Alberta needs two more high-voltage power lines and it needs them right now, a government-appointed panel recommended Monday. Brian Heidecker of the Critical Transmission Review Committee said with Alberta’s population and business booming, the lines are a must. The next move will be from provincial Energy Minister Ted Morton, who must decide whether to accept the recommendations and, if so, ask the Alberta Utilities Commission to proceed with the lines. The panel was also asked to review Bill 50, and said the government should revert to the old method of public hearings under the Alberta Utilities Commission, or AUC.
The Conference Board of Canada, in a report issued Monday prepared for the Canadian Electricity Association, said that investments to repair, upgrade and expand the nation’s power grids will boost the economy and create a “steady stream of high-paying jobs.” The board looked at growth and asset replacement plans by utilities across Canada including BC Hydro, Hydro-Québec, and Ontario Power Generation. It added up all the numbers, and determined that by 2030, the utilities will collectively spend $347 billion – more than a third of a trillion dollars – on power generation and trans-mission projects. The report said BC Hydro’s biggest outlay will be for investments to expand large scale hydroelectric power generation – on Monday, Premier Christy Clark announced that the province has taken another step toward development of the Site C hydro mega-project on the Peace River. Alberta’s principal focus is on new natural gas generation. Ontario is following the same path, replacing aging coal-fired generation stations with natural gas-fired stations. Quebec and Manitoba, like B.C., will focus on new hydro projects.
