Peckford calls for outside Muskrat Falls review

Former Newfoundland and Labrador premier Brian Peckford says the controversial Muskrat Falls hydroelectric megaproject should not be allowed to proceed until it is vetted by a panel of internationally recognized experts.

In an open letter to current premier Kathy Dunderdale, Peckford says the Public Utilities Board — which opened hearings last week into the $6.2-billion plan to tap Muskrat Falls on Labrador's Churchill River — does not have the expertise to judge the project.

"Let me be clear. It may be the best project ever," wrote Peckford in a letter distributed Tuesday. [Read a copy of the text here.]

"But the project has to be tested objectively, especially given the size and complexity of the project, and the severe financial implications on the province if the contingency identified is insufficient."

Dunderdale has been coming under increasing scrutiny for not extending a March 31 deadline that has been imposed on the PUB for its review of Muskrat Falls.

Dunderdale turned down a request made last month by PUB chair Andy Wells, who said proponent Nalcor has not supplied documentation in a timely way.

Project 'thrust' in PUB's lap

Peckford, who governed the province from 1979 to 1989, said the PUB is not up to the task in the first place.

'People talk of legacy. Let’s be doubly sure that only water runs down to the Lower part of the Churchill River and not the legacy of the Upper' —Brian Peckford

"It is unfortunate that the project was referred to the PUB. Frankly, the board and its staff do not have the expertise to evaluate this project," wrote Peckford. "It is really unfair to the board to thrust this project in their lap."

Peckford said the provincial government should consider all its energy options, including letting the clock run out on a 65-year contract with Hydro-Quebec on Upper Churchill power, which will expire in 2041.

"Is the province so focused on the Lower Churchill now that it is failing to see the long term benefits (finally) of the Upper Churchill Contract expiration, and hence the possibility of a pristine Lower Churchill basin? I don’t know, but I think it needs to be fully and independently explored," Peckford wrote.

Peckford said the government should rethink its approach to the Lower Churchill review entirely, "change these conditions and allow for a full, independent, transparent, expert analysis to be undertaken."

Peckford said a key goal for Newfoundland and Labrador is to get to 2041 to take advantage of the Upper Churchill.

As for the current Lower Churchill proposal, Peckford said people are anxious about cost overruns, which he said are standard on projects of such magnitude.

"Everyone wants to believe this is the best way to proceed, but some are unsure that the level of certainty necessary for a project of this size to proceed has been established," he wrote.

"People talk of legacy. Let’s be doubly sure that only water runs down to the Lower part of the Churchill River and not the legacy of the Upper."