Yellowknife (Dec 13/04) - Northwest Territories Power Corporation has hit a debt wall, and as a result, diesel communities throughout the territories could soon find themselves paying more for power.

In the next eight to 10 days, NWT Power Corp. will be making a rate rider application for a 3.46 cents per kilowatt-hour increase.

The application to increase power rates will go to the Northwest Territories Public Utilities Board, said Terence Courtoreille, NWT Power Corp.'s manager of financial planning and communications.

What is now being proposed as a rate rider for the diesel communities could also result in a power rate increase for Yellowknife, Inuvik and Norman Wells.

"These funds are forecasted to reach debt triggers by spring 2005," states a release issued by the corporation on Dec. 1.

In July, News North reported that the diesel communities stabilization fund was sitting at a deficit of $680,000.

Now that deficit tops $1 million, but Courtoreille refused to say by how much.

"I have to report that to the Public Utilities Board first," he said.

Also in July, it was reported that the stabilization fund for Yellowknife was at a deficit of $475,000 and a similar stabilization fund for Inuvik was sitting with a balance of $27,000.

While Norman Wells fund's debt trigger is set at $100,000, Yellowknife fund's debt trigger is set at $1 million. Both funds are forecast to reach those preset triggers by the spring of 2005.

Jerome Babyn, manager of Northland Utilities, said his understanding is there won't be any rider put in place for Yellowknife until that time.

"That would have to be submitted to the public utilities board," he said.