Hudson’s Hope is located on the bank of the Peace River in the Rocky Mountain foothills of British Columbia 90 kilometers west of Fort St. John and 66 kilometers north of Chetwynd on Highway 29. We are located within the booming North Peace Region which produces 90 percent of the province’s grain, 38% of its hydro electric power with those BC Hydro facilities located within Hudson’s Hope’s boundaries. Some of the largest gas fields in North America are located in the region with over 10,000 wells drilled. Over 1,100 wells will be drilled in the Montney shale just on the north boundary of the community over the next 10 years by Talisman Energy and Canbriam Energy. The area employs about 2,300 forestry workers and plays host to 300,000 tourists each year, many of who choose to visit Hudson’s Hope – The Playground of the Peace.
Current industries in Hudson’s Hope include energy, forestry, oil & gas, agriculture, guide outfitting, and eco-tourism. Forestry companies are harvesting both aspen and coniferous stands, which are processed in nearby mills. Oil and gas exploration is ongoing with pipelines existing to transport natural gas to the lower mainland and projects are proposed for new pipelines to transport natural gas to proposed Liquefied Natural Gas Plants on BC’s west coast. Agricultural endeavors include cattle and buffalo ranching, grain farming, and honey production.
Some of the major projects proposed for the community include:
Coal Mines
- Canadian Kailuan Dehua (CKD) Gething Coal Mine – CKD Mines is a mining company that is working to develop the proposed Gething Mine in northeastern British Columbia.The Gething Mine would be an underground coal mine located nearly 30 kilometers west of Hudson’s Hope. CKD Mines is committed to hiring as many local workers as possible and developing economic opportunities for related First Nations and communities. CKD Mines is also seeking partnerships to provide training to educate and develop the skills needed to work in the underground mine. CKD’s primary shareholder is Canada Zhonghe Investment Ltd, the subsidiary of Kailuan Group that is a leader in safe, environmentally-sustainable underground coal mining techniques, with more than 130 years of experience to bring to the Gething project.The project is currently in the exploration, design and permitting stage, with a permit application submitted to government that would allow CKD Mines to extract samples from the site to confirm the quality and quantity of the coal deposit. At its peak, the underground mine will employ in excess of 1,000 workers and have a 40 year working life. (www.kailuandehua.com)
- Cardero Resource Corportation – Cardero Resource Corp., headquartered in Vancouver, is focused on coal and iron ore, its two primary properties include the Carbon Creek (metallurgical coal) and Sheini Hills (iron ore). The Carbon Creek Metallurgical Coal deposit located in the Peace River coalfield west of Hudson’s Hope. Cardero released a Pre-feasibility Study in late 2012 which currently outlines a NI43-101 resource estimate of 468Mt Measured & Indicated including a 121Mt initial Reserve of metallurgical coal. The project has also recently received its Section 10 Order, formally commencing the Environmental Assessment. As Cardero advances the development of the Carbon Creek asset, the corporate focus is on being an owner-operated coal producer committed to responsible and sustainable mining with strong and positive stakeholder relationships. The Carbon Creek Coal Project is expected to employ 300 workers during mine construction and 600 to 800 during production. (www.cardero.com)
- Centerpoint Resources proposed Cinnabar Peaks coal mine is in the license application stage and their underground mine will employ 600 workers.
