Floyd Roland

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would say I believe one of the Members mentioned 2003; 2003-2010 is not a johnny-come-lately approach. In fact, it has been well thought out and coming up with a business case that makes this work more. So towards the Member requesting that the Hydro Strategy be looked at again and updated with a more updated vision as to where we go, yes, let’s sit down together in committee. I believe there has been some commitment made and the Ministerial Coordination Committee along with Members would be glad to sit down and renew that strategy and update it. Many things have...

This is one of the difficulties we face, is when the government-of-the-day puts the business model and gets behind a project. The government-of-the-day, and even this government, realizes we have limited capacity in subsidizing any projects of this nature. So this has purely been on a business case. That is the kilowatt-hour sale that could make this project go that could then deliver revenues to the partnership, that could then grow capacity, that could fuel further development potentials in the area. So we have looked at those options, as I stated earlier, through the environmental review...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Deh Cho, that Bill 6, Supplementary Appropriation Act (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 2, 2010-2011, be read for the first time.

---Carried

Mr. Speaker, without a customer at the other end, the project itself from a government perspective is unviable unless we are to get a huge influx of cash from the federal government or if we at this Assembly were to say take a portion of the dollars and put it purely towards this project.

This business case has been built on a customer; a number of customers in the sense of the mines. Future development, for example, and the Member has raised this issue of Avalon going forward, is important for us and looking to the future, but until we know if they’re actually going to make a decision to...

The Power Corporation contracted out much of the expertise that’s required in doing some of these assessments and pulling some of the costs together. The Member has talked about a number of routes: submarine that would be under the lake or at the bottom of the lake; the trans-island route, as discussed; and the western route. We’re talking of the base case plus, for example, the submarine. The estimates were about $50 million more; trans-island was about $40 million more; the western route was looking at $200 million or more.

Again, the partnership has looked at this purely on the business case...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I know the Members have raised continuously, since the start of this Assembly, the concern about the Deh Cho Bridge and the project, to the point where we dealt with the item yesterday and will continue to deal with it for the next couple of days.

On this particular motion, one of the things that I must put out there clearly, although it is a furthermore within the motion, that we officials acted and appointed officials actively cooperate with the Auditor General. That is bordering on stating we don’t. In fact, we do. Every year we work with the Auditor General...

Mr. Speaker, to be fair, the previous governments that initially got this concept together put the pieces together, presented to Members the idea on how to move forward through this partnership. At that point there is no number to be able to say through, for example, the environmental review process could add additional dollars much like by the environmental review process looked at it, adjusting the line through the East Arm, that could add some dollars to this project. We could not sign power purchase agreements until we get through the environmental phase, because we need to know the final...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to take this opportunity to inform Members and NWT residents about the fiscal implications of the recent developments surrounding the Deh Cho Bridge Project.

Later today I will be tabling a supplementary appropriation estimates that will request the necessary authority for the GNWT to assume and administer the assets of the Deh Cho Bridge Project. The GNWT is also taking steps to assume the debt of the Deh Cho Bridge Corporation, totalling $165 million.

First, I want to assure Members and the public that assuming responsibility for the Deh Cho Bridge Project...

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I’ve been informed that in fact the Minister of Finance did present a draft policy, I believe, to committee and is awaiting a response. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am here today to present Supplementary Appropriation No. 2, 2010-2011 (Infrastructure Expenditures). This document outlines a request for $165,439 million for capital investment expenditures in the 2010-11 fiscal year.

This supplementary appropriation seeks authority to record the work completed on the Deh Cho Bridge Project and to record and use the remaining cash available to complete the project.

This appropriation authority is required as the project will now be recorded directly as a GNWT asset in our financial statements. Up to now, the project has been recorded...