Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier I spoke about Marine Transportation Services, and my questions are for the Minister of Infrastructure. Mr. Speaker, my first question is: what is MTS doing to plan for this and future seasons to ensure that they don't run into the same issues as we did last year? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Minister of Infrastructure.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I mentioned in the House here the other day about some of the conditions that we are working on to make sure that we don't get into the same situation as we did last year with the shipping season. We've moved our schedule forward, as I mentioned in this House, and I encourage all Members who have communities that participate or use MTS to inform their residents along with what we're trying to do, along our communications line, to inform them that we've moved our sailing schedule up.
Of course, that is conditional, as I said again on a number of conditions. It's going to be on ice conditions on Great Slave Lake. It's going to be on the conditions of the ice going down on the Mackenzie River. We are a little concerned about the low water levels. The Coast Guard has to put their buoys in again, and a lot of it is conditional, too, as well. We're working with the fuel supplier that supplies the Government of the Northwest Territories for our annual summer resupply. Maybe many Members of the House don't know we have hired an extra person with our communications process through our customer service representatives. These are some of the initiatives that we've taken to hope alleviate the situation that happened last year.
I appreciate the response from the Minister. It looks like there have a lot of lessons to learn as we move ahead, seeing as this is all very new to the government. My second question to the Minister is: are the bulk fuel prices being done, and will they reduce the price of gas for petroleum products for Arctic residents?
All our bulk fuel is purchased in the summer, as I've said. That's our normal practice for the marine summer resupply. The final price of gasoline and other fuels is based on the cost of fuel and the cost of shipment to each community. The changes in sale prices are based on these costs, and we won't know what those prices are going to be typically until the end of fall, until we gather all this information.
Also, on the Member's first note, too, another effort that we are doing to help address the situation is MTS plans to mobilize and stage all fuel and dry cargo in the Nunakput region and Tuktoyaktuk early in the season, too, so that's one of the things that we're looking at adjusting our schedule.
I appreciate that. It's good to hear. It gives MTS a little bit of a reaction time to some of the issues and some of the conditions up in the Arctic along the Beaufort Sea.
Mr. Speaker, my third question is: have there been any planning studies done using Tuktoyaktuk as a staging point for future shipping, not just to Nunakput communities, but to other communities, say, in Alaska and in Nunavut?
Infrastructure has applied for funding through CanNor, and the application is for a study to examine economic employment and community development opportunities, induced by potential investment and improvements in the marine assets and supporting infrastructure to six communities of the Beaudel and the Inuvialuit Settlement Region.
The study will examine and recommend a future role for Tuktoyaktuk as a straightforward staging location for cargo and fuel to support marine resupply of and through the western Arctic. We are contemplating that these improvements will mitigate the risk of any future marine resupply in the area.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Nunakput.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is good to hear that. I think that we have gone a long way since this time last year, as far as MTS goes and the planning for shipping in the Arctic communities. It is great to see that the Minister is working federal Ministers on this, as well, Mr. Speaker. That is good news. I commend the Minister for that. My final question is: are there any infrastructure investments planned to improve shipping in Arctic coastal communities in Nunakput? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
As I said, the money that we applied for CanNor will actually give us some pinpoint ideas of what we need to do around that, but one of the big things, I think, that we are doing this year is that, as this House knows, we have gone out and secured the money to purchase four double-hulled barges that will help do the resupply in these communities. The procurement process for building these is under way right now, and we are anticipating, if all goes well, that we will have delivery of these by August of 2020. This is going to help with the existing fleet of the two double-hulled barges that we already have; so we will have six double-hulled barges.
As I have said in this House before, when I have talked about this, this is going to help us. Instead of making two trips to some of these communities, or all of these communities, we will be able to do the resupply based on one trip to each community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Masi. Oral questions. Member for Hay River North.
