Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 16/99) - The NWT Power Corp. made $1 million more in fiscal 1998-99 than the prior year, according to the utility's recently released annual report.

Lower fuel costs -- fuel is the utility's single largest expense -- were largely responsible for the better bottom line.

For the year ended March 31, 1999, the Power Corp. made $11.5 million, up nine per cent from the $10.5 million made in the prior fiscal year.

The corporation's fuel costs fell eight per cent to $25.8 million from $28.1 million.

Fuel is the single-biggest expense for the corporation but the corporation took advantage of low fuel prices about eight months ago and locked in 37-million litres of diesel when fuel was trading at about $13.50 a barrel, Power Corp. president and CEO Leon Courneya said Thursday.

The corporation's oil purchasing contracts extend to October 2001.

The corporation also saved on diesel fuel costs during the Con mine strike. During the strike, Power Corp. bought excess power from Miramar which owns the Bluefish hydro plant.

As for the Giant Mine, there remains a $1.7 million, GNWT-backed debt to the corporation, according to the annual report. Giant has been a $5-million-a-year customer.

As for the current fiscal year, the corporation, which continues to serve the NWT and Nunavut as a combined utility, anticipates net income will dip back to prior year levels.

The corporation anticipates 1999-2000 net income of $10.4 million, Power Corp. chief financial officer, Christine Jackson, said in the annual report.

On new projects, Courneya said diesel power plant work at Clyde River and Paulatuk is proceeding "on time and on budget."

The utility has budgeted $3.3 million and $2.7 million for brand-new power plants in Clyde River and Paulatuk respectively.

Another big project for the utility is the natural gas conversion in Inuvik associated with the Ikhil project.

Conversion costs are pegged at $4 million, part of the $15.9 million spent on capital projects in 1998-99.

But the long-term savings of the conversion will be significant.

With the changeover, the corporation will be able to displace about 6.4-million litres of diesel fuel with natural gas annually. Power costs will drop about 20 per cent while greenhouse gas emissions will fall 33 per cent.

For fiscal 1998-99, revenues were down slightly at just under $100 million compared to $100.2 million in the prior year.

Expenses were also down slightly at $76.4 million compared to $77.3 million the previous year.

On power consumption, the NWT and Nunavut combined to use 411.9 gW-h, down 4.1 per cent from 429.6 gW-h in the prior year. Sales for the current fiscal year are anticipated to increase slightly to 413.8 gW-h.