Hay River, Northwest Territories, January 29, 2026 – The Northwest Territories Power Corporation (NTPC) announced today that remediation work on the surge tank at the Taltson Hydro site is advancing but will take longer to complete than originally estimated.
It is expected that the remediation work will be completed by the end of February 2026, which will be followed by commissioning of the Taltson unit before it can be returned to service. South Slave communities will be back on hydro by the end of March.
The primary cause for the delay is an expanded scope of work that was identified as necessary through non-destructive examination of the surge tank to ensure it can be safely put back in service. The additional work has the potential to extend the operating life of the existing surge tank from the initial estimate of three years to 5 to 10 years. Engineering modelling is underway to confirm the expected life expectancy of the existing surge tank following the remediation work. If the modelling data is favourable, replacement of the surge tank can be delayed for a number of years, ultimately reducing capital costs in the short to medium term. The cost to replace the surge tank at its existing location would require a two-year outage of Taltson and would cost approximately $131M ($51M in on-site construction costs and $80M in ongoing electrical generation costs)
When the need for remediation of the surge tank was announced in September 2025, it was estimated that the work would take approximately nine weeks to complete and cost approximately $15M. The total included the cost to power the South Slave with diesel generation while Taltson remained offline.
While remediation was underway, NTPC and contractors identified that additional work was necessary to ensure the surge tank could safely return to service. As a result of the expanded scope of work, the cost estimate has increased to $36.8M, most of which is the cost to power customers with diesel general while Taltson remains offline.
NTPC has applied to the Public Utilities Board (PUB) for a Project Permit to carry out the remediation work as the PUB requires that an approved permit must be obtained for all capital projects greater than $5M.
NTPC is a wholly owned subsidiary of NT Hydro, which in turn is 100 percent owned by the Government of the Northwest Territories.
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“Despite this delay and cost escalation, the surge tank remediation work underway remains the most cost-effective way to get Taltson Hydro back online. The surge tank remediation as well as the broader Taltson overhaul support an important goal for NTPC – securing long-term, clean hydro power for South Slave communities and future generations.”
Cory Strang, President and CEO of the Northwest Territories Power Corporation
Quick Facts
- The Taltson Hydroelectric Facility was constructed in 1965 to support the Pine Point Mine – the surge tank was part of that original construction
- The surge tank includes a 16’ by 54’ riser, an 18.6’ transition and a cylindrical tank of 40’ by 41.7’ with a diameter of 40’
- The surge tank rests on six steel round hollow section columns: The legs rest on concrete pedestals
- A corrosion issue in the surge tank has kept Taltson offline since early August as the hydro unit cannot be safely returned to service until the surge tank issue is resolved.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Doug Prendergast
Northwest Territories Power Corporation
867-874-5202
