Thank you, Mr. Speaker. A few days ago I was questioning Minister Miltenberger regarding the power rates in the Northwest Territories, more specifically the power rates here in Yellowknife. His assessment is we’re doing things, we’re moving forward, there are challenges, et cetera, but he’s always willing to hear a good suggestion.
So the Government of the Northwest Territories engineers or manipulates, or call it as you will, 40 percent of the power rates for residents of the Northwest Territories. Yellowknife is not on that list of 40 percent of the Northwest Territories that they are, again, engineering or manipulating power rates. As such, I would like the Minister to explain what all the Yellowknifers perceive as an anti-Yellowknife approach.
What is he doing for Yellowknife? Why is it good enough for almost everybody else but not for this city and their residents? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Hawkins. Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation, Mr. Miltenberger.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is no bias in the system. The whole intent was to create a system that was more even and less complex, hence the thermal rates and the Yellowknife rates. One of the big factors in Yellowknife and Hay River, plus a couple of small communities, is there is another power distributor, NUL. While we provide and sell power at wholesale rates, the provider in these communities adds their own costs on top of that, which is why there is such a distinct difference, for example, between Hay River and Fort Smith, why there is such a distinct difference between the power rates charged where the Power Corp does a service and where NUL does. There is no bias in the system and we try to be even handed and fair as possible. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, the average working family, or I should say the everyday working family does not believe the Minister in that regard, because if you lower the cost in every community, generally speaking of course, but you do nothing for the largest populated community, that does seem to be perceived as bias.
What is the Minister willing to do to help strike away some of that perceived bias but with this suggestion? What is stopping this government from doing an analysis in a comparative sense lowering the cost of electricity in Yellowknife in a similar fashion as he has engineered the power rates outside of Yellowknife? Thank you.
In point of fact, yes, we have pegged the residential rates in the thermal communities to the Yellowknife rate. So I’m not sure what the issue of bias would be when we are using Yellowknife as a benchmark. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, the Minister knows very well that power rates are based on what it costs to deliver power. In these communities, that’s why some of them unfairly, of course I recognize the problem associated why some of the power rates are outrageously high, but yes, they pegged them to the Yellowknife costs, but yet all they did was keep and maintain the Yellowknife cost as it ever increases but we lowered everyone, so we in de facto subsidize everyone at the Yellowknife rate, but he’s done nothing for 40 percent of the population, so there lies the question.
What is he willing as the Minister of the NWT Power Corporation that follow with all the money, all the technology and all the staff to come up with solutions, not us simple MLAs that just working a day job every day trying to do our best. What is he, with all the resources in his hands, willing to do for customers that represent 40 percent of this territory? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, it’s a good thing that the Member in fact has a day job, because if he had to sing for his supper, it would be a long time between meals.
---Laughter
Order! Order!
In fact, the thermal communities’ residential rates are pegged to the Yellowknife rate. There are no other subsidies in the hydro rate zone. I would be happy to have a more detailed discussion. If there is some work we can do and reviews of rates and information we can provide to the Member that would answer some of his questions and show him that there is no bias, I would be happy to have those discussions with him. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Hawkins.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will fully agree with the first part of his statement about the singing and going hungry, but I do not agree with the second part. The last part, I will take him up on his offer of sitting down and talking to me.
Quite frankly, I’m asking the Minister to do an evaluation of what it would cost to bring the Yellowknife rates down to what is considered normal and comparable. We have subsidized and engineered the power rates in all the communities. Yet, at the end of the day, we don’t seem to do anything for the largest community that is trying to get people here. They are leaving because of the cost.
Would the Minister be able to do an evaluation of that? Let’s compare it to the Fort Smith region, which has some of the lowest power costs in the Northwest Territories. Thank you.
I just would need some clarity from the Member on what he means by normal and comparable. If he wants to compare it to the Fort Smith rates, we’d be happy to lay out the price breakdown. I will indicate clearly right now one of the big costs that Yellowknife has, that Hay River has and Fort Smith doesn’t have, is the franchise arrangements and costs that flow from that arrangement that communities make on their own call, because of their franchise fee, and we can show and we will be happy to lay that out for the Member to the cent, to the kilowatt hour and have a discussion if that would address some of his questions. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Nadli
