Editing BC Hydro (section)

{{Short description|Crown corporation in British Columbia, Canada}}
{{Infobox company
| name = British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority
| logo = BC_Hydro_logo.svg
| trade_name = BC Hydro
| type = [[Crown Corporation]]
| industry = [[Electric utility]]
| area_served = British Columbia
| key_people = Chris O'Riley, President & CEO
| products = [[Electricity generation]], [[electric power transmission|transmission]] and [[electricity distribution|distribution]]
| revenue = {{increase}} {{CAD|7.591 billion|link=yes}} {{small|(2022)}}<ref name="2022HydroReport" />
| net_income = {{decrease}} {{CAD|668 million|link=yes}} {{small|(2022)}}<ref name="2022HydroReport" />
| assets = {{increase}} {{CAD|42.734 billion|link=yes}} {{small|(2022)}}<ref name="2022HydroReport" />
| owner = [[Government of British Columbia]]
| num_employees = 6128 {{small|(2011)}}<ref name="LA1_Num_Employee">{{Cite web|author=BC Hydro |title=LA1 Number of Active Employees, by Contract Type |url=http://www.bchydro.com/about/accountability_reports/2011_gri/f2011_social/f2011_social_LA1.html |date=2011 |access-date=2013-02-18}}</ref>
| foundation = 1961
| location = 333 Dunsmuir Street<br />{{nowrap|[[Vancouver]], [[British Columbia]]}}<br />V6B 5R3
| homepage = {{official URL}}
}}

The '''British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority''', [[trade name|operating as]] '''BC Hydro''', is a Canadian [[electric utility]] in the province of [[British Columbia]]. It is the main electricity distributor, serving more than 4 million customers in most areas,<ref name="BCHydro_Facts">{{citation |author=BC Hydro |title=BC Hydro quick facts |date=2019 |url=https://www.bchydro.com/content/dam/BCHydro/customer-portal/documents/corporate/accountability-reports/financial-reports/annual-reports/BCHydro-Quick-Facts-20190331.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210627210808/https://www.bchydro.com/content/dam/BCHydro/customer-portal/documents/corporate/accountability-reports/financial-reports/annual-reports/BCHydro-Quick-Facts-20190331.pdf |access-date=2022-05-16 |archive-date=2021-06-27 |url-status=dead }}</ref> with the exception of the City of [[New Westminster]], where the city runs its own electrical department<ref>[https://www.newwestcity.ca/services/electrical-utility Electrical | City of New Westminster]. Newwestcity.ca. Retrieved on 2014-04-12.</ref> and portions of the [[Kootenays|West Kootenay]], [[Okanagan]], the [[Boundary Country]] and [[Similkameen Country|Similkameen]] regions, where [[FortisBC]], a subsidiary of [[Fortis Inc.]] directly provides electric service to 213,000 customers and supplies municipally owned utilities in the same area.<ref>{{citation|author=FortisBC |title=About Fortis BC |url=http://fortisbc.com/About/Pages/default.aspx |access-date=2011-06-30}}</ref> As a provincial [[Crown corporation]], BC Hydro reports to the BC Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation,<!-- per https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/organizational-structure/ministries-organizations/ministries/energy-mines-and-petroleum-resources on 18 January 2021 --> and is regulated by the [[British Columbia Utilities Commission]] (BCUC). Its mandate is to generate, purchase, distribute and sell electricity.

BC Hydro operates 32 [[hydroelectric]] facilities and two [[natural gas]]-fueled [[thermal power plants]]. As of 2014, 95 per cent of the province's electricity was produced by hydroelectric generating stations, which consist mostly of large hydroelectric dams on the [[Columbia River|Columbia]] and [[Peace River|Peace]] rivers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bchydro.com/energy-in-bc/our_system.html|title=BC Hydro's System|author=BC Hydro|date=July 17, 2014|access-date=2014-07-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130419063453/http://www.bchydro.com/energy-in-bc/our_system.html|archive-date=2013-04-19|url-status=dead}}</ref> BC Hydro's various facilities generate between 43,000 and 54,000 gigawatt hours of electricity annually, depending on prevailing water levels. BC Hydro's [[nameplate capacity]] is 12,049 megawatts.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bchydro.com/energy-in-bc/operations/our-facilities/columbia.html|title=Our Facilities|author=BC Hydro|date=July 29, 2009|access-date=2009-12-22|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250314175906/https://www.bchydro.com/energy-in-bc/operations/our-facilities/columbia.html|archive-date=2025-03-14}}</ref>

[[Electricity]] is delivered through a network of 18,286 kilometers of transmission lines operating from 69 kV to 500 kV, and 55,254 kilometers of distribution lines. BC Hydro has two major [[WECC_Intertie_Paths|intertie paths]], with its system being interconnected to the [[Alberta Electric System Operator]] via [[Western Electricity Coordinating Council|WECC]] Path 1, and to the [[Bonneville Power Administration]] via WECC Path 3.

For the 2013-2014 fiscal year, the domestic electric sales volume was 53,018 gigawatt hours, revenue was {{CAD|5.392 billion|link=yes}} and net income was {{CAD|549 million}}.<ref name="BCH2014">{{cite book|title=BC Hydro 2014 Annual Report|url=http://www.bchydro.com/content/dam/BCHydro/customer-portal/documents/corporate/accountability-reports/financial-reports/annual-reports/bc-hydro-annual-report-2014.pdf|author=BC Hydro|year=2014|location=Vancouver|access-date=2014-07-20}}</ref>