Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As we all know, this evening will kick off the second Energy Charrette, the second attempt by our government to find a solution to the huge cost that everyone in the NWT, including our government, pays for our energy products. The first charrette, two years ago, began and ended with much fanfare.

The reports of the event suggested we would soon have solutions to our energy woes. How wrong that was, Mr. Speaker. Now, two years later, we are no further ahead. No concrete developments that will solve our energy woes and much further behind in curtailing our spending on energy.

To be fair, there have been a few projects and they have proved successful in reducing energy use, but the gains are small. Instead the government has been throwing money at both the problem and the users.

In the last three fiscal years, including this one, GNWT has spent almost $36 million to subsidize power costs for residents and businesses. On top of that, NTPC has received almost $50 million to keep power rate increases down and to convert buildings to diesel fuel in Inuvik. On top of that, NTPC has not paid any dividend to its one shareholder, the GNWT, for the last three years. That’s another $6 million that they have been gifted.

In the same time period, little seems to have been accomplished to advance cheaper energy. The many, many millions spent by NT Energy Corporation to develop power generation and transmission plans seems to be for naught, as we are now informed that it will be too expensive to follow that plan.

Instead of providing millions of dollars in subsidies, the government should have been looking elsewhere, being innovative. The second charrette comes with assurances, again, of great promises for solutions to solve our high energy costs. I am sceptical that that will be achieved, but I look forward to the results with an open mind.

There are many things we could be doing right now to lower our power costs. Community biomass plants is only one of them. Surely if Europe can have community systems, then we can as well. What is stopping us? Well, I guess that would be initiative and bold thinking from NWT Power Corporation. Something I don’t believe they can do.

The Northern Journal had an editorial, several weeks ago, that summed up our situation very well and offered a solution.

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

---Unanimous consent granted