Province replaces all but one member of Manitoba Hydro board

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This article was published 04/12/2023 (681 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The NDP government has overhauled Manitoba Hydro’s board of directors, appointing a former MPI boss to steer the utility toward meeting its aggressive energy and emissions targets.

Finance Minister Adrien Sala announced the Crown corporation’s nine new directors Monday.

Ben Graham, a former chief executive officer at Manitoba Public Insurance and current president of Manitoba Blue Cross, was named board chairman.

“We think the talent and skills he’ll bring forward will help us to drive ahead the changes we want to see happen at Hydro,” said Sala, minister responsible for the Crown utility.

Graham was at the helm of MPI between February 2018 and October 2020, at which time he left the public auto insurer for the private sector.

During his tenure at MPI, the Australian expat pushed for insurance products to be available for purchase online, leading to a drawn-out dispute with the Insurance Brokers Association of Manitoba.

Under his watch, MPI also met a government directive to add more cash to its stabilization reserve and achieved an overall 8.8 per cent rate decrease in the 2021-22 insurance year.

Sala described Graham as a respected business person who understands how the province’s Crown corporations function and has experience with the Public Utilities Board.

“We’re taking a different direction, we need new leadership, and this new board will help to lead that new direction,” Sala said.

The finance minister also issued a mandate letter to the board directing it to develop a plan to freeze electricity rates for one year; create a strategy to generate hydrogen during off-peak hours; roll out geothermal energy retrofits in collaboration with Efficiency Manitoba; and establish an Indigenous Advisory Circle.

The board was also tasked with coming up with a plan to align Manitoba Hydro with the NDP’s target to achieve a net-zero energy grid by 2035 — a goal the Crown corporation’s chief executive officer previously described as not feasible.

In an interview, Graham described the executive team at Hydro and the previous board as very strong, and said he looks forward to learning from outgoing board chairman Edward Kennedy about the utility’s strengths and challenges.

Kennedy, who who was appointed by the former PC government in June 2022, declined to comment Monday.

“I’m hoping I can provide some valuable input to the executive team at Hydro, and there’s going to be a lot of learning from my end,” Graham said Monday.

“I see myself as an important conduit between the government’s mandate that’s been delivered to me and ensuring that the executive team at Hydro are delivering on that mandate.”

Decarbonization and meeting the province’s future energy needs will require collaboration and an open mind about how to add power to the grid, including decentralized energy, Graham added.

He also emphasized the importance of the PUB in regulating energy prices and said he hopes to continue to build on the utility’s relationship with the independent rate-setter.

According to the mandate letter, the board’s goal is to “provide the oversight, vision and sound fiscal stewardship to harness the untapped potential of Manitoba Hydro so we can keep rates low for families, support our province’s economic development potential, advance Indigenous reconciliation and move Manitoba into a clean energy future.”

It has also been told to review spending by the corporation’s executives.

Sala said that direction signals “fiscal responsibility is critical for us as a new government.”

PC MLA Grant Jackson said the NDP government is “missing the mountain for the molehill” and should be focused on Hydro’s debt, if fiscal responsibility is the priority.

“That is the biggest challenge that’s facing Manitoba Hydro is servicing that debt and the fact that it isn’t referenced in the mandate letter is very concerning to me,” the Opposition critic said.

“Hydro is north of $24 billion in debt and that is going to continue to strain the utility’s ability to provide low-cost, high-quality electricity services to Manitobans.”

All but one of the board members previously appointed by the former PC government have had their positions revoked.

The new directors include:

— Jamie Wilson, Red River College Polytechnic vice-president of Indigenous strategy, research and business development;

— Tom Akerstream, former Power Smart manager and adviser at Hydro;

— Joy Cramer, Southern Chiefs’ Organization chief executive officer;

— Vernon Kalmakoff, First Nations entrepreneur in the Westman region;

— Paul Moist, former national president at Canadian Union of Public Employees;

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— Mike Spence, mayor of Churchill;

— Leslie Turnbull, senior adviser and former principal of Viewpoints Research.

Sala has also appointed Thompson MLA Eric Redhead to sit on the board as a government representative.

Nicole Chabot, vice-president of L. Chabot Enterprises, is the sole returning board member. Sala said Chabot will provide continuity for the board during the transition period.

danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca