Hydro Quebec
Hydro-Québec is a public utility that manages the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in the Canadian province of Quebec, as well as the export of power to portions of the Northeast United States.
It was established by the Government of Quebec in 1944 from the expropriation of private firms. This was followed by massive investment in hydro-electric projects like the James Bay Project. Today, with 63 hydroelectric power stations, the combined output capacity is 37,370 megawatts. Extra power is exported from the province and Hydro-Québec supplies 10 per cent of New England's power requirements.
Hydro-Québec is a Crown corporation (state-owned enterprise) based in Montreal. In 2018, it paid CAD$2.39 billion in dividends to its sole shareholder, the Government of Québec. Its residential power rates are among the lowest in North America.
More than 40 percent of Canada’s water resources are in Québec and Hydro-Québec is the fourth largest hydropower producer in the world.
The company logo, a stylized "Q" fashioned out of a circle and a lightning bolt, was designed by Montreal-based design agency Gagnon/Valkus in 1960
In Quebec, advocates for the creation of a public hydroelectric utility protested against high costs, poor rural electrification, and the lack of French speakers in management positions in hydroelectricity companies. In 1944, Montreal Light, Heat & Power company was nationalised, along with its subsidiary, Beauharnois Power, and Hydro-Québec was created to manage the companies.
Quebec Premier Adélard Godbout adopted a policy of investing 10 million dollars per year in rural electrification. However, in 1944 the government changed, and the new premier Maurice Duplessis was opposed to any form of government intervention in the economy. Local cooperatives were created to bring power to rural areas. Duplessis remained in power until 1960, and during that time there were no further nationalisations of companies, and Hydro-Québec mostly served the Montreal area.
Major projects included:
Bersimis-1 generating station completed in 1956, 1,125 MW
Bersimis-2 generating station completed in 1959, 845 MW
Beauharnois Hydroelectric Generating Station completed in 1961, 1,903 MW.
Carillon Generating Station built 1959-1964, 752 MW
Between 1944 and 1962, Hydro-Québec's installed capacity increased from 616 to 3,661 MW[9] while lowering residential power rates by half in the Montreal area
Reference
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