Most future capital investment in Burns Lake and the Lakes District is hinged on a BC Hydro transmission infrastructure expansion.
We have seen interest in Burns Lake as a potential site for industry come and go over the years, as a lack of an available power supply continually deters businesses like CORE Biofuel Inc. from setting up shop in the area.
Either the business is willing to take on significant capital costs to address the issue, or they relocate further along the line, where power supply isn’t such an issue.
For businesses it’s an easy decision and our community is left to deal with the limited ability to diversify through economic expansion.
You have to wonder why the Ditni Yoh power generation plant, a partnership between Western BioEnergy and six local First Nation groups keeps getting passed over. The 35 megawatt plant would have produced enough energy to power 33,000 homes, with power going back to the grid.
Transmission infrastructure is restricting local economic growth, but this is certainly not the case for Kitimat.
With three liquefied natural gas projects underway, BC Hydro have snapped into gear to update their infrastructure, specifically with the goal of capturing Shell Canada’s, Canada LNG plant.
If Shell Canada decide to power the plant with electricity, BC Hydro will be at the ready, investing over $1 billion in upgrades and new infrastructure across the North to flow a greater power supply through Northern communities like Burns Lake, straight into Kitimat.
The yes and no answer given by BC Hydro at the Regional District of Bulkley Nechako (RDBN) board meeting, as to whether any potential Lakes District industry would be able to tap into the upgraded lines, seemed to me to be more of a no, than a yes.
The RDBN board was told that further studies have to be done to determine if any power can come off the line and into Burns Lake, and that may be the case, but clearly there is a demand for power across the North.
If BC Hydro is going to upgrade the line, why not upgrade it so that it sufficiently addresses the region’s annual electricity demands and leaves additional opportunities for economic expansion.
The capital cost may be more than the $1.1 billion estimated to supply Canada LNG, but remember that BC Hydro’s 2010/2011 annual report listed the company racking up its biggest ever profit of $589 million last year, up from $447 million the year before.
BC Hydro state their corporate purpose is to provide reliable power, at low cost, for generations. If they continually ignore the need for economic growth in Northern communities like Burns Lake, are they meeting their corporate purpose?
I think not.
