Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I’m going to follow up on my questions I asked the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources previously. I would like to ask him, of the $60 million that he and we have been referring to here, where are we at -- it’s a three-year -- in the three years and how much of that $60 million was allocated for biomass projects? Thank you.
Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. The honourable Minister responsible for Environment and Natural Resources, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have, I believe, about $15 million for this year. I’d have to commit to get that for the Member, and I’d be happy to provide, the breakdown of all that money across the regions and across the different areas of alternate energy including biomass, wind, geothermal, mini-hydro, and all those different areas. I’ll commit to get that for the Member. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, $60 million is a fair amount of money and if we’re going to spend $60 million over three years, I’d like to ask the Minister if the capacity is available to this government to sort out how we’re going to spend those funds and actually see the results of them and not have this money lapse in some fashion. How are we doing on that? Thank you.
Once again, when I get that information for the Member about all of the projects that are underway, the Member will see we have done a number of briefings. But we have done a fairly good job in terms of retrofitting our buildings. The Tuk project is moving along. They are trying to fast-track the mini-hydro in Lutselk’e. There is work being done on extending the power lines. We have made fairly significant efforts with biomass, as well, in other areas, with recovering waste heat up the valley. There is a very important piece of work being done for geothermal for both in Yellowknife and in Fort Liard. I think, when you consider what we are trying to do in terms of the structural change of our system, how we generate, distribute and use energy to reduce our greenhouse gases and to reduce our carbon footprint and our reliance on diesel, I think, given the fact that we are now into year two and we have come from basically a standing stop, that we are doing a fairly good job. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, of course we have been briefed on this thing. The whole idea of this public process here on the floor of the House is to make the public aware of what is going on. People are curious about this. We can tell them that somehow it seems more effective when it comes from the Minister who is responsible for the $60 million. How much of the $60 million has already been allocated in some fashion for the suspension of the dividends from the NWT Power Corporation for the next couple of years and the buying now the rate riders to reduce the power costs that have been announced recently? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, the $60 million always included $9 million, which is $3 million a year, initially when we came up with the concept and the funding to do something to replace or to enhance the commercial subsidy in the small communities where the price of commercial power is prohibitive as we sorted through these long-term structural changes to how we use, distribute, generate and consume energy in the Northwest Territories. That money was always there. Now the use has been identified. It is going to result in the rate changes and rate structure changes that have been announced by Minister McLeod and will translate into those significant savings to the commercial power rates in small communities. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The time for question period has expired; however, I will allow the Member a final supplementary question. Mrs. Groenewegen.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The lowering of the commercial power rates in the communities, I can see it acting as an incentive for business. How that translates into lower prices for consumers is a piece that I don’t quite understand how the government is going to have a hand in or ensure that that happens before we get people too excited that the price of groceries is going to go down because the cost of power for the local grocery store is going to go down. How does the government see, actually, that money not just being... The business of operating with high power rates for a while and if a commercial rate reduction is going to help them, it could create some incentive to start some businesses, but how is it actually going to be seen by consumers? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I will give the Member a very specific example. I have had contact now for a number of months with the senior officials that run Northern Stores. They were talking to us, came to us about, initially, plastic bags but we started talking about energy costs and their efforts to lower their costs, because it is driving their costs for food right through the roof. I indicated that we were contemplating a number of significant changes and if they were carried through would see a resulting drop in their power rates from 30 percent on up. They were very clear that if that kind of arrangement was made, they would be passing some of those savings on to the consumer. I think we would be following up with those companies. We would be monitoring on the ground and look at our food basket costs and we would be encouraging and working very hard with the private sector to make sure that the consumers in the small communities realize some of that benefit. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Time for questions has expired. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to go back to item 5 on the orders of the day. Thank you.
---Unanimous consent granted
The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Jacobson.
