Hydro-Québec will hold a public information and exchange session on Thursday, September 24 in Lachute as work continues on its proposed Argenteuil substation project. The session will take place at the Microtel Inn & Suites by Wyndham Lachute, at 555 Rue Paul.
Information booths will be open from 5 to 6:30 p.m., followed by a project presentation and question-and-answer session at 6:30 p.m.
Hydro-Québec’s Team Leader – Advisor for Regional Affairs, Marie-Annick Gariépy, said the evening will provide an update on the project, including proposed line routes, preliminary locations for pylons, technical specifications for the new Argenteuil substation, visual simulations, and the progress of environmental and technical studies.
Residents in the area have already received invitations in the mail, she said, and information about the event will also be added to the project website.
The proposed substation is intended to replace aging infrastructure and expand the electrical capacity serving the Argenteuil region. Hydro-Québec says analyses have shown that the existing facilities have reached their maximum transformation and transmission capacity and no longer have enough capacity to meet the region’s future electrical needs.
Several components of the existing Lachute substation are also nearing the end of their useful life, according to the utility. The project is intended to provide a more reliable electrical grid, meet current and future electricity needs, and support the region’s demographic and economic growth.
Hydro-Québec was also asked whether the project was connected to potential growth in energy-intensive industries such as data centres, given growing interest in artificial intelligence and large-scale computing.
Gariépy said Hydro-Québec treats information about individual customers and their projects as confidential and therefore could not comment on specific projects or companies.
“Hydro-Québec does not have a strategy to attract new data centres to Québec,” she said.
Gariépy noted the Argenteuil project is instead focused on maintaining a reliable electrical grid and meeting the region’s overall electricity needs.
Hydro-Québec also plans to offer support to the City of Lachute and the Municipality of Saint-André-d’Argenteuil through its voluntary Integrated Development Program. Through the program, Hydro-Québec provides funding for community initiatives selected by the municipalities to improve the local living environment and support projects of collective interest.
