By Collin Gallant on January 6, 2017.

Equipment is unloaded Thursday at the new power plant location in the north end of the city. --NEWS PHOTO EMMA BENNETT Equipment is unloaded Thursday at the new power plant location in the north end of the city. --NEWS PHOTO EMMA BENNETT

Medicine Hat News

Two major components of the new north-end power-plant arrived by special delivery Thursday in Medicine Hat â€” about a month after the General Electric turbine left a production facility in Texas.

Crews with Ronco Oilfield Hauling moved the component, as well as the generator housing, along the final stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway, through Redcliff and to the plant’s site on Box Springs Road on Thursday morning.

Stampede Crane set down the turbine â€” which weighs 105,000 pounds â€” at 2 p.m., about five hours after the journey from the Suffield laydown yard began.

“It’s a pretty typical day for us,” said Bob Tokamp, the move’s supervisor with Ronco.

He said the component left Texas on Dec. 5 and arrived at Coutts Port of Entry on Dec. 22, the relatively long transit time was required to move the high-load on secondary routes, move wires and avoid overpasses.

The single-unit power-plant will eventually be able to produce about 40-megawatts of electricity when it is commissioned later this year. That production is equal to about one-quarter the city’s highest ever usage.

Stampede Crane also erected the facility’s stack on Thursday morning.

According to city project budgets, the entire LM6000 unit costs an estimated US$25 million.