page_title: Indian Arm
section_title: Buntzen Generating Station
hierarchical_section_title: Indian Arm / Communities reachable by water / Buntzen Generating Station
caption_attribution_description: English: Buntzen Lake Power Plant number one
context_page_description: Indian Arm is a steep-sided glacial fjord adjacent to the city of Vancouver in southwestern British Columbia. Formed during the last Ice Age, it extends due north from Burrard Inlet, between the communities of Belcarra and the District of North Vancouver, then on into mountainous wilderness. Burrard Inlet and the opening of Indian Arm was mapped by Captain George Vancouver and fully explored days later by Dionisio Alcalá Galiano in June 1792.
context_section_description: There are two century old powerhouses along the eastern shore of the arm.
  Water from Coquitlam Lake flows through a 3,894 m (12,775 ft) long tunnel to Buntzen Lake, approximately 150 m (490 ft) above the tide line in Indian Arm. Boilerplate penstocks direct water from Buntzen Lake down to the two powerhouses on the shores of Indian Arm.
  Buntzen No. 1 was built in 1903 by the Vancouver City Light and Power Company to provide electricity for the Vancouver area's streetcars. It used four 1,500 kW generators and by 1912 three additional 5,000 kW units were installed. The north end of the original four unit powerhouse at Buntzen No. 1 was demolished in 1950 and a new building, a 55,000 kW unit 1 generator and a larger turbine were added in 1951.
  Buntzen No2 was designed by the English architect Francis Rattenbury, it was built in 1912, 0.40 km (¹⁄₄ mi) mile south of Buntzen No. 1 by British Columbia Electric Railway and produced 26,700 kW of power. One of Buntzen No2 three pelton wheels was shut down in 1972 leaving a capacity of 17,800 kW in operation.
  Buntzen No. 1 was shut down during 2010–2011 to complete a turbine runner replacement project. The stations are unmanned, operated by remote control from BC Hydro's System Control facility atop Burnaby Mountain. In 2015 BC Hydro lists capacity of the two powerhouses at 76.8 MW.
  There is confusion in maps and photographs about which site is Buntzen No. 1 and which is Buntzen No. 2. Buntzen No. 1 is to the north and has four buildings, with the 1951 generator addition on the north end of the powerhouse and the transformer building uphill. The site is not very appealing except for the ornate granite addition to the south end of the powerhouse with "Vancouver Power" carved in stone. Buntzen No. 2 is 300 m (1,000 ft) to the south and is all contained within one beautiful building which hasn't changed significantly since 1912.
caption: Buntzen No. 1 before additions 49°22′31″N 122°52′08″W﻿ / ﻿49.3751748°N 122.8687525°W﻿ / 49.3751748; -122.8687525
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