Minister asks RNC to investigate Nalcor executives, public officials over Muskrat Falls

No members of the Nalcor Energy brass will lose their jobs over the Muskrat Falls inquiry, but there's a chance they could face criminal charges or civil action for their role in the project.  

Newfoundland and Labrador Justice Minister Andrew Parsons is sending the 1,200-page report, released Tuesday, over to the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary to investigate whether any of the Crown corporation's executives or top bureaucrats committed crimes in the planning and construction of the bungled $12.7-billion hydroelectric dam.

Parsons has mixed emotions about asking the provincial police force to look into Muskrat Falls. As an elected Liberal opposed to the Tory-led project, he has a strong disdain for the dam, but said he cannot jump to conclusions as attorney general.

"I'm pissed off," Parsons told The St. John's Morning Show. "I'm pissed off because we were all told we weren't smart enough to debate this with government, we were told we didn't know anything and right now my kids are going to have the pay the bills for what these people did. And I'm frustrated. 

"But at the same time, [I am] the attorney general, where we have to make non-partisan, impartial decisions that are not based on emotion."

The scathing report by Commissioner Richard LeBlanc presents his findings from the public inquiry that was called to determine how the Muskrat Falls hydroelectric megaproject in Labrador jumped from $7.4 billion at sanction in late 2012 to the current price tag of $12.7 billion — and has yet to produce a single kilowatt of power.

To cover the skyrocketing costs of the project, energy rates will have to double — unless the government can come up with roughly $600 million a year to pay for Muskrat Falls — because the people of Newfoundland and Labrador are the guarantors of the project's loan.  

Executives still in place

Parsons said most Nalcor decisions were made in St. John's, which falls under RNC jurisdiction, although it's not yet clear whether the Royal Canadian Mounted Police will also be involved in any investigation. 

Current Nalcor CEO Stan Marshall came into the project in 2016, less than two years before the inquiry began. His predecessor, Ed Martin, was lambasted in LeBlanc's final report.

On Tuesday, Marshall said he wouldn't fire anyone, and said he didn't see any criminal wrongdoing in the report.

LeBlanc was complimentary of Marshall in some sections, saying he helped bring more accountability to the chain of command.

The commissioner found faults in other executives, including Martin and his top deputy, Gilbert Bennett, saying they "took unprincipled steps" to get the project built and "concealed information that would undermine the business case."

Critics, including Parsons and Ball, maintain the project would never have been built if elected officials knew the full picture.

Possible civil action

The Department of Justice will also comb through the report to look for possible civil litigation.

Parsons said it's not about recouping costs of the overinflated megaproject, but establishing fault and liability.

"The fact is, we're never going to recover the billions of dollars that have been spent by public officials and executives at Nalcor who made this. The reality is after 2013 we were stuck in this situation, but that does not mean that people should not be held accountable if possible."

Parsons said neither his department nor the police are working with a timeline. He also said despite his issues with the project, he won't predetermine the outcome.

"It's not going to proceed on a need for vengeance."

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