Former political leaders, officials and top bureaucrats are slamming the new Churchill Falls memorandum of understanding, calling it a “giveaway” for Newfoundland and Labrador’s resources.
The agreement would see the province take in more than $225 billion over the deal’s 50-year lifetime and increase power output on the Churchill River by nearly 4,000 megawatts — largely powered by the development of the Gull Island hydroelectric project.
In a letter dated Aug. 26 and addressed to Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro’s board, a critic group is alleging the deal isn’t favourable to Newfoundland and Labrador and the terms, at half a century, is too long. The group wants the MOU to be tossed and a new agreement struck on better terms.
“In our opinion, the N.L. Hydro board should resign if they do not stop this giveaway of our people’s hydropower recipes,” the letter reads.
The signatories include former PC premier Danny Williams, former Hydro director Rollie Martin, former NDP leader Jack Harris, former federal Liberal cabinet minister Roger Simmons, former PC leader Ches Crosbie and other former senior officials and business leaders.
Crosbie said the Liberal government is making a mistake like the one in 1969, when the province signed its initial deal with Quebec for power flowing from Churchill Falls. That deal has long been a touchy subject among residents, some of whom have resented the move and considered it lopsided ever since.
“There’s no indication they stepped back and tried to get out of the tunnel vision that Quebec imposed on them,” Crosbie told CBC News.
The letter is dated a day after a visit from Quebec Premier François Legault, where he met with Premier John Hogan to discuss the new agreement, expected to be finalized by April 2026.
Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro spokesperson Jill Pitcher said the Crown corporation understands the importance of the agreement being worked on and they have done their due diligence.
“Hydro, nor its board, would ever agree to a deal that would hit replay on the past 50 years,” she wrote in an email.
“We reiterate, the MOU requires pricing for Churchill Falls power be developed using several market indices, negotiated to ensure prices reflect changes in the market value and fairness over the whole term.”
Not political, says former premier
Williams released his own letter publicly on Thursday, addressed to Hogan’s office.
He said his criticisms of the MOU are not influenced by politics, but about his concerns about the future wellbeing of the province.
“I hope you would agree that this matter deserves meaningful consideration, particularly in light of the vast number of like-minded businesspeople, former Hydro officials, bureaucrats and people of all political stripes and backgrounds, who have emerged to offer sincere critiques of the MOU,” Williams wrote.
Williams championed the overbudget and delayed Muskrat Falls hydroelectric project when he was premier.
He said he also wrote to Prime Minister Mark Carney to voice his concerns, stating that the current Churchill Falls MOU is “extraordinarily lopsided” to favour Quebec. Williams said he was told to contact Hogan directly.
Williams concluded his letter by asking for a meeting with Hogan.
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