Yeah, thank you. You know, and I get that's the nature of these; you got to do a lot of planning work and you got to spend a few million dollars. I mean, we've been spending -- I think since the 16th Assembly we've been spending a few million dollars every budget on Taltson to do some engineering assessments. And I get the project is kind of evolving and it's, you know, no longer going to the diamond mines and it's relying on a bunch of metal mines. I know Pine Point in their preliminary economic assessment says they're buying power from the Taltson at 11 cents a kilowatt hour, which is very, very cheap compared to everyone else. Do we have any idea what we would sell the power at Taltson for? Is it going to be significantly lower than everyone else in the territory pays? Thank you.

Thank you. Minister of Finance.

Thank you, Madam Chair. So if I recall, there are estimates and ranges built in to the business case that depend upon what the market may be doing at any one time. I don't, in front of me, have whether it's above or below 11 cents.

Madam Chair, if I might just -- and I am conscious of time, but if I might just venture, I think if the MOU and steering committee partners can make a decision on the routing and then be able to say here is the project. The challenge we are in is we don't quite have the project and that's where the planning of the money that's being requested is to get to that point where we can come forward and say, here's the project. I fully agree that when you can say here is the project, that should be then part of fulsome debate here before the final big dollars are actually agreed to. I'll stop so the Member can ask me one more. Thank you.

Thank you. Member for Yellowknife North. A quick one.

Yeah, I understand we've been asking the federal government for money for this so they must have a guess of what it's going to cost. And actually at one point, the Minister Vandal said that the money was very close. Like, he almost said he was giving it to us. I think it was coming out of the Canada Infrastructure Bank. So I'm assuming the feds know how much the project costs. And I mean, I don't know how they can if we haven't picked a route but they must know something. Are the feds giving us any money for Taltson any time soon, or did that kind of disappear with this whole first we have to go through the MOU process? Thank you.

Thank you. Minister of Finance.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, they are quite keen on the project. The project has a sense of -- so many senses of being chicken and egg, whether it's with the mineral resource industry or whether it's with the federal government. It is difficult to make a decision amongst ourselves and the Indigenous governments within the territories and say here's our project and go to the federal government without knowing what the federal government is going to put on the table or just how much at the table they're going to sit. So those are two challenges, I think, with this. Again, I want to emphasize that when there is a project with a route and a commercial structure to be proposed of who is involved, it won't proceed and can't proceed until this House approves that money to go and to be spent. And at that point, there will be a project to be debated. There are, of course, earlier points in that decision-making. I'm, you know, mentioning some of them now, routing for example. But, again, given that the project partners are Indigenous governments, that's where the time is being spent right now is there with the notion that the -- or with the knowledge that the project would then come forward here. Right now, all of the funding is 100 percent federal, and wouldn't it be wonderful if it stays that way. Thank you.

Thank you, Minister. And with that, Members, we're going to take a short break to give our interpreters some time to rest. They're the ones that are constantly speaking while we get to take turns. Thank you.

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I now call Committee of the Whole back to order. Committee, we are on Infrastructure, energy and strategic initiatives. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you. Minister of Finance.

This will go to ADM Brennan, please.

ADM Brennan.

Thank you. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Madam Chair. So this seems to be something different than the last time we were sitting here talking about this project because at that point, it was just a one standalone supplementary LNG, and we were told that it would be going back to get a full amount of money for the LNG plant. When did this change to become a co-locate of the old diesel plant with the new LNG component. Thank you.

Thank you. ADM Brennan

Thank you. Member for Great Slave.

Thank you, Madam Chair; it's been a long week. That's pretty broad, in 2022, and just makes me think that perhaps it was not communicated to us properly in the last sitting, what was actually going on with this project. I struggle to see why we are continuing to waffle or go back and forth on what's happening here given that, really, our increased flooding and climate change driven emergencies are likely going to mean that that diesel plant where it is now is no longer going to be useable. Can the Minister or the department speak to the fact of why a decision was made not to move to full LNG and remove the diesel component all together? Thank you.

Thank you. Minister of Finance.

Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, I'm going to go to ADM Brennan one more time and it certainly can -- yes, let's do that for now, please.

ADM Brennan