As negotiations near completion, critics say the fine print\u2014not the headline numbers\u2014will determine whether the agreement is a better one<\/p>\n
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Two prominent critics of the rejected 2024 Churchill Falls power agreement between Newfoundland and Labrador and Quebec say Newfoundlanders should not judge any revised deal by the headline numbers, but by focusing on the details that will determine how much value the province ultimately captures from its hydro resources.<\/p>\n
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Doug May, a retired economics professor at Memorial University in St. John\u2019s, NL, and David Vardy, a former chair of Newfoundland and Labrador\u2019s Public Utilities Board, both formally opposed the 2024 memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two provinces and have closely followed the negotiations since.<\/p>\n
With a revised agreement potentially coming as early as next week, they say the public should focus on how much electricity Newfoundland and Labrador keeps, whether it gains the right to sell power to other markets and how much of the project\u2019s economic value ultimately stays in the province.<\/p>\n
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Reports earlier this week suggested the revised agreement could include substantially more generating capacity than was considered in the original MOU, nearly 1,000 megawatts of guaranteed transmission access through Quebec and federal financing for the proposed hydroelectric developments.<\/p>\n
The details have not been made public and Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Tony Wakeham has said negotiations are continuing.<\/p>\n