North Coast Transmission line debate

But the project is also raising questions about cost, transparency and who ultimately pays.

Prince George-Mackenzie MLA Kiel Giddens says the Conservative position is not against transmission or energy infrastructure, but against moving ahead without clearer answers on long-term costs and electricity supply.

“Well, conservatives are in favor of energy infrastructure, including for our electricity grid. We absolutely need more power generation, and we need more transmission. What we’ve been calling for is, more transparency around, what actually is how we’re going to pay for this through ratepayers, what the actual cost of the transmission line is going to be, and where the power generation is actually coming from to meet those needs.”

Giddens says ratepayers include everyday British Columbians, industrial customers, commercial customers and households. He argues that customers deserve to know what the “true costs” of the project will be over the long run, especially at a time when affordability remains a major concern for families and businesses.

He also questioned where the power needed for new industrial projects will come from. Giddens pointed to power imports from the United States and potential interconnections with Alberta, saying the province should focus on generating the electricity it needs within B.C.

“I think ratepayers deserve to know that. Well the utility’s rate base is also everyday British Columbians. It’s the industrial ratepayers. It’s the commercial ratepayers and consumers in regular households. So that’s why I think that transparency is critical in a very large scale project like this, to ask ratepayers, I think they deserve to know, what those true costs are going to be in the long run.”

The North Coast Transmission Line has been promoted as a way to help industrial customers access the power they need while also helping communities grow. Giddens says northern B.C. is exactly where major infrastructure investment should be happening, but he wants more accountability from government and BC Hydro before costs are passed on.

“The north is where infrastructure development needs to happen because this is where the economic growth potential is, whether that’s in electricity, mining or in LNG. It’s the current government that’s opposed to an oil pipeline in northern BC. We want to build the north. The North Coast transmission line is something that can be a key component of it. But the government needs transparency, year round rate for ratepayers.”

Giddens also said he wants to see local businesses, contractors and workers benefit if the transmission line proceeds. He called for changes to BC Hydro’s system impact study process, saying it is currently too bureaucratic and slow for industrial ratepayers trying to get access to power.

Energy and Climate Solutions Minister Adrian Dix says the province needs to build new generation, transmission and distribution capacity because B.C. is growing. Dix said the province has added about one million people in recent years and is seeing major industrial expansion, including mining projects that need reliable electricity.

“The rate increases come when the project goes into service and goes from being a project to an asset. Right. And we and it goes on the ratepayers. So everything BC hydro does goes on the rate base in that sense.”

Dix says that is how BC Hydro infrastructure has always been financed. He argues that building transmission is essential because generation alone is not enough if electricity cannot be moved from dams and other assets to customers.

According to Dix, the northwest is already “tapped out” for power, and the North Coast Transmission Line is needed to allow residential customers, commercial customers and industrial customers to grow. He accused the Conservatives of opposing northern infrastructure while supporting transmission investments in other parts of the province.

“The northwest is tapped out for power. And so we’re building a North Coast transmission line because we have a provincial utility to ensure that individual customers or residential customers, commercial customers and business customers can grow in the North West as well. And I am very surprised that at every possible opportunity the Conservative Party has been against that.”

Dix said more details on the North Coast Transmission Line will be made public as planning and early work continue. He also said BC Hydro is a regulated utility and that project information will be provided through the proper regulatory process.

The minister argued the project is necessary for mines, LNG development and the Port of Prince Rupert. He said if those projects do not have access to electricity, they may not move forward, and that would have consequences for economic development in northern B.C.

“They claim to be a party that believes in action, but they’re against the North, and I cannot understand how the Conservative Party votes against the North Coast transmission line, including conservative MLAs who represent the northwest. How they can actually do that, oppose infrastructure projects in their area. It’s absolutely I think it doesn’t make any sense to me that they behave this way, but they do every single time”.

The debate now centres on two competing arguments. The NDP says the North Coast Transmission Line is needed to build the province, support northern jobs and power future industrial growth. Conservatives say they support energy infrastructure, but want stronger transparency and protection for ratepayers before a project of this scale moves ahead.

With billions of dollars in federal support now attached to the line, the project appears to have cleared a major funding hurdle. But questions about cost, rate impacts, power generation and local benefits are likely to remain key political issues as the province moves toward construction.

by Nick Dube

North Coast Transmission line debate

What's Trending