No Decision on Financing for Site C says Minister
Victoria, B.C. – Minister of Energy and Mines, Bill Bennett, says the environmental certificates issued yesterday for Site C can be considered “milestones” but the most important decision lies ahead as the Province has to decide if it will borrow $7.9 billion dollars to build the dam.
“Despite rumours to the contrary, the government has not made a final decision on Site C” says Bennett. He says the government has been analyzing the costs associated with the dam construction as well as B.C. Hydro’s assessment that there is a need for this dam.
Bennett says the demand for electricity is increasing, and B.C. Hydro’s projection for load growth is 1% per year. He says if Site C were to be built it would produce about 8% of the electricity needed in the province.
Direct construction costs are $3.8 billion with an 18% contingency on top of that.
“We’ve boiled it down to three options” says Bennett “Site C as an option would give us the opportunity to produce 35% of the energy created at the Bennett dam, (upstream from the Site C site) with 5% of the environmental footprint.” He adds that Site C is a long term asset, the longer it lasts the cheaper electricity gets, “Site C in terms of advantages and benefits would allow more reliable power.”
“The second option we looked at was utilizing the natural gas we have in abundance in this province.” Bennett says it is marginally cheaper “Choosing to generate that electricity with natural gas would require us to change the Clean Energy Act.”
He says the third option was independent power producers, “The actual cost of generating electricity is actually coming down, but its important for government to take a close look at this option.”
He says the Ministry is not biased towards one option or another. “this is the most difficult piece of public policy I have ever had to deal with” says Bennett, “We have not made a decision, we are not leaning one way or the other.” He says it will not be an easy decision for his cabinet colleagues, and says it should not be an easy decision because of the nature of the size of this project.
“Bottom line, is we have to continue to have a safe clean reliable electricity system” he says there is also a need to work with Treaty 8 First Nations to ensure that even if they do no fully support the final decision, that they benefit from the decision.
Cabinet is expected to make a decision before the end of November.
Comments
Hydro electric after construction very cheap to operate and maintain.
Natural gas open to future costs of gas and higher operating costs than hydro.
IPP’s expensive contracts for the power produced looking at past contracts.
seamut. You seem to forget that we own the gas. If we cant get it cheap from Private sources, then we form a subsidiary of Hydro and drill our own wells.
I think that they are leaning toward the LNG option, because once they change the Clean Energy Act, then they can allow the LNG Export companies to also use LNG to generate electricity to freeze LNG for export. Hmmmmm.
Build the sucker, getter done, jobs and benefits will be long term for everyone
Gas is subject to world prices. Do you have a crystal ball? Hydro electric is the cheapest long term and the electrical transmission infrastructure is already in place.
Too bad we won’t learn from past experiences and look at the detriments the inflation we are sure to get if this project goes ahead will engender. That inflation, and its effects, and failure in trying to contain both, was, more than anything else, what ended the long running rule of the best government this Province has ever had. That of WAC Bennett. Surely we should have learned from that experience, and if we do decide to go ahead with this project, make sure that we don’t again mistake continually rising wages as a sign of some new found ‘prosperity’ while costs and prices are simultaneously rising faster.
The government has no drills so it makes no difference if they ‘own’ the gas – they are subject to commodity pricing just like any other customer. If the government formed a crown corp to drill natural gas it would end up costing more than they could buy it on the open market.
Socredible so what detriments happened when GMS, peace Canyon, Mica, Revelstoke where built. Abundance of cheap power, is that a detriment?
What is your alternative?
Myself even though its more expensive, new generation nuclear, very small footprint.
construction for this project has already started, all you have to do is go to the peace region and see the work already under way. They have not stepped into the river, but the work camp is already there.
The alternative to site C is to oppose LNG, the only reason BC needs this dam is to provide electricity to export natural gas.
Story in the Financial Post suggests that Ontario’s green solar subsidies will cost consumers there over $8 billion extra over 20 years. They have quite a nightmare back there…
Comments for this article are closed.