I was hoping for a bit more razzle-dazzle to really sell this.

---Laughter

Maybe if the Minister could be a little bit more descriptive. What can the public expect to discuss at this meeting?

This will be the second public meeting we've had. We had a meeting in December in Fort Smith and people raised a wide variety of matters, including engagement with the government, access to data, so I expect that those types of issues will be brought up in Hay River. I can advise that we will be visiting many of the other communities in the next month or two, so I expect a wide variety of matters to be discussed, open government, engagement, access to information being only three.

I know that the policy is still in development, hence the public engagement, but how does the Minister envision this policy rolling out? How will it look when it's on the ground and it is being used by the departments?

I am sure it will look great. I don't think we went into this with any preconceptions as to what the ultimate policy would look like. We looked at policies from other jurisdictions, but we really are engaging with the public, seeking their input, which will make the policy as good as possible.

Oral questions. Member for Hay River North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister has sold me. I will be there at the meeting on Monday night. My question is: when can we expect the policy to be completed, but, more importantly, when can we expect this to be implemented? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It is in due course. Mr. Speaker, I am very glad that the Member opposite will be there on Monday. This may not be an item that engages the general public, so I am looking forward to informed information both from the Member opposite and for the people of Hay River. We have heard from some. We are expecting perhaps a dozen at least. As I said, we are going on quite a road show for this project. We are visiting a large number of communities. I would hope that we would have the policy completed by mid-year and shortly after were it implemented. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Earlier I mentioned alternative energy options as we are proceeding forward with the ten-year strategic plan here. My question is to the Minister of ITI. I would say let's dust off the old studies that were done by EBA here in 2010 and realize the Sahtu potential as identified in the study. Will the Minister of ITI look at alternative energy sources in the Sahtu? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The short answer is yes. With our energy strategy that we are going around the Northwest Territories, we are willing to look at all input so we can make an informed decision on how we move forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

My next question is leading up to, with the same department, the same Minister of DPW, in preparation for the upcoming buildings that are going to be looked at hopefully within the next five years for the health centre in Tulita, will the Minister support a pilot project here on the R and D phase of the community of Tulita in conjunction with the plans for the Tulita health centre?

I would have to get more details from the Member on what he is asking.

I am specifically looking at the heat source beneath the community of Tulita. The viability of geothermal heat was identified in the study of 2010. That might be an alternative source to eliminate consumption of fuel for the Tulita health centre. My question is added on to the previous one.

We would have to look at the economies of scales and do a business plan compared to other sources of heat for the facility, be it biomass or diesel fuel or solar, plus all the regular stuff that we are looking at in our energy strategy. That is something we can have a look at, but it would be based on cost of supplying energy and what makes good sense and business case.

Masi. Oral questions. Member for Sahtu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I welcome the comments made leading up to a date of collaboration. I look forward to some suggestions coming back from the Minister on dates available for this R and D session. Thank you.

I hear that as a general comment. Oral questions. Member for Mackenzie Delta.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in follow-up to my Member's statement I have a few questions for the Minister of Transportation. I would like the ask the Minister: what is the life span of the Louis Cardinal ferry and what is the plan for its ends of life? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Masi. Minister of Transportation.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The particular ferry, the Louis Cardinal ferry, is a short-trip, fresh water vessel. They tend to operate for many years. Right across the country, anything that is operating in fresh water tends to get 60-plus years of operation out of it. The other side of that vessel, though, is the mechanical side of it and the hull maintenance. Those things have a much shorter maintenance life, but we have a scheduled maintenance plan, when to undertake those required rehabilitations, and we continue to do so.

He asked another question. There were actually two questions in there. The Louis Cardinal is expected to operate, we suspect, for at least another 15 years. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

How much would it cost to retrofit the Merv Hardie compared to acquiring a new vessel?

The Merv Hardie ferry is a little different beast than the Louis Cardinal. It has a different size and shape to it, and the hull is not actually suitable to replace the Louis Cardinal ferry. The Louis Cardinal is actually a shallow-draft vessel that is a little different in river conditions than it was here on the Fort Providence section. No amount of money would ever fix that thing to make it viable to use it for the Louis Cardinal.

With that being said, to replace the Louis Cardinal ferry in today's dollars, if we were to do it right today, it would cost this government roughly between $10 and $15 million to replace that ferry.

The future prosperity of the Northwest Territories depends on a strong transportation system. How does the Northwest Territories transportation strategy consider their placement of ferries?