Hydro link to Minnesota faces delay if NEB gets wish

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This article was published 04/11/2017 (2952 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The start of construction of a $453-million hydroelectricity transmission line connecting Manitoba and Minnesota could be delayed if the Canadian federal cabinet accepts a recommendation from the National Energy Board.

Earlier this week, the NEB recommended a potentially lengthy “certificate” approval process be used, rather than the simpler “permit” process Manitoba Hydro had requested.

Under the certificate process, the federal regulator would conduct a public hearing and consider broad public issues in weighing the merits of the project. Its recommendations then would go to the federal cabinet for approval. Under federal law, the process must be concluded within 15 months.

Manitoba once hoped it would have received regulatory approval by now to begin construction in mid-December on the 213-kilometre, 500-kilovolt transmission line. The line would run from the Dorsey converter station northwest of Winnipeg to the village of Piney at the American border, where it would link up with a United States transmission line. 

The Manitoba-Minnesota Transmission Project (MMTP) would give Manitoba Hydro greater capacity to market electricity to the United States and allow the province, in emergencies, to receive electricity from the U.S.

The Crown corporation hopes to have the line in service by May 31, 2020.

It’s unclear how long a certificate process involving public hearings might delay the project. While the process is guaranteed to take no longer than 15 months, the NEB decides when to start the clock. That occurs when it is satisfied Manitoba Hydro’s application is complete.

The Crown corporation submitted its application last December, but key data — such as a report from the Manitoba Clean Environment Commission — wasn’t received until last month. 

In August, Hydro president Kelvin Shepherd wrote to federal Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr expressing concern about a possible certificate process. He said if the NEB duplicated work already done by the Clean Environment Commission, that could cause “unwarranted (project) delays.”

The CEC held an 18-day hearing on MMTP this past spring, with public sessions in Winnipeg and La Broquerie.

In his letter to Carr, Shepherd noted groups that have applied to participate in the NEB process include those that were funded to participate in the CEC hearing, including Peguis First Nation, Manitoba Metis Federation, Southern Chiefs Organization, Manitoba Wildlands and Southeast Stakeholders Coalition.

“A timely, efficient review is also necessary to co-ordinate construction of the project with Minnesota Power, who received their approval to begin construction (of a connecting line on the U.S. side of the border) in December of 2016,” Shepherd wrote.

Under the approval process favoured by Hydro, the NEB would conduct a technical assessment of the project and issue a permit on its own without the need to consult the federal cabinet. There would be no public hearing. Under the certificate process, the NEB would make a report to the federal cabinet, which would then decide its fate and set conditions.

The NEB said this week it recommended a more elaborate process after analyzing recent Supreme Court of Canada rulings regarding the duty to consult Indigenous communities and after examining the CEC’s report on the proposed project.

Last month, the CEC urged Manitoba Hydro to avoid or limit any effects its projects have on areas important to Indigenous people. The commission recommended the provincial Sustainable Development Department work closely with Hydro and the public to monitor the effects of the new transmission line for at least 10 years.

Mike Sutherland, director of special projects for Peguis First Nation, said he would welcome a full NEB hearing.

Peguis is concerned about the potential impact of the proposed transmission line on wildlife, particularly the dwindling moose population. The First Nation’s traditional territories extend well south of the reserve in Manitoba’s Interlake region.

“We know the project is going to happen,” Sutherland said. “We just want to make sure that the footprint left on the land is going to be minimal.”

Since the federal government has yet to determine which approval process it will follow, Manitoba Hydro was loath to speculate on possible project delays.

“Manitoba Hydro does not have any information at this point in time that would change the estimated in-service date (May-June 2020) for the Manitoba-Minnesota Transmission Project,” spokesman Bruce Owen said in an email Thursday.

He noted in its letter to Carr requesting a certificate process, the NEB requested Ottawa make its decision “in an expedited manner” so the review process can begin.

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca