Laying Pipe

Work is about to begin on another big component of the Mayo B hydro project. Starting tomorrow Kiewit (the construction contractor) will start laying the more than 200 pieces of pipe needed to carry water between Wareham Lake and the new powerhouse, three kilometres away.

Each piece of pipe, known as penstock, is more than 18 metres (60 feet) long, and more than three metres (10.5 feet) in diameter. The penstock was fabricated in China, shipped to Vancouver, and then trucked piece by piece to the Mayo site. If you live in Yukon you may have noticed some of this pipe moving up the highway.

The penstock work will take place throughout the spring and summer, with completion expected by late August or early September.

The Mayo B powerhouse is now completed, and excavation work will resume this month on the tunnel that will connect the penstock with Wareham Lake.

The turbines and generators should start to arrive on site at the end of May.  

We'll post some photos of the penstock installation on this blog in a couple of weeks.