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By George Myrer
Premier Tim Houston’s optimism for what the Wind West project can deliver for Nova Scotians is as high as the offshore winds.
The Wind West Atlantic Energy project was shortlisted by the federal government’s Major Projects Office for future fast-tracking last week.
The project, which is expected to produce enough energy to meet up to 27 per cent of Canada’s total demand, will be an economic windfall across many sectors and help stabilize power rates, Houston said after a cabinet meeting Thursday.
“I am promoting this as an absolutely remarkable opportunity for our province,” said Houston. “Power rates are one aspect of it, but the economic activity that this will generate for our province — tens of billions of dollars to build the transmission, tens of billions of dollars to build the generation — that is all economic activity.
“That is thousands of jobs across every type of profession that you can think of, from engineering to catering to every possible trade. Jobs in our ports, jobs in our construction industry. This is an economic opportunity for our province that is completely breathtaking, generational changing. I am excited about that.”
In a news release last week, Houston said the buildout phase would provide significant economic development benefits to Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada by purchasing millions of tonnes of materials and by contracting design, engineering, transmission management and construction opportunities for new high-voltage lines.
Beyond the construction phase, it is expected to provide long-term operations and maintenance contracts, modernize and enhance ports and marine infrastructure, and unlock energy abundance for new industries across Canada.
Royalty to be negotiated
When asked what royalty would be collected by the province on future production, Houston said the number would be negotiated.
“That royalty will help build schools, help build hospitals, help pay for doctors, help fund social programs and support Nova Scotians in a number of ways.
“Ultimately, there will be a negotiation when it is all said and done, because at the end of the da, the cost of the power is a significant thing.”
The Canadian Press has reported the capital cost of the project at $60 billion, with the building of the wind farms accounting for $40 billion and transmission lines another $20 billion. The province is working with the government of Canada to revive the previously proposed Clean Electricity Investment Tax Credit and confirm access to the Canada Infrastructure Bank’s low-interest financing to help pay for the project.
A project of that magnitude is needed for Nova Scotia, said Houston, who cited the province’s last-place ranking for gross domestic product per capita in North America.
“We have the worst economy in North America, 60 out of 60 if you look at GDP per capita,” said Houston. “This will produce an incredible amount of economic activity, improve our GDP significantly, and when that happens, the government has more opportunities to support Nova Scotians in the ways it wants to.”
In June, the province and the federal government jointly designated the areas of French Bank, Middle Bank and Sable Island Bank off mainland Nova Scotia and Sydney Bight off Cape Breton for possible wind development. The four designated areas are French Bank, 3,125 square kilometres; Middle Bank, 2,289; Sable Island Bank, by far the largest, at 5,850 square kilometres; and Sydney Bight, 1,285.
Houston said he plans to speak with Tim Hodgson, the federal minister of energy and natural resources, about the rate of the investment tax credit and other details to get the project, the first of its kind in Canada, moving.
“The ambitions of the federal government are aligned with us,” said Houston. “They feel a sense of urgency on these projects; we certainly feel it. We have done a lot of incredible work on Wind West. We are working at an incredible pace on this project.”
Houston said offshore Nova Scotia has among the highest sustained wind speeds in the world, the right water depth and a stable sea bed for setting down towers for wind turbines.
“It’s the best winds in the world.”
Houston said there is a lot of interest, but towers won’t go up overnight.
A Nova Scotia government report states that Wind West offers an achievable path to five gigawatts of offshore wind generation, based on proven development models from Europe, the United States and Asia. The timeline in the report says the project could be operational by 2033.
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