Conifex Timber Inc. has reached an power-purchase agreement with B.C. Hydro that will allow it to build a $50-million bioenergy plant in northern B.C.
The plant, to be built in Mackenzie where Conifex operates a sawmill, is expected to be complete by the end of 2012. It would be the first stand-alone bioenergy plant to be built in northern B.C. following the B.C. Liberal government's launch of its bioenergy strategy more than three years ago.
"We're very excited about this opportunity not only to produce green energy, but to provide stability to our operations and to the community of Mackenzie," Conifex chief operating officer Kevin Horsnell said today.
The bioenergy plant will produce enough energy to power 18,000 homes as well as the electricity needs of Conifex's Mackenzie operations. The company estimates it will provide $20 million a year in revenues, a steady income that will offset the highs and lows of the global lumber markets, said Horsnell.
The deal with B.C. Hydro has two components.
Under a 20-year term, Conifex will supply a minimum of 200 megawatts each year to the B.C. Hydro grid. The Crown energy agency is also giving Conifex credit for 30 megawatts of electricity it will produce to run its own operations, similar to other agreements in the forest sector, particularly with pulp mills. "Our unique partnership with Conifex is an example of how innovation can help us meet our clean energy goals," said B.C. Hydro president and CEO Dave Cobb.
B.C. Hydro would not disclose the price it is paying for the power, but the deal will be scrutinized by the B.C. Utilities Commission, where the province is confident it mill pass muster, said Jobs, Tourism and Innovation Minister Pat Bell, who joined Horsnell for the announcement.
"This deal is being done on an economic basis," said Bell, the MLA for Prince George-Mackenzie.
The new plant, which will employ 20 people full time and another 80 during construction, was welcome news to Mackenzie mayor Stephanie Killam, whose community is recovering from the impacts of a recent collapse in U.S. housing, decreasing newsprint demand in North America and a global recession.
