Mr. Speaker, I have a return to an oral question asked by Mrs. Marie-Jewell on November 25, in terms of the completion of the power line study.
Mr. Speaker, in September, 1992, the Northwest Territories Power Corporation did a review of the power supply options for the North Slave region. This review resulted in a statement by the corporation and the Dogrib Treaty II Council on September 8, 1992, outlining an agreement to negotiate acceptable terms for development of hydro sites in the Dogrib region.
Transmission of the excess power supply from the Taltson Dam site to Yellowknife was part of this review. An overland transmission line to the west of Great Slave Lake and a link under the lake were also considered.
The corporation has had discussions with the town of Fort Smith related to electric heat generation and a hydrogen generating proposal. In addition, Northland Utilities Limited has approached the corporation with a proposal for the supply of power to Fort Fitzgerald.
Subject to the current negotiations, a review of the various options for the utilization of the excess capacity in the Fort Smith area will result in recommendations for the corporation's board of directors by spring, 1993. The review will include input from interested parties in the Fort Smith area and will take into consideration future power supply requirements.