Churchill River desk · Industries

Mining first. Then the wire. Compute last, and short.

this province keeps should serve loads that already live in Labrador: mines, towns, the corridor between Churchill Falls and Labrador West. The mines already use about 312 MW of the roughly 525 MW Hydro has for Labrador today. We do not invent a second industrial class to dress a campus.

Last verified public documents onlyUNKNOWN labelled

Megawatts: published, announced, preliminary, not publishedProportional bars for Churchill Falls capacity, NL Hydro's current Labrador allocation, mining load, the public retain framing, Gull Island, upgrades, the wind study, and the unpublished industrial queue.Churchill Falls, existing plant5,428 MWNL Hydro's Labrador allocation today~525 MWof which sold to IOC and Tacora~312 MWPublic retain framing, CF + Gull Islandup to 2,350 MWGull Island, new plant2,250–2,700 MWChurchill Falls upgrades~1,275 MW by 2042Labrador wind, feasibility study2,000 MW study · 400 MW to NL if builtSigned industrial queue for retained powerNOT PUBLISHED
  • Published or in a regulatory document
  • Announcement language (Government of NL release)
  • Preliminary range or study, subject to studies
  • Not published
Churchill Falls, existing plant
Rated capacity of the existing plant (CER provincial profile). CF(L)Co: NL Hydro 65.8%, Hydro-Québec 34.2%.
NL Hydro's Labrador allocation today
About 525 MW allocated to NL Hydro from Churchill Falls to energize Labrador (CBC, Jan 2025); Annex B shows 525 MW existing-CF for NLH in 2027. More →
of which sold to IOC and Tacora
Mining load on the two Labrador West lines (CBC report of NL Hydro officials). Press cite, not a PUB order. More →
Public retain framing, CF + Gull Island
Gov NL 17 Aug 2026 announcement language. Not a signed industrial allocation, not a queue. More →
Gull Island, new plant
Schedule A: approximately 2,250 or 2,700 MW depending on final configuration, subject to studies. First power pencilled 2036. More →
Churchill Falls upgrades
Schedule A §1: about +23.5% across 11 units. Annex B ramp is preliminary. More →
Labrador wind, feasibility study
Schedule B §7: NLH-led study after Definitive Agreements; owner SPE unnamed; NLH 400 MW from 2039 in Annex B if built. More →
Signed industrial queue for retained power
No year-by-year meter of who gets retained megawatts is public. A headline number is not a schedule. More →

01 — The corridor

Hydro's own study says the west lines are at their limit.

A bigger line is the mining-first piece of steel. August's announcement attaches money. Engineering and permits are under way this fall. In-service date: not published.

The corridor the mines needSchematic, not a map. Churchill Falls at the centre. Two existing 230 kV lines run west to Labrador West and are at their operational limit. A proposed 735 kV line with about 1,500 MW of transfer is funded but has no in-service date. Export lines run to Québec. Happy Valley–Goose Bay and the Churchill Falls townsite also sit on the system.2 × 230 kV · existingat operational limit735 kV proposed · ~1,500 MW · funded · in-service date not published735 kV export · ~90% of output flows to QuébecChurchill Falls5,428MWtownsite on the systemLabrador WestIOC · Tacora~312 MWLabrador City · Wabushmining firstQuébecHydro-QuébecHappy Valley–Goose Bay
  • — proposed 735 kV transfer limit, a planning figure
  • — on the two 230 kV lines today

Schematic only. Line lengths and positions carry no geographic meaning. Export share from the CER provincial profile. Corridor status from NL Hydro's Labrador West study page.

02 — Mining first

Sourced cards. Nothing uncited.

Mining first

Labrador West iron ore — first in line

The mines that already live on this grid are the first industrial claim. The west Labrador lines are tight. New large loads wait on a bigger line — and on contracts that still are not signed.

Mining first

The corridor the mines need

Hydro’s own study says the existing west lines are at their limit. A bigger line is the mining-first piece of steel. August’s announcement attaches money. In-service date is still unknown.

Mining first

Critical minerals are the named industrial use

On announcement day the province named minerals and Labrador industry. It did not name a reserved compute class. Mining stays first until the binding paper says otherwise — and it has not.

Cited

Towns and Labrador interconnected load

Happy Valley–Goose Bay, Churchill Falls townsite, Labrador City, and Wabush already sit on this system. They are not a footnote to a campus pitch.

Other cited industry only when a primary or reputable press source exists. None added this pass (Voisey's Bay / Vale MW not restated without a current cite).

Tracker · Costs.