Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I, too, would like to continue the questioning with regard to the NWT Power Corp Minister.
I just wanted to lay out the land a little bit. During my travels in my constituency people are concerned about the government’s plan to increase taxation in various different areas. They’re concerned about the high costs of heating fuel and gasoline fuel that continue to rise even though they’re falling worldwide. Another concern is that now our government, in its infinite wisdom, wants to raise the power rates, Mr. Speaker. That’s something to which I’m fundamentally opposed.
I just wanted to lay out that the little people in our smaller communities are impacted. I just want to say that far before Joe the Plumber, there was Granny from Nahanni, and she’s impacted by all these costs of living pressures.
The Minister is responsible for the NWT Power Corp, which put forward the General Rate Application to increase the power rate. I’d like to ask the Minister, now, if he can withdraw that application.
Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. The honourable Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, Mr. Roland.
Mr. Speaker, the rate application has been put forward to the PUB; it’s being reviewed. We’ll expect a ruling on that and take the direction from that process.
The problems…. I mean, it’s not as simple as my declaring that that rate application be pulled. The simple fact is that right now, in our existing framework, the Power Corporation has to work within the legislation as regulated by the PUB and has to show and cover the cost of operation. It goes through that process. What we do as the GNWT outside of that is, for example, through the Territorial Power Support Program, where we match the Yellowknife rate for every community outside Yellowknife that pays a higher price. That’s our way of limiting the impact. For example, the rate rider application that’s out there…. The majority of that will be caught by the Territorial Power Support Program.
I do want to make the case that the world has changed in the last six months, Mr. Speaker. Our financial world went topsy-turvy, and we cannot be relying on our old user pay system that’s there just because fuel prices are going up. We cannot go to Granny from Nahanni and ask for more money to pay the power costs in those communities. Because of that, I ask again: can we stop this current General Rate Application process? It’s based on old, erroneous information. Plus I do not believe that this General Rate Application includes the review of operating maintenance costs, which the people have to pay for, and the bonuses that are included. Mahsi.
Mr. Speaker, the Member talked about old, erroneous numbers. The numbers are tested quite thoroughly with the volumes of information that have to be provided to the Public Utilities Board about the operation of the Power Corporation and why it’s seeking any changes to its rates. That is something that is there. Those numbers are proven. Our question and further justification if required is given. That is a fairly substantial process with the volumes of information that have to be given at any application to the PUB around rate structures and changes to rates.
The bigger piece…. Again, I say that the government overall provides the Territorial Power Support Program, which minimizes the impact on individuals outside of Yellowknife who pay a higher rate than Yellowknife. That’s, I guess, the area that we would have to look at if we want to minimize further impact across the North.
As well, as I’ve already mentioned to a number of other Members — now that we are going through this process of looking at energy development, generation, regulation — that here’s the opportunity with which this House can give clear direction on how we proceed and how we change things going forward. Because I agree: we can’t continue doing business the same old way.
Once again, I believe that the General Rate Application is based on erroneous information, and I’d like to see that it is at least withdrawn until it is re-evaluated one more time. That’s something that people have been telling us as their MLAs. The will of the people also becomes the will of this House. And that’s something I’d like to bring to the Minister. Will he look at pulling the General Rate Application, reassess the application package and put in some consistent and current information?
The fact is that the information provided goes through much scrutiny and is tested. It is not erroneous information. That’s the environment that we have to operate in, the existing framework. Members want to change that framework. As I’ve stated already, we are more than open to looking at changing the framework we operate in, and that’s across anything from the rates to the regulations to the structure. It is time that we as the Government of the Northwest Territories look to the future of what we can provide and how that provision of services affects the constituents in our communities.
Again, much of this rate application will get picked up through the Territorial Power Support Program for those people who live within the 700 kilowatt hours.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final short supplementary, Mr. Menicoche.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Once again, I say it’s an old system. It comes from I don’t know how many years back. It’s backwards, and it’s not working for the people. We’re asking people to save power in the smaller communities, yet in order to make money, the Power Corporation has to charge more. That’s a backwards system. I’d like the Minister to acknowledge that and look at changing that system and stop this General Rate Application and review it.
With the existing framework we have to operate under — that is, the acts that are in place, the Public Utilities Board regulation process — if we were to delay this process, then the potential is that next year we would have to go for even a higher request for operation.
The fact that individuals have been saving on their energy use, yes, is one that helps, in a sense. But, Mr. Speaker, I’ll speak from experience. I have a large family; I have a home in Inuvik and pay a higher rate than Yellowknife. For approximately 11 months of the year I keep — I should say, my wife keeps — the power consumption below the 700 kilowatt hours, and we live within that time frame. Now, not all people can do that, because of the quality of the homes they live in and the nature of the weather and weather patterns.
But, again, if we want to change the way it’s looked at, the way it’s reviewed and how we provide power, the opportunity’s here. I’m agreeing: let’s do that; let’s really look at how we deliver those services. Through the Ministerial Energy Coordinating Committee we’re working on a paper that we can bring to Priorities and Planning and set the direction we go in the Northwest Territories.
Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.
