Liberals would call inquiry into orimulsion 'fiasco'

New Brunswick Liberal leader Shawn Graham is promising to call a public inquiry into NB Power's botched deal to supply cheap Venezuelan fuel to a Saint John power plant.

In 2002, thepower companyspent hundreds of millions renovating the ColesonCove power plant to burnVenezuelan orimulsionfuel. The plant had previously burned bunker C oil.

When the Venezuelan government-owned fuel company refused to selltherelatively inexpensivefuelto New Brunswick,NB Power launched a $2 billion lawsuit, claimingit had a signed supply contract.The fuel company disagreed, and the dispute is now making its way through the courts in New York.

Graham says NB Power lost $2.2 billion on the deal and believes taxpayers deserve an explanation. "We're committed today to bring forward the measures to protect New Brunswick ratepayers. It was this government that created the orimulsion fiasco, the most costly fiasco in our province's history."

Grahamsays a Liberal government would appoint aretired judge to holdan inquiry into the deal, which would report to the public by March 2007.

But Conservative leader Bernard Lord says his opponents are exaggerating the amount of money lost in the deal, and since the fiasco, they've made NB Power more accountable for its decisions.

Lord says his government changed the board and the CEOat NB Power once problems with the deal surfaced. He says Graham is simply being negative and NB Power iscontinuing its case against the Venezuelancorporation it believed was going to ship the fuel.

"NB Power has a case against the Venezuelan company and the lawyers of NB Power tell them they have a case and that's why our mandate is to pursue the case," Lord said. "Unfortunately, the Liberals seem to want to be on the side of Venezuela. I want to be on the side of New Brunswick."