N.S. premier talks trade and energy following meeting between prime minister and provinces

Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston talks about energy, red tape and more.

Canada’s premiers and territorial leaders were in Ottawa for their winter meeting on Jan. 28 and 29. Premiers met with the prime minister during the two-day event to get everybody working in unison ahead of talks to renew the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Trade Agreement (CUSMA).

Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston said it’s always good to bring the premiers together.

“I was curious heading into it,” Houston said in an interview with CTV News Atlantic on Friday. “What was really happening? You see these pretty remarkable headlines coming out of certain characters and actors in the United States.”

Houston said he feels much calmer after hearing from Prime Minister Mark Carney.

“It’s going to be a tough time for sure but I’m optimistic we’ll get through this,” Houston said.

The prime minster singled out Houston and Ontario Premier Doug Ford for their efforts to cut red tape. Houston said he is passionate about interprovincial trade and growing Nova Scotia. The province has major opportunities in many sectors including energy, he said.

“I appreciate what the prime minister is doing,” Houston said. “He’s travelling the world selling Canada and he’s creating space for premiers to step up as well.”

Wind West

Wind West is among the biggest Nova Scotia energy developments. The province said it has the potential to power approximately a quarter of Canada’s electricity needs and make the province “an energy superpower.”

“Wind West is one of the most appealing offshore wind projects, if not the most appealing in the entire world,” Houston said.

“We have incredible opportunities as well in onshore gas, offshore gas, offshore oil. There’s a lot happening.”

Houston said everybody is on the same page as the federal government, hustling to grow the economy and they’re all excited about Wind West.

Addressing rate hikes

The premier is also urging the energy board to reject Nova Scotia Power’s latest rate hike as part of government efforts to address affordability issues. He said his government has taken steps to keep rates down.

“And then along comes Nova Scotