Whistler's propane system to be converted to natural gas in 2009
March 27, 2008
SURREY, B.C. – Conversion of the Resort Municipality of Whistler from propane to natural gas will occur in spring 2009 and take approximately three months to complete.
Converting appliances to natural gas will be possible because the Terasen Gas Whistler Pipeline is being built in conjunction with the Sea-to-Sky Highway Improvement Project. As approved by the Ministry of Transportation, the pipeline route mainly falls within the highway right of way.
Working together with the Ministry of Transportation, Peter Kiewit Sons, S2S Transportation Group and Miller Capilano Maintenance Corporation, pipeline construction began in May 2007.
To date, approximately 34 kilometres of the 50-kilometre pipeline have been put in place. Originally scheduled to be completed by summer 2008, Terasen Gas estimates the pipeline will now be complete in early 2009.
Although the Highway Improvement Project remains on its overall schedule, changes in the way Terasen Gas and its contractors can sequence the pipeline construction have caused delays for the completion of the new pipeline and the subsequent conversion. All future pipeline work will continue to be in accordance with the Highway Improvement Project’s traffic management plan.
To prepare for natural gas arriving in Whistler, Terasen Gas began an appliance audit in 2007 for all existing Terasen Gas residential and commercial customers. The mandatory audit determines which propane appliances need to be converted to accommodate the use of natural gas. This audit process will resume in April 2008.
Bringing natural gas to the community means replacing a capacity-strained propane system and improving air quality through the use of a cleaner-burning fuel. In 2009, Whistler residents will see an instant 15 per cent reduction of greenhouse gas emissions with the conversion to natural gas.
Another advantage to the natural gas conversion is that Whistler customers will be part of the overall gas supply procurement activities Terasen Gas uses to serve over 900,000 customers throughout B.C. This is expected to result in a decrease in commodity costs and helps reduce rate volatility.
Terasen Gas is mainly composed of the operations of Terasen Gas Inc. and Terasen Gas (Vancouver Island) Inc., both indirect wholly owned subsidiaries of Fortis Inc. Fortis Inc., the largest investor-owned distribution utility in Canada, serves two million gas and electric customers and has more than $10 billion of assets. Its regulated holdings include Terasen Gas and electric utilities in five Canadian provinces and three Caribbean countries. Fortis Inc. owns non-regulated hydroelectric generation assets across Canada and in Belize and upper New York State. It also owns hotels and commercial real estate in Canada. Fortis Inc. shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and trade under the symbol FTS. Additional information can be accessed at http://www.fortisinc.com/ or http://www.sedar.com/.
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