Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, I am generally satisfied with the direction the Power Corporation is taking. I think the agreement with the Dogrib Nation was a very important agreement. It can provide the basis for future agreements between this government and aboriginal organizations and regions. It has brought the Dogrib people in as partners in taking advantage of future economic opportunities. I know that the next phase of the hydro system, hopefully, will bring more hydro into Yellowknife.
My one concern -- and I know that it is one that is shared by the Minister and the staff --I s that Yellowknife is still far too dependent on diesel fuel. I would like to see, in the future, that more hydro is brought into Yellowknife and that Yellowknife is guaranteed secure access to hydro power, It is obviously going to take some time, but it is one of those tremendous opportunities out there where you have a developed market here in Yellowknife, we still have a fair amount of hydro potential in the Dogrib area and I see where one can definitely work together with the other to provide opportunities for everybody.
So I have publicly stated that I think the government made a wise decision in entering into that first agreement and to continue to work on future agreements. I, for one, will have no problem supporting the loan guarantee bill that, I believe, we will be dealing with this session. It is a important component of the financial arrangement.
A second point, Mr. Chairman, I was pleased to hear that, at least at this time, the government is backing off privatization. I think it is something that the next government can look at. They can look at the implications of division on the Power Corporation and look at the many complex issues that surround the whole issue of privatization of the Power
Corporation. So, I support the government's decision in not dealing with it at this particular time.
One area where I did have some problems with the Power Corporation, and I made those concerns public, was the whole area of the low-water surcharge and the Snare system. It has been my feeling that the Power Corporation definitely should have had some sort of a stabilization fund set up. As I understand it, the Public Utilities Board has now recommended that the Power Corporation do just that and I will ask the Minister responsible a specific question on that when I finish my opening comments.
Power costs in Yellowknife and in the territories are very, very high. In the long-term, we all have to keep in mind that the cost of our power, no matter how you may subsidize it, no matter that communities may not all be aware of exactly how much it is costing, it is a real cost to doing business in the north. It is a very important component of the Northwest Territories becoming economically competitive with other regions in Canada.
I think the move towards user-pay rate zones will be controversial, but it is necessary. Every power consumer, even if they are subsidized, has to actually see how much the cost of providing that service is. If we continue to hide the real costs through a number of direct and indirect subsidies, at the end of the day we are only fooling ourselves. There is a real cost in providing power. Power is a very important component of our economic infrastructure and economic development potential. And we have to get a lot more pragmatic and realistic about what the real costs are. So I definitely support the Power Corporation as they move down that politically tough road. It is a road that we definitely have to go along.
Another area that I see that has tremendous potential for the Power Corporation is the whole area of mining. As it stands now, a lot of the power supplied by mining, for mining, uses very expensive diesel fuel. There is a real possibility that a lot of the mining that could be coming on stream in the next number of years could actually have their fuel supplied from offshore. Now, it we in the Northwest Territories are serious about taking advantage of opportunities created by mining, there is no doubt in my mind that we have to seriously look at the power potential there; what is the potential for hydro, what can the Power Corporation do to provide some of the needs of the mining industry in the years to come. I see that as a tremendous opportunity for the Power Corporation. I also see it as an opportunity that I would like to see the Power Corporation gearing up for right now. Making sure that they have in place the necessary expertise to take full advantage of whatever opportunities will be coming down the pipe in the years to come.
With that, Mr. Chairman, except for a couple of serious concerns, I really do hope to see some kind of a stabilization fund set up. I hope to see that future discussions about privatization will take into account all of the many difficult issues that surround it. Beside those two, I am generally quite satisfied with the direction the Power Corporation is taking. Over the past number of years we have evolved away from the quintessential federal government Crown corporation which we originally inherited, which was noted more for its inefficiency than for anything else. We have adopted, over the past number of years, some strong private business principles. And we are moving towards the day when the Power Corporation can be a much bigger player in the economic fortunes of the Northwest Territories than it is today. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.