Nova Scotians appear happier with the Emera-Muskrat deal than Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are told their power bills will rise astronomically but even without Muskrat that would happen anyway. This has not been proven and is based on significant speculation and non-facts.
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are told without Muskrat Falls development the Island would run out of power in the next few years. This has not been proven and follows a series of incorrect predictions on power supply over the past 30 years. Further as the population continues to decrease and industry continues to fold the real facts defy and are in contradiction to the predictions of government. Energy efficiencies are also not considered appropriately.
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are told Muskrat is the "best" option for power for the Island. This has been questioned successfully by many experienced and knowledgeable people - yet there is no believable response from Nalcor or government.
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are told that Nova Scotia will receive cheaper power from the project than they will. Somehow this is necessary to build markets. Why would any government charge its own people double to supply other jurisdictions with subsidized power?
Labradorians are told that bringing the power to the Island to remove some thermal generation is affordable but bringing it to other parts of Labrador is not affordable. In other words Labrador resources robbed again without equitable treatment.
The massive project will not generate significant numbers of long-term high paying jobs for Labradorians but may provide those jobs instead to Nova Scotia.
The project is touted by the government to be a solution to the longstanding issues regarding wheeling power through Quebec. Yet the costly lines being built will not have the capacity to take Gull Island power. That's when Dunderdale and Martin start talking about the right to go through Quebec again. This defeats the first stated objective of avoiding Quebec.
If a federal loan guarantee is available for the Muskrat project - and markets exist in the US and Canada - why do we need to give free power to Emera for a line? Let the market pay for it not the residents of Newfoundland and Labrador.
The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has not demonstrated that they were unable to achieve a deal with an industrial customer in Labrador for the power development. This despite the aluminum smelter deals in Quebec, Iceland, Greenland, Russia, Norway etc. based on hydro-electric developments.
There are many red flags - more than were obvious during the Upper Churchill yet some 35 years later - this government is willing to do a deal that is worse than the Upper Churchill. Stop this deal - stop the Dunderdale government.
Don`t forget - this government has been unable to forecast oil and revenues accurately on an annual basis -let alone 20 years out.
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