Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday, the Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation said, first and most importantly, this change to the board of directors of the Power Corporation will save ratepayers $1 million per year. My question for the Minister today is: that million dollars, how are ratepayers going to see that coming off their bills? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation.
Yes, Mr. Speaker. As this House will know, an application has gone in for an increase in power rates of 4.8, four, and four per cent over the next three years. The savings of a million dollars allowed us to keep the application that low. Had that million dollars not been saved, the application would have required a higher rate of return to cover the costs of the board. I haven’t calculated the exact amount, but it would have been considerably higher than the rates requested. Thank you.
Previously the Minister had said that the Northwest Territories Power Corporation has been the recipient of substantial GNWT subsidies in recent years. Why is it then that the Power Corporation continues to increase power rates each year, more than 40 per cent since 2012? Is this subsidy a prudent expenditure of government resources in keeping the cost of power under control? It doesn’t seem to be working, Mr. Speaker.
Certainly, there have been increases in power rates over the last five or six years, and we are anticipating increases over the next three years. However, this increase in rates is driven by several factors. The cost of fuel is certainly one of the factors. Also, too, the amount of power that the corporation actually sells is not increasing, and so costs tend to be stable or increasing while the amount of power actually sold is decreasing. Therefore, unless we are able to find a major export market, it would seem to me that power rates may continue to increase.
Mr. Speaker, the Minister clearly has a keen grasp on the issues facing affordable power in the Northwest Territories, but I don’t hear much of a plan to deal with them. Can the Minister share with this House some of the ideas he has on dealing with this problem moving ahead and perhaps on how we’re going to build on the NTPC’s success with renewables specifically, Mr. Speaker?
The Northwest Territories is an acknowledged leader in biomass heating and ranks second in the country in solar capacity per person. As the House heard yesterday in the Premier’s speech, we are going to be rolling out a new energy plan. We will be seeking the input of the public, Members of this House, interested parties, and we are anticipating in being able to table a new energy plan early in 2017.
Masi. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the new federal government has offered billions in green infrastructure and plenty of money available for developing renewable power and renewable energy economies. Has the Northwest Territories Power Corporation applied for any of these resources, and are they looking at deploying to the Northwest Territories so we can get away from increases over every year, as The Minister said we can anticipate? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Certainly, Mr. Speaker the Power Corporation is interested in keeping rates down. As I mentioned earlier, one of the projects that is a possibility, and this was mentioned in the House yesterday by the Premier, is the possibility of exporting power to Alberta and Saskatchewan. Those discussions are at a very preliminary level as they are governments, provincial, federal, and Aboriginal, involved. But I would expect, should we be able to move forward on that project, that we would hope to obtain significant funds from the federal government. It is a renewable resource, hydro. Provinces to the south of us, particularly Saskatchewan, have indicated that they wish to get off coal, and it does present an opportunity for us.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Frame Lake.
