Oversight and negotiating committees announced for Churchill Falls talks
Douglas Bowman and Michael Wilson to join consumer advocate Dennis Browne on oversight panel
In a series of back-to-back news releases, the provincial government signalled Monday afternoon that it's charging ahead with a proposed new energy deal for the Churchill River.
First, Justice Minister Bernard Davis announced the three-member panel that will provide independent oversight of the negotiations.
Second, Premier Andrew Furey revealed that the same team that negotiated December's memorandum of understanding between Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro and Hydro-Quebec will lead the effort to reach formal contracts.
"We are now moving toward drafting definitive agreements with the leadership of this smart and experienced team that helped get us to this stage. Our goal is to complete the definitive agreements within the timeline outlined in the MOU," Furey said, referring to the spring 2026 target date for a new partnership between the two provinces.
The negotiating team includes former Fortis Group of Companies executive Karl Smith, N.L. Hydro president and CEO Jennifer Williams and Denis Mahoney, deputy minister of Justice and Public Safety.
The team brings together expertise in industry, utility and law, and will also be supported by internal and external expertise as required.
Meanwhile, engineer C. Douglas Bowman and business leader Michael Wilson will join consumer advocate Dennis Browne on a special panel that will provide oversight of the Churchill Falls memorandum of understanding negotiations.
"Independent review of the negotiations with Hydro-Quebec was a critical component in reaching this historic memorandum of understanding and will continue to play an important role in getting the most out of future negotiations toward definitive agreements," Justice and Public Safety Minister Bernard Davis said in a statement.
By establishing the panel, Davis said the province "can be confident that the important need for independent oversight of this historic deal for our province is achieved. The work of Mr. Browne, Mr. Bowman and Mr. Wilson will be critical to the negotiations process, and I thank them for their commitment."
With opposition politicians clamouring for more independent oversight of the historic MOU, the provincial government announced on Jan. 9 that a special oversight panel, led by the consumer advocate, would be created. The oversight structure was established in co-operation with the two members of the New Democratic Party and the two independent MHAs.
The 14 members of the Progressive Conservative caucus refused to vote on the MOU following four days of debate in the House of Assembly, saying they were not satisfied with the level of oversight, and that they had outstanding questions about the framework agreement.
Browne will chair the panel, which has been tasked with reviewing the Dec. 12, 2024, MOU and monitoring the progress toward formal contracts between N.L. Hydro and Hydro-Quebec. The panel will provide advice to the cabinet of Premier Andrew Furey. There's no mention in the news release to any public release of that oversight.
But in a Jan. 10 statement to CBC News, Browne pledged to provide regular updates to the public and the legislature.
"Our oversight team will work for the people of the province and provide factual information on which the public will be able to rely," he said.
Davis said the panel will provide "reliable and transparent" oversight.
Browne is a longtime St. John's lawyer who has served two stints — 1996 to 2004 and 2016 to the present — as the province's consumer advocate. The role of the advocate is to represent rate payers on electricity issues.
Browne's selection to lead the oversight panel was criticized by the PCs because of his previous connection to the Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador, and his supportive comments of the MOU in media interviews.
But, Browne said "I have not been involved politically for almost 10 years now," and that he was selected as the consumer advocate through the Independent Appointments Commission.
Bowman, meanwhile, is an electrical engineer with more than 40 years of experience in the power industry. His areas of expertise include electricity services costing, pricing and contracts, and power sector restructuring, regulation and markets.
Bowman has provided consulting advice to governments, regulators, utilities and consumer groups, and has played a leading role in consulting projects in over 50 countries around the world.
Wilson is a chartered accountant with a career that has spanned more than four decades with the professional services firm Ernst and Young. Prior to his retirement in 2013, he was a managing partner in St. John's and senior partner in the Toronto.
According to his biography, Wilson has prepared or reviewed numerous commercial contracts in a wide variety of industries, such as power and energy, oil and gas, technology, insurance and construction and transportation.
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