Yellowknife (Oct 08/04) - The long-awaited regulatory application for the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline has been filed, but Premier Joe Handley says it will not be built unless the North is dealt a fair share in resource revenue.

"(The pipeline) won't come at the expense of our children's future," Handley said.

The application lays out a blueprint describing how and where the pipeline will be built and how it will be serviced, including all the environmental and social impacts involved.

"Our biggest challenge is getting a fair share of the resource revenue," Handley said. "We are one step closer, but we don't want to see Northerners not getting a fair share."

The diamond mining experience is an example of what is not wanted.

"The non-renewable resource base is our only source of wealth. We're not going to be farmers.

"We already have diamonds and have a poor sharing of government revenues on that," the premier said.

"Another challenge is to negotiate a resource-sharing agreement between ourselves with the federal government and the aboriginal governments," Handley said.

"On the present formula, we will only collect four cents out of each dollar of government revenue. The federal government will take the rest," Handley explained.

"We will take out of $27.3 billion in resource revenue over the next 20 years and we stand to collect only $900 million," said the premier.

The Mackenzie Gas Project is being proposed by Imperial Oil, ConocoPhillips Canada, Shell Canada, ExxonMobil Canada and the Aboriginal Pipeline Group (APG).

The proposed Mackenzie Gas Project consists of natural gas field development facilities in the Mackenzie Delta at the Taglu field, owned 100 per cent by Imperial Oil.

There's also the Parsons Lake field (ConocoPhillips Canada, 75 per cent; and ExxonMobil Canada, 25 per cent) and the Niglintgak field -- owned 100 per cent by Shell Canada.

Application no guarantee

Further developments include a gas separating facility just outside Inuvik, as well as compressor stations and a shorter natural gas liquids pipeline.

But the application is no guarantee that the pipeline project is going ahead, says Hart Searle, a spokesman for the producers.

"A decision to construct the project has not been made. A final decision to proceed with construction can only be made after obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals -- and assessing any conditions attached to those approvals," says a press release from the producers.