Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last week on March the 23rd, I had the inspiring opportunity to visit the Taltson hydro dam for the first time. Since visiting the dam, I feel I've begun to truly appreciate and better understand the need for further investment into this type of infrastructure for the future. It has occurred to me that this expansion project is likely one of the most important infrastructure projects that the NWT has ever considered.
Mr. Speaker, once built and even through construction, this expansion project will benefit all residents of the Northwest Territories. Not only will this project connect the Taltson and the North Slave hydro systems and not only will it connect the NWT electrical grid to the southern power grid, but it will also help to supply future electricity demands for the NWT, and will do so in a clean, non-polluting fashion, which is crucial in our efforts to de-carbonize our economy by 2015.
Mr. Speaker, we need to be thinking long-term, which, in our context as a country, that's transitioning into low carbon digital and information technology-based economy. A key factory we must consider for this future economy includes the need to supply future energy demand for our society's everyday activities. For example, data centres have become an essential part of our modern economy. Data centres are considered the brains of the Internet as they help facilitate the core functions of information services such as storing, processing, and communication of data. As demand for mobile phone and Internet traffic increases, so does the need for data centres, which, in turn, requires electricity to power. Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement?
---Unanimous consent granted
