacity Upgrade will strengthen our system and increase capacity in the region, ensuring customers have access to gas when they need it the most.
Maintaining our gas lines to the highest standards
FortisBC has rigorous safety standards and practices in place to ensure the ongoing integrity of our system and gas lines. Part of this is making sure we are using the latest technology available.
This year we started construction on the Inland Gas Upgrades to support the use of new proven in-line inspection tools that can help us better plan and manage future maintenance. The new inspection tools let us gather detailed information about the condition of our lines. The project will upgrade 29 natural gas lines in the Northern, Thompson-Okanagan, Cariboo and Kootenay regions. We are also looking into upgrades that allow us to use similar technology in our transmission lines throughout the Lower Mainland as part of our Coastal Transmission System Upgrades project.
Our Inland Gas Upgrades will help us continue to provide the service our customers rely on for many years to come.
Keeping you connected to natural gas
FortisBC’s gas line system needs to evolve alongside BC. The provincial government plans to replace the Pattullo Bridge, requiring us to replace the 20-inch gas line attached to it since the 1950s. However, current Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure design standards prevent us from putting a gas line on the new bridge.
Our Pattullo Gas Line Replacement project plans to build a new line in Burnaby, helping supply natural gas to more than 35,000 homes and businesses in the area. The project is in the planning and regulatory stage, including discussions with stakeholders, Indigenous groups and communities. Construction is expected to take place in 2022 to meet the bridge’s decommissioning schedule.
Our Pattullo Gas Line Replacement project is crucial to ensure we can continue to deliver the natural gas homes and businesses in New Westminster, Burnaby and Coquitlam count on everyday.
