The last complete set of turbines for a Peace River dam were built at a metal works in the Soviet Union and shipped to B.C. aboard a Yugoslavian freighter.
Forty years later, both of those countries have been wiped from the map, but B.C. is still in the turbine market.
On Wednesday, Premier Christy Clark announced the purchase of six 183-megawatt turbines for the Site C dam - one of a handful of remaining contracts on the mega project left to be tendered.
The turbines will be supplied by German-based Voith Hydro, one of the world's largest manufacturer of hydroelectric generators.
The contract is valued at $470 million, and includes the design and installation of the turbines and generating stations.
She said the generating station would not fit in the dome of the B.C. Legislature, where the announcment was held.
"The design and manufacturing of these units is highly specialized work," BC Hydro CEO Jessica McDonald said.
"They have to be custom-designed for each hydroelectric facility."
Voith Canada is headquartered in Montreal. The company previously completed upgrades to the G.M. Shrum Generating station at the W.A.C. Bennett Dam.
Voith CEO Bill Malus said 400 person-years of employment will come from the turbine installation, including work for as many as 150 union and non-union millwrights, electricians and boilermakers.
He said the company would have local training opportunities in the Peace Region, adding Voith would rely on local subcontractors as much as possible.