- Dunlevy Energy – The projects overlies the northwest extension of the Peace River Coal Fields District of northeast British Columbia Some of Canada’s major coking coal and PCI coal mines (Willow Creek, Brule, Wolverine, and Trend) are located along strike from the property. Major resource projects including Cardero Resource Corp’s Carbon Creek Project and Canadian Kailuan Dehua’s Gething Project are located within 15 km of the Project area. The Dunlevy Project is located north and west of Hudson’s Hope. All weather roads and good quality secondary roads link the projects to Chetwynd, where Canadian National Railway’s track is located. The rail leads to the Westshore, Neptune and Ridley coal terminals. There is also potential to reduce transportation costs by utilizing waterways (Williston Lake) bordering the property to transport coal by barge to rail access. Exploration activities, including geological mapping and trenching, have been undertaken within the Dunlevy Project area. Previous owners of Dunlevy completed 53 hand trenches in 2009 discovering 9 coal occurrences ranging in thickness from 0.8m to 3.5m. The Company plans to commence drilling and other exploration activities as soon as regulatory approvals are in place. (www.infomine.com)
Natural Gas Pipelines
- TransCanada Prince Rupert Gas Transmission – In January 2013, TransCanada was selected by Progress Energy Canada Ltd. (Progress) to design, build, own and operate an approximately 750-kilometre long natural gas pipeline in northern British Columbia. If approved, the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission Project will safely deliver natural gas from a point near the District of Hudson’s Hope to the proposed Pacific Northwest LNG facility on Lelu Island, within the District of Port Edward. The 48″ diameter pipeline will traverse the District of Hudson’s Hope in a north/south alignment. A conceptual corridor (an initial draft of the pipeline route) has been created for discussion and planning purposes. Input from Aboriginal groups and stakeholders, such as landowners, local communities and government, will help shape the final route. The final route will also reflect the terrain, environment, constructability and economics of the project. In May 2013, the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission Project took the first step to initiate an environmental assessment process. We submitted a Project Description to the British Columbia Environmental Assessment Office (EAO) and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency. It describes how the project team plans to design, construct and operate the pipeline, metering stations and compressor stations. (www.tcenergy.com)
- TransCanada Aitken Creek Pipeline -The proposed $1.5 billion North Montney Mainline will be a large diameter extension from the existing Groundbirch Mainline section of the NGTL system in northeast British Columbia (B.C.). It will consist of two sections, Aitken Creek and Kahta, totaling approximately 305 kilometres (189 miles) in length, and will include associated metering facilities, valve sites and possible compression facilities. The project will also include an interconnection with TransCanada’s proposed Prince Rupert Gas Transmission (PRGT) project to provide natural gas supply to the proposed Pacific NorthWest LNG export facility near Prince Rupert, B.C. The North Montney Mainline will connect to the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline just to the north of Hudson’s Hope. (www.tcenergy.com)
- Spectra Energy – Spectra Energy (Proponent) is proposing to construct and operate an approximately 850-kilometre, up to 48-inch natural gas transportation system starting in the Cypress area of northeast B.C. and terminating on Ridley Island, on the northcoast of B.C. near Prince Rupert (proposed Project). The proposed Project would provide the required natural gas transportation capacity to meet the demands of BG Group’s proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal on Ridley Island. The proposed Project would include up to two adjacent pipelines, metering facilities at the receipt and delivery points, up to five compressor stations along its route and connection to Spectra Energy’s existing transportation system. The pipeline/s would traverse Hudson’s Hope in a north/south corridor.
Wind Power
- Northland Wind – Northland Power B.C. Wind Inc. is currently investigating to assess the feasibility and competitiveness of a Hudson’s Hope wind site in preparation for the next electricity acquisition process by BC Hydro, for which a large-scale wind farm is eligible to bid. Northland fully expects BC Hydro to issue a Call for Power before the end of the proposed investigative tenure. Northland Power’s decision to bid a project on the site will depend on its assessment of the feasibility and competitiveness of the site at the time of the Call. If an Energy Purchase Agreement is awarded, the company intends to build, own and operate the project for the full term of the contract: 20 to 25 years, and beyond, subject to the electricity market at the time. (www.northlandpower.com)
Hudson’s Hope has significant potential for investment in the areas of natural gas service industries, coal mine support services, tourism and value added industries for forestry and agriculture. We are proud of our corporate citizens and look forward to welcoming more. We place a high emphasis on the quality of life, making Hudson’s Hope a safe and inviting family community. Surrounded by lakes and rivers, Hudson’s Hope offers a wide range of outdoor activities including excellent fishing, boating, water skiing, canoeing, hunting, camping, sailing, and wildlife viewing – something that would appeal to your employees and their families.
