NWT - The business case for the Taltson River hydroelectric dam expansion may have suffered some recent setbacks, but don't count out the $700-million project just yet, says the new chairman of the Northwest Territories Power Corporation.

Deze Energy is speaking to the owners of various mineral exploration projects in the NWT about getting their power from an expanded Taltson River hydroelectric dam, says Brendan Bell, chairman of Deze owner Northwest Territories Power Corporation. - photo courtesy of Deze Energy Corporation

Former GNWT cabinet minister Brendan Bell, who took the reins of the power corp.'s board of directors last December, said Deze Energy Corporation is actively pursuing other Taltson customers who, together with the NWT's three diamond mines – and with a little creative thinking – could bring the project back to life, he said.

Deze Energy, a joint venture between the power corp., the Akaitcho First Nation and the NWT Metis Nation, has proposed to run power transmission lines from an expanded Taltson dam, located 56 kilometres northeast of the Alberta-NWT border, to the diamond mines.

Last month, Premier Floyd Roland told MLAs the mines were proving reluctant to buy enough power to make the Taltson project economically viable.

The decision dampened hopes the territorial government would backstop loans that would make Deze's substantial up-front investment in Taltson possible.

But a talk earlier this month by Bell indicates Deze has not given up on the project.

Speaking at the NWT Chamber of Commerce's recent annual general meeting in Yellowknife, Bell said while the Ekati, Diavik and Snap Lake diamond mines still remain potential customers, they can't be the only ones.

That opens the door for other mineral exploration projects in the territory, such as Avalon Rare Metals' Nechalacho rare earths deposit near Yellowknife, to get their power from Taltson and put the project back on the map.

"In the past, I know that we had built the whole economic proposal around the diamond mines, and if there was anything left, we would sort of talk to Avalon about their needs," Bell told News/North. "Although they were someone we wanted to engage with, they weren't, in the past, as attractive a customer as the mines."

Now, continued Bell, "we're sitting down with Avalon and all these other industrial customers to understand, first of all, when they might be permitted and make decisions about go/no-go."

Other projects cited by Bell include Seabridge Gold's Courageous Lake deposit, nestled in the same mineral-rich area as the diamond mines; Fortune Minerals' gold-bismuth-cobalt project near Whati; and Tamerlane Ventures' revival of the Pine Point lead-zinc mine south of Hay River.

David Swisher, vice-president of operations for Avalon, confirmed that talks between Deze and the rare-earth developer have recently taken on a more "positive" sheen.

"Our interest is obviously a low-cost power supply, but I will say that it's been very good working with Deze over the last few months," said Swisher.

Tying Taltson to mineral exploration projects – which undergo a regulatory process termed by some as long and unpredictable – is not without its risks, however.

Fortune Minerals, which is engaged in a lengthy environmental assessment, has already decided that NICO's on-site infrastructure will be powered by diesel generators.

To prevent other projects, like De Beers Canada's Gahcho Kue diamond project, from going fully diesel, too, Bell said Deze should consider importing hydro power by connecting the NWT to the Alberta grid until Taltson is up and running.

"It allows us to bridge that gap between when the mines are ready and when we actually have hydro," said Bell. "...when we're talking about a new mine, like Avalon and Gahcho Kue, we can get in on the ground floor and provide them power before they've had to spend the money on diesel generation."

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