Defence Minister Questions Power Deal

From the CBC news

Defence Minister Peter MacKay, the senior cabinet minister for Atlantic Canada, is questioning the wisdom of the New Brunswick-Quebec power deal.

MacKay told CBC News on Friday that the deal is a "short-term fix" for the region's green energy needs.

"I think a larger view of that would tell us perhaps there are better alternatives to what the Quebec-New Brunswick deal has put forward," MacKay said in Halifax.

"Of course, the government of New Brunswick, in pursuing this, I believe still [has] a lot of consultation, a lot of information to share, and a little bit of explaining to do. So, I'm keeping my powder dry as far as my personal views on this. I think we could use, in my opinion, a broader examination of green energy sources for Atlantic Canada."

On Oct. 29, Quebec and New Brunswick announced they had reached a proposed deal that would see Hydro-Québec buy the majority of NB Power's assets for $4.8 billion.

"Taxpayers and ratepayers are the big winners today," New Brunswick Premier Shawn Graham said on the day of the announcement. "NB Power's $4.8-billion debt will no longer be a risk for our future generations.

Premiers want written guarantee
Since then, Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter and Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams have argued that Quebec could block the transmission of competing sources of electricity to the United States.

Both premiers have demanded a written guarantee that New Brunswick will allow power from other Atlantic provinces to flow into markets in New England.

MacKay did not refer directly to their objections but he pointed out that the region is developing its own sources of renewable energy, including Fundy tidal power and the proposed Lower Churchill Project in Labrador.

“There are many, many sources of green energy that could be bundled, put in an energy grid for the benefit of our people, our province, and arguably for export to the eastern seaboard of the United States," he said.

“I think a larger view of that would tell us that perhaps there are better alternatives to what the Quebec-New Brunswick deal has put forward. But, in short, we need more information about that, we need a more inclusive discussion and I think Atlantic Canada’s interest would be better served with that type of discussion.”

Graham said Friday that he has been assured by Prime Minister Stephen Harper that Ottawa was staying out of the issue.

Harper joined Graham at a ceremony in St. Stephen, inaugurating a new border crossing between Maine and New Brunswick.

Not Ottawa's business, Graham says
"In my discussions with him, Prime Minister Harper was very clear that the energy sector is the responsibility of the provincial government," Graham said. "When the final deal is brought forward you are going to see opportunities for all of the Atlantic provinces to benefit."

The NB Power deal is scheduled to be finalized in March.

In December, a junior federal cabinet minister said Ottawa is closely watching the debate on the sale of NB Power to Hydro-Québec.

But Keith Ashfield, the minister of state responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, said he wasn't sure whether the federal government has the ability to intervene.