The end of the World War II marked the beginning of one of the most important eras in the province’s history -- farm electrification. By the time the program ended in 1953, Manitoba had the distinction of being western Canada’s most completely electrified province, with 90 per cent of farms connected to the provincial power system. This accomplishment is striking, considering the fact that in 1942 only about two per cent of Manitoba’s 50,000 farms enjoyed the benefits of electrical service.

In 1948, the Manitoba Water Power Commission recommended that the future power requirements of Manitoba would be best served by a coordinated policy for developing and supplying electrical energy. The recommendation was followed, and thus the Manitoba Hydro Electric Board was formed in 1949.

In the early 1960s, Manitoba Hydro turned its attention to the power potential of the North. Initial development plans for the hydroelectric potential of the Nelson River included four main components: construction of Kettle Generating Station, a high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system over a distance of nearly 900 kilometres from Kettle to Winnipeg, the diversion of the Churchill River, and the regulation of Lake Winnipeg.