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Critics weigh in on billion-dollar energy plan
KAREN MCKINLEY
09/23/2009

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Investing $2.3 billion to make corridors that will carry green energy from Northwestern Ontario to improved transfer sites around the province is an idea being met with mixed reviews.

Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) has been negotiating with the provincial government to position their member communities to benefit from power generation, not just to get transfer lines to remote areas. NAN Grand Chief Stan Beardy said this is more about wealth generation for the First Nations communities in the Northwest and benefiting from their partnerships with the provincial government.

“We are very interested in a partnership with the provincial government that will benefit our people and create wealth for Canada,” Beardy said Tuesday.

“When the Ontario Power Authority announced its 20-year plan for the province, 90 per cent of NAN was left out of the negotiation. There were two things that happened, one were the hearings and I met with George Smitherman (Energy Minister) and told him our communities generate power with three dozen diesel engines and we cannot keep up with the cost of fuel prices. The hearings were brought to a halt.”

Beardy said NAN members want infrastructure in place to position themselves to generate electricity, such as all-weather roads and telecommunications. This way they can supply value-added industries like mining.

“We want to create a win-win situation for the province and our communities,” Beardy said. “We want to have our expertise in developing these sites, not just clear brush for the building sites.

“Hook-ups are desired, but in such a way we can be in a position to market surplus we can generate from our areas.”

NDP MPP for Kenora-Rainy River Howard Hampton said the announcement is just another way Ontario‘s Liberal government is “writing off northern Ontario.”

Transmission lines from communities in northwestern Ontario are only a means of getting surplus energy from the hydroelectric dams to Toronto and the United States, Hampton argued.

“What the McGuinty government has done is raise the price of electricity to the point where mills cannot produce paper or wood effectively,” Hampton said. “This has caused many mills to shut down, and now we have a huge surplus of energy that they want brought to southern Ontario to use and sell abroad. There‘s no benefits for northwestern Ontario.”

He explained it takes a great deal of energy to process a tree from raw material to finished paper. He used the examples of Domtar shutting down paper production in Dryden, and AbitibiBowater closing one paper machine. Domtar is taking their paper production out of the province where electricity is cheaper while maintaining pulp production.

The problem, Hampton said, stems from energy prices being controlled by Toronto. While northwestern Ontario can produce hydroelectricity for less than two cents/kWh, the rates are up to eight cents/kWh. He said he would like to see regional pricing, charging based on population and kilowatt-hour use. That would make electricity more affordable for northern communities.

The potential for jobs isn‘t there either, Hampton said. He said the 6,000 jobs announced Monday by MPP Michael Gravelle, Minister of Northern Development, Mines and Forestry, wouldn‘t be in electrical generation. Most hydro dams are satellite controlled and have travelling maintenance staff of less than three people that service up to six dams each.

“The jobs aren‘t in the production, it‘s what to do with it and they are not in Northern Ontario,” Hampton said. “There are very few jobs in the smaller communities because of the mill shut downs, so people don‘t have an incentive to stay in their communities.”

Gravelle didn‘t immediately return calls for comment Tuesday.
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