December 18, 2015 – The second generating unit at Romaine‑1 generating station supplied its first megawatts on November 25, 2015, says Hydro-Quebec, with the commissioning of the first generating unit, and the second unit began generating power as of December 13.

“The commissioning of the second generating unit adds 135 MW to Hydro-Quebec’s generating capacity. Since the start of construction, the project has created significant economic spinoffs. I am delighted that close to $800 million in contracts were awarded to companies from the Côte-Nord region,” said Pierre Arcand, Quebec’s minister of Energy and Natural Resources and minister responsible for the Northern Plan and the Côte-Nord region.

Begun in April 2012, the Romaine-1 jobsite was the set of a world’s first: the assembly of a generating unit  in under 12 months, according to Hydro-Quebec. In addition, the company adds that all of the structures were constructed eight months ahead of schedule.

The first generating station of the complex, Romaine-2, with its 640 MW of installed capacity, was commissioned at the end of 2014. Next in line are Romaine-3 and Romaine-4, slated to go into operation in 2017 and 2020 respectively. Once the project is completed, Hydro-Quebec said it will have increased its installed capacity by 1550 MW.