Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro provided an update on the plagued Lower Churchill Project Friday morning.

The total cost is now estimated to be just shy of 13.4 billion, an increase of about $300 Million.

That’s largely attributed to the well-documented flaws with GE software for the Labrador Island Transmission link, or LIL.

The latest version passed factory testing in England, but must still undergo rigorous live testing on the grid here before full commissioning of the entire project—as officials noted this morning, factory is theory; but in the field is practice.

Barring more issues with GE, full project completion is now expected by the end of this year, with no resulting impact on electricity rates anticipated before next summer.

Meanwhile, Hydro continues to incrementally increase loads on the LIL, but the real test will come later this year when higher megawatts of power are pushed across as temperatures fall and demand increases.

Officials say now that the big “unknowns are known” the total cost is not expected to balloon much farther than the $13.4 billion announced Friday.

Earlier Story

An update has been provided on the costs and schedule of the Muskrat Falls project.

NL Hydro CEO Jennifer Williams says the revised cost of the hydroelectric project which has met repeated delays and is now dealing with challenges involving GE’s software is up from $13.1 billion to $13.4 billion.

That increase in cost is not expected to have any impact on electricity rates this year, but there may be increases in 2023. Hydro says it will not require any equity from the province and the amount will be covered through internal funding sources.

NL Hydro called a news conference this morning to update media on the project. VOCM News will have more information throughout the day.