Stage managed!

This is an IP Freely exclusive. A traitor has leaked the original speaking notes, including stage directions, for Premier Williams' speech to the House of Assembly about the "wheeling" deal which he announced last week.



Mr. Speaker: I rise in this Honourable House today to share with Members and the public-at-large, what can only be described as a historic day for the Province and the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.

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You have heard our government say on many occasions that we are striving to take control of our own destiny. We have put action plans in place and we have exercised wise and strategic financial management to position us for future economic growth.

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We have taken equity stakes in our offshore projects; we have invested in strategic areas of growth; and we have risen above the detrimental actions of the Federal Government and stood strong in the face of adversity.

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We have also made it very clear, that we will control the development of one of our most valuable renewable energy resources, the Lower Churchill project.

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Our government’s Energy Plan set in place a plan to develop this resource with a view to 2041 when we finally take full control of the Upper Churchill project.

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In the meantime, we have been working to secure maximum benefits strategically and financially from our recall power from the Upper Churchill project.

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Since 1998, we have had a power purchase agreement with Hydro Quebec for a block of recall power from the Upper Churchill. This renewal expired on March 31, 2009.

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Essentially, this agreement gives Hydro the right to recall 300 MW at the same price as Hydro Quebec’s current pricing under the 1969 Churchill Falls power contract.

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Nalcor Energy in conjunction with government decided to not renew this agreement.

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Instead yesterday, on April 1, we as a province for the first time in our history sold hydro electric power from the mighty Upper Churchill River in Labrador directly through Quebec and this hydro electric power was then sold into markets in the United States.

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Simply put we, as a province, began wheeling our power through Quebec unfettered to North American markets for the first time in history. This is precisely the obstacle that was not overcome in the original Upper Churchill agreement, resulting in that unfair and lopsided deal.

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Today, we have overcome that obstacle. We have proven that no challenge is too big or too daunting for our people to take on.

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In fact, this new arrangement means that we can now sell our own power which may access the United States and Canadian markets.

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At the present time, we are working with Emera Energy to have our power get to these markets. We have concluded a sale agreement with them so that with their considerable expertise in the industry our power will be sold into these markets. Our goal is to eventually develop the expertise at Nalcor so that we can act as seller into final markets.

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A maximum of 250 megawatts of power can be transmitted in the summer time through lines out of Labrador, through Quebec and into the northeastern US and can potentially go into other Canadian provinces.

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I want to also assure the people of Labrador that the priority of Nalcor and this government is to ensure local and domestic needs for power are met with recall power. As with past recall arrangements only energy surplus to the province’s own needs would be exported outside of the province.

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We understand from Emera that power from Labrador today is being sold directly into the United States; destination – New York. Newfoundland and Labrador is taking a bite out of the big apple.

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Nalcor secured this transmission access through Quebec to the Canada-United States border under Hydro Quebec’s Open Access Transmission Tariff.

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This represents a tremendous accomplishment and bodes extremely well for the Lower Churchill development as we move forward.

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It also opens doors in terms of our future ability to sell wind power and other potential energy into a hungry North American market place.

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This is truly a historic and momentous occasion for the people of our province, as never before have we been granted access through the Province of Quebec with our own power.

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This power sales arrangement puts us squarely in the game as a hydroelectricity producer and seller, with our clean, hydroelectric generation being sold from Newfoundland and Labrador and finding its way into the North American market place. Just as we have taken equity stakes in our offshore resources, we see tremendous potential for long term value in entering this business arrangement and will continue to assess future potential.

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This is about our province finally acting in a strategic manner and going through proper processes to wheel our power through our neighbouring province of Quebec.

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What we are talking about today is our future and the future of generations who will follow us. Today’s announcement is one more step on that road. Our view is long term and we will not be swayed by short term thinking.

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I ask all honourable members to join with me in celebrating this outstanding and significant day in the history of Newfoundland and Labrador.

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