All right. Are there any further questions on the asset management, pages 41 to 43? Seeing none, I will call the activity. Infrastructure, asset management, infrastructure investments, $167,809,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
We will now turn to corporate management on page 44, with information items on page 45. Questions, comments? Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I want to ask a number of questions about the Slave Geological Province Corridor there. I believe we got $40 million from the federal government to advance this, and I see there it's for environmental assessment for Lockhart Lake, the first section of LASR as some people are now calling it, I heard the other day. Can I just get clarification? Do we expect it to cost $40 million to put just the LASR part through environmental assessment? Can I get a breakdown on how that money is going to be spent? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. On August 14, 2019, Transport Canada announced it would provide $30 million under what's called the National Trade Corridors Fund for environmental study and the regulatory process for the planning studies to advance the Slave Geological Province Corridor. The GNWT has committed $10 million to the project, which brings us to a total of $40 million. The project will support the future economy of the Northwest Territories by not only facilitating mineral exploration development in a region with significant resource potential, provide improved access to minerals and metals critical to the green economy of the future, and assisting with reclaiming mines in the region upon closure. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Can I just confirm that? I understand we are going to do the project description report; we are going to do a developers assessment report; and then we are going into environmental assessment. Are we entering environmental assessment just from Highway No. 4 to Lockhart Lake, or are we entering environmental assessment for the entire road, two of the three phases? Can I just get a sense of what we are bringing to the land and water board? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. There are four project phases, and maybe I will eventually get to the Member's answer. The first phase, which is costing of $40 million, this is the environmental and planning engineering studies. That is the first phase of this project. The second is the construction of the 179-kilometre all-weather road from Lockhart Lake to Lac De Gras, which is estimated about $350 million. The fourth plan is the construction of the 82 all-weather road. This is a big project, you know, something that the government is pursuing, but first we need to do the environmental studies. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Yellowknife North.
Yes. Thank you, Madam Chair. I understand, yes, there are the multiple phases. First, we are going to Lockhart. Then, we are going to go to Lac De Gras. Then, we're going to maybe go to Nunavut. Then, maybe Nunavut's going to go to the ocean, and then, maybe they're going to build a port. I understand there are multiple steps. My question is: the $40 million we got, are we going to environmental assessment on just to Lockhart Lake, just that first step of construction, or what are we bringing to environmental assessment? We had this problem with the Mackenzie Valley Highway, but we proposed the entire road into environmental assessment. It got caught up in years, then we dialed it back and said, "No, no. We're just doing these in portions." I'm just looking for what exactly we're bringing to environmental assessment. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I'll get Mr. Loutitt to answer this.
Thank you, Minister. Mr. Loutitt.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The first phase is the section from Highway No. 4 to Lockhart that we are right now bringing our regular applications forward, doing our planning, looking at attrition knowledge, and working with our partners. There will be a decision point at that point on whether the project goes to EA at that point. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Loutitt. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm happy to do we are doing this in phases. I recognize it's not our decision whether it goes to EA. I don't think it's much secret that it probably will go to the environmental assessment. I want to get the sense: say we get regular approvals; we get those in 2024, let's say past the life of this Assembly; say we're approved, and we have funding for just phase 1 of Lockhart Lake. Will we build the road to Lockhart Lake, start construction, or are we going to wait to get regulatory approval and funding secured for the other phases? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I'll get Mr. Loutitt to answer that. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Mr. Loutitt.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The plan is to plan and work on the construction in phases, so that would be our intention. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Loutitt. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Part of my concern with this entire project is that, I think in 2001, there was a business case. There has been years of talking about this, and it made probably complete sense when the diamond mines were in full operation. It would have saved them millions of dollars in not building the ice road every year. I am concerned that even if we built phase 1, which doesn't get us to the diamond mines, by the time we actually get phase 2 built, we're into 2027 would be my guess at the earliest. Most of those mines are ending the life of their operation.
