First, Moe and his Minister Jeremy Harrison claimed the surprise plan, announced last year, to refurbish coal plants would cost $900 million. Then the bill became $1.9 billion. Then $2.6 billion.
Now, documents from the Crown say the cost is $26 billion.
“This is no longer a bad news budget - it’s a full-blown catastrophe,” said Carla Beck. “This is a Premier and a Minister that plan to sink Saskatchewan in generational debt.
“This will not only ruin our finances now, but will bury our kids and their kids after that in mountains of debt. This fiscal trainwreck must be stopped before it’s too late.”
The Government has dodged questions about accountability on SaskPower for months, even as Harrison greenlit $1 billion in additional spending and refused to show up at a legislative committee for questioning.
Then, Moe insisted no power rate hike was being considered in December only to slap a $136-million increase on families, farms and small businesses four weeks later.
“At every turn, these guys have gone out of their way to lie, deceive and hide the truth from the people of Saskatchewan,” said Aleana Young Jobs, Economy & SaskPower Shadow Minister. “But people are coming forward to expose these guys.
“Scott Moe looks at the Grant Devine government and says, ‘hold my beer.’”
The SaskPower presentation breaks out the cost estimate for the coal plan as follows:
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$11.4 billion in capital costs
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$13 billion in fuel costs
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$1.4 billion to rebuild transmission infrastructure already considered obsolete
The scale of the coal spend is almost beyond comprehension. Saskatchewan’s entire provincial debt from 1905 to today is roughly $44 billion. The annual provincial budget is $22.2 billion.
For $26 billion, Saskatchewan could:
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Build six or seven brand-new natural gas plants
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Fully finance the Sask. Party’s own small modular reactor plans, or even build a massive conventional nuclear reactor
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Write a roughly $10-million cheque to every impacted coal worker and miner in Saskatchewan and still have billions left over
“This is a staggering financial disaster built on secrecy and lies,” Beck said. “The Saskatchewan people deserve to know the truth.
“My message to the people of Saskatchewan is we don’t have to settle for this.
“All the lies, the lack of accountability, corruption, the cover ups. We can change the government and then get to work on Day 1 delivering real change for the people of Saskatchewan.
“This province is incredible and I love it so very much. The people here are amazing and they deserve a government that meets their ambition, their passion and their dedication to this province.
“It is so clearly time for change and that’s exactly what my team intends to deliver.”
In April, the Official Opposition released its Grid & Growth plan, a practical alternative focused on reliable power, lower costs, economic growth and keeping jobs in Saskatchewan. Every person in Saskatchewan is encouraged to read it and offer their feedback at GridAndGrowth.ca.
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