At Woodfibre LNG, we chose to power our plant with electricity from BC Hydro because it’s the right decision for Squamish. It will dramatically reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and it will help make Woodfibre one of the cleanest LNG facilities in the world.
We always knew this would come at a cost – that BC Hydro wouldn’t give us any discounts or subsidies. That was confirmed recently when the B.C. government announced the power rates for LNG plants.
At Woodfibre, if our project goes ahead, we’ll pay $83.02 per megawatt hour, before applicable taxes. By comparison, in 2014, average industrial customers paid $54.34 per megawatt hour, before applicable taxes. And residential customers pay 7.52 cents per kilowatt hour for the first step on their bills – equivalent to $75.20 per megawatt hour.
In short, Woodfibre LNG will be paying more than any other non-LNG industrial users in B.C.
The government announcement also made clear that Woodfibre LNG will pay the full cost of hooking up to the BC Hydro transmission grid – an amount we estimate to be in the tens of millions of dollars. That announcement means taxpayers and ratepayers can rest assured they’ll never be on the hook.
For several months our detractors have alleged, with insufficient information, that somehow LNG electricity rates would be subsidized. Now the truth can be told. Woodfibre LNG will be paying more to operate one of the cleanest LNG plants in the world. And we are prepared to do so because that’s what’s right for Squamish.
Byng Giraud
Vice-President, Corporate Affairs
Woodfibre LNG
