The Grid “The possibility of creating a power grid connection between British Columbia and Yukon has long been discussed, however building the transmission infrastructure poses challenges and a potential cost of over $1 billion,” the statement says. It says the idea will be a topic for the task force in charge of finding new sources of electricity.
The territories are often excluded when it comes to research on the future of Canada’s electricity grid.
Brett Dolter, an assistant economics professor at the University of Regina who focuses on climate and energy policy, said studies on how provinces could get to net zero found that transmission played a key role, particularly when connecting provinces with hydro assets, such as B.C., to neighbouring provinces still relying on coal or natural gas.
“Connecting provinces together could help get to zero emissions for less cost than if we tried to operate each province as its own little fiefdom, operating only to meet its own domestic needs,” he said.
The key question, he said, will be if connecting B.C. and Yukon will allow for cheaper electricity.
“B.C. has been a big exporter of electricity. So they might be looking to this project as an export opportunity. The Yukon would probably be happy if they can boost supply and maybe eliminate the use of some of those diesel generators, which don’t run that much, but that’s an expensive kind of power generation,” he said.
“So if there’s any way that buying B.C. power can offset diesel, I think that the Yukon is going to benefit. And then it’d be a further benefit if the Yukon can develop some of these renewables that might feed into B.C.”
Lynne Couves, program director for the renewables in remote communities program at the Pembina Institute, said while the price tag is significant, the decision to go ahead or not is far from simple and needs to be considered with an eye on the future.
“When we consider long-term benefits of these projects, and the opportunity to electrify and decarbonize across sectors, I think that there’s definitely some positives in looking at these numbers in a different way,” she said.
Ms. Couves said the fact that Yukon is not covered under the federal government’s recently announced electricity regulations could be an obstacle to accessing funding.
(come on, Ottawa, YT is part of Canada, too)
At the same time, conversations around reconciliation, Indigenous rights to self-determination and energy sovereignty are common in the territories, she said.
“More opportunities for Indigenous-owned renewable energy development is really, really important.”
Mr. Streicker said the territory will be promoting the idea of a link as part of its submission to Ottawa from energy round tables set up around the country.
He said early conversations have taken place with Yukon First Nations governments that have expressed interest in a possible equity stake in this type of infrastructure.
Mr. Streicker said the cost of a project has likely grown since the $1.7-billion estimate from seven years ago and would have to include help from the federal government, but he believes the willingness to have the conversation is there.
Along with the benefits around Arctic sovereignty and critical minerals, he said Canadians understand the need for equity in smaller northern communities.
“There’s a bit of a sense, for example, that if you’re in British Columbia, and you’re trying to develop, say, access to internet, you don’t give up on small communities just because they’re in the North,” he said.
“And I think there’s a similar sort of sense that Canadians have about the territories, and it’s just the cost of having a country which has such a broad geography.”
This content appears as provided to The Globe by the originating wire service. It has not been edited by Globe staff.