There is kind of this never-ending moving target with this road of: we do a business plan and it says, "Yes. It's fine," and then, we have to wait 20 years. It seems we are least waiting another five years to even start construction. Can I get the Minister to speak to how those business plans and that assessment of the return on this keeps getting evaluated as the mines actually wind down? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. That portion still provides advantages to industry in the area and also will enhance exploration and also extends the ice road further north. The long-term vision of this project was to include an infrastructure corridor that supports road, communications, hydro transmission line infrastructure. It connects to an all-weather road, perhaps in Nunavut, that will link onto the deep-water Arctic part. There are opportunities within this project other than just looking at different phases. I respect it's going to take time. A lot of infrastructure projects do take time. It is something that is part of the mandate. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. There have been a number of different assessments of this road and benefit-cost analysis. One of the problems is many of the ones I have seen, they do the analysis based on there being hydro, based on the road going to Nunavut, based on the port existing. I have yet to see a business case for just Lockhart Lake road, which is what we are proposing to build. We're proposing to build a road that doesn't get to the diamond mines, that doesn't have hydro. Is the Minister willing to go and do the business case for just that? Funding for this is ultimately up to political will. We may be sitting here in 2028, and we just built a road to Lockhart Lake and then decided to not build any further. Then, it will truly be a road to nowhere. It won't even be a road to the diamond mines. I just want to make sure that there is a business case for phase 1. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. This is something the Department of Infrastructure can look into, but we also can work with other departments within the GNWT, including ITI. There are opportunities there within that department to be able to work together to see how we can expand this project further. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Can I just have the Minister confirm, in what we're sending to environmental assessment and the road to Lockhart Lake will hydro lines or power lines be included at that at all? Is that part of this plan? Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. There is potential within the Slave Geological Province Corridor. Some of the areas I've talked about, and the opportunities can include reaching out to other areas where we have other sources of hydro, perhaps. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm just going to ask that question one more time a different way. I recognize we're sending this project for approval. It may go to environmental assessment, in all likelihood. We need to have a lot of detail. Is part of the plan to include extending power lines? Obviously, this would require running them up the Ingraham Trail and then down the road, which would be another huge project. I want to clarify whether the project as defined to Lockhart Lake includes transmission lines. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I'm going to get Mr. Loutitt to expand further on some of the potential opportunities within this project. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Deputy Minister Loutitt.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Obviously, this road is very important to the economic well-being of the Northwest Territories. It's going to an area that is rich in minerals. It promotes future economic activity and exploration and will create additional revenue streams, as well as employment for people in the area while it is under construction. While Taltson is being advanced separately, our long-term vision is to go to the SGPC. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Deputy Minister Loutitt. Are there any other comments, questions under the corporate management section? Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I'd like to pick up where my colleague from Yellowknife North left off. The Mackenzie Valley Highway has been in environmental assessment now for over seven years. Seven years. It was submitted to environmental assessment by GNWT Department of Transportation back in February of 2013. What I'm worried is that the same thing is about to happen with the Slave Geological Province Road. I've heard a lot of fuzziness around what this project really is; whether it includes hydro; is it really part of a bigger project that's going to spill over into Nunavut? It's extremely fuzzy. I understand that some of this funding is perhaps to better define the project, at least I hope so for $40 million. I'd like to know: is it the intention to submit a project to environmental assessment during the life of this Assembly? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. The best time would have been to build this would have been at least 30 years ago, but the second time is just to get it started now. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. Given that the GNWT itself triggered an environmental assessment for the Mackenzie Valley Highway, is this government going to submit or trigger an environment assessment itself for the Slave Geological Province road or Lockhart Lake road, whatever's it's going to be called? Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Yes. We will be submitting regulatory applications for the projects. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I'm not sure that the Minister actually understood my question. Of course, regulatory applications are the first step to an environmental assessment, but any party, including GNWT -- I shouldn't say, "any party" -- a limited number of parties can actually trigger or, once the applications are filed, ask that an environmental assessment be conducted. One of those parties is this government. Is this party going to trigger an environmental assessment for this project? Thanks, Madam Chair.
