Lower Churchill project progressing smoothly
Posted Mar 17, 2011 05:52:57 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The Muskrat Falls hydro development project is steaming ahead in Labrador.
It was the major focus of the most recent Offshore/Onshore Technologies Association of Nova Scotia luncheon, where some major players in the deal touted its benefits.
The entire Lower Churchill project will feature a transmission line to St. John’s Newfoundland and another link to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick that will eventually tie into Maine and other parts of the U.S.
Premier Darrell Dexter says the project will benefit Nova Scotia greatly.
“From it you will get employment, you will get power, you will get research and development,” he said “As I’ve said in the past, this is our Canadian Pacific Railway.”
President and CEO of Emera, Chris Huskilson, says the province could also see a huge employment boost.
“This whole project is going to create 45,000 person years of work,” he said. “That’s going to mean we’re going to see a lot of people who are currently working elsewhere in Canada or elsewhere in the world, come back to Nova Scotia, to Newfoundland to the Atlantic in general and work here again.”
Vice President of finance and CFO of Newfoundland’s Nalcor Energy, Derrick Sturge says another benefit is that the energy generation comes from water.
“The water is free so your cost really is building the plant,” he said. “Once you have it built you have rate stability. I think the real benefit to the customer is you’ve got that rate certainty, you’ve taken that volatility out but more importantly you’re doing it with clean energy.”
Muskrat Falls should start generating power by 2016 and be up to full power by 2017.
