For The Energy Sector Transformation, New Brunswick Will Need Sharp Elbows
David Campbell is a Moncton-based economic development consultant and co-host of the Huddle podcast, Insights. The following piece was originally published on his blog, It’s the Economy, Stupid!, on Substack.
A couple of announcements recently indicate just how difficult it will be for New Brunswick to attract large-scale investment in next-generation energy such as small modular reactors (SMRs) and hydrogen.
A large Australian firm struck deals with three First Nations to pursue mega hydrogen projects, not long term, that will start in the mid-2020s if they go ahead. None of the First Nations are in New Brunswick.
Now, from the Globe and Mail writeup, it looks like they are looking to use hydroelectricity to produce green hydrogen. Maybe there were technical reasons why the idea couldn’t work in New Brunswick, but given the talk around hydrogen these days as an export opportunity, I was disappointed.
Then there was the SMR supplier in Ontario: GE Hitachi. Again, I’m not suggesting that Arc or Moltex were viable alternatives, but it’s worth noting.
I’d like to think we have a possible ace in the hole. Irving Oil could end up becoming a large-scale investor in clean or green energy for export. It’s fair to say the refinery will be churning out refined oil products for many years to come but there will be a ‘next’ and when it comes to billion-dollar investments there is almost always a long time horizon.
New Brunswick generates a larger share of GDP from energy than any other province, with the exception of the oil and gas producing provinces.
If we end up importing all our electricity from Quebec, if the refinery closes and there are no other new energy projects with the exception of import-intensive wind and solar, we could end up losing hundreds of millions of dollars worth of GDP each year.
I, for one, would like us to have a little ambition. But a small province might need sharper elbows.