For about two decades, New Brunswick has been trying to define the proper model for N.B. Power to ensure its viability. The province’s electric utility has gone from a vertically integrated, monopoly to a company ready to play in the competitive market. It has been at various times a fully regulated utility and a corporation intended to operate like a business in the open market. Throughout, N.B. Power’s debt has climbed.
The new plan for N.B. Power, released in October 2011, is contained in the “Energy Blueprint”, covering a 10-year period. The three-year “Energy Action Plan” that provides for the immediate actions necessary to start the process of fulfilling the Blueprint’s objectives. This commentary deals mainly with measures relating to N.B. Power, contained in the Energy Action Plan.
In A New Plan for N.B. Power, Weil reviews the positive aspects and drawbacks in the Energy Action Plan. The principal drawback of the Plan is that it is likely to promise more than it can produce if there are not further measures beyond those proposed. Weil proposes alternative solutions to the proposed Plan.
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