Northwest Transmission Line Project Offical Application to EAO

This is good to hear, though I still think that the line should be a much larger one and should be extended all the way to Alaska and Yukon. You can follow the details at the EAO here.


Here is the story for the Kitimat Sentinel

The plan to extend the provincial power grid up north by building a power line has officially been submitted for environmental approval.

The application was made today by the provincially-owned BC Transmission Corporation to the provincial Environmental Assessment Office.

That office now has 30 days to decide if the application submitted for the Northwest Transmission Line meets all of the criteria needed to start an environmental review.

The review is to last 180 days, although it can be halted if unforeseen issues do arise.

The transmission corporation was given a $10-million budget 18 months ago by the provincial government to prepare the submission.

Although the provincial Liberals want to build the line - and at one time committed $250 million to an estimated construction budget of $400 million - it has yet to confirm its monetary commitment.

That $250 million commitment was made in 2007 when it had a private partner, NovaGold Resources, willing to put up the rest of the money.

But that fell through and the project was put on hold when NovaGold, which wanted power for its Galore Creek copper mine development, halted work when the Galore project became too expensive.

In Sept. 2008, the province renewed plans to at least prepare the line application for an environmental review after extensive lobbying by mining companies and northwestern governments.

Backers of the line say that it will be a lot easier to convert promising mineral properties into working mines if a source of stable power was available

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