Canadian Design and Construction Report staff writer
The British Columbia government is introducing legislation to accelerate construction of the North Coast Transmission Line, a project designed to double the flow of electricity from Prince George to Terrace and support industrial growth across the province.
Construction is scheduled to start in summer 2026, with phased completion expected between 2032 and 2034. Regulations for industrial electricity allocation will be implemented in November 2025, and a competitive process for data centres and AI projects will launch in January 2026.
“B.C. will be the economic engine that drives a more independent Canadian economy – powered by clean energy, built through partnership with First Nations and driven by the hard work of British Columbians,” said Premier David Eby. “This legislation will help us move faster on the North Coast Transmission Line, a nation-building project that will deliver clean electricity to responsibly power industrial growth and job creation to increase prosperity for families, communities, our province and our country.”
The energy statutes amendment act, tabled in the legislature on Monday, Oct 20, 2025, would:
- expedite the construction of the North Coast Transmission Line (NCTL) in partnership with First Nations, advancing economic growth and reconciliation;
- ensure electricity is available for sectors that produce jobs, generate public revenues, and have the greatest opportunity to decarbonize, including mining, upstream natural gas, LNG and manufacturing; and
- enable a process for emerging sectors such as data centres, AI and hydrogen to grow in a manner that results in the greatest benefit to people in British Columbia and the economy.
“We must act with urgency to leverage our clean-electricity advantage and grow and diversify our economy,” said Adrian Dix, Minister of Energy and Climate Solutions. “Our new allocation framework will prioritize vital growth in sectors like mining, natural gas and lowest-emission LNG, while ensuring our clean energy is directed to projects that deliver the greatest benefit to British Columbians.
“We’re taking action to build the North Coast Transmission Line as fast as possible to accelerate the development and construction of major industrial projects and bring good, well-paying jobs to people in B.C.”
The province will also implement several regulatory and policy changes in fall 2025 that will:
- accelerate the timelines for the development and construction of the NCTL, and provide cost certainty for large industrial customers seeking to access clean power from the line;
- address growing demand for electricity from emerging sectors by enabling energy connections and growth by putting limits on the power available for data centres and AI, and enabling hydrogen production for export, prioritizing the most beneficial projects from these, with engagement on regulatory changes to begin in fall 2025; and,
- permanently ban new BC Hydro connections to the electricity grid for cryptocurrency mining to preserve the province’s electricity supply and avoid the overburdening of the electricity grid.
The North Coast Transmission Line, one of 18 priority projects identified by the provincial government, is expected to create about 9,700 direct full-time jobs, contribute nearly $10 billion per year to GDP, and generate approximately $950 million annually in public revenues. It is also projected to prevent two to three million tonnes of carbon emissions annually.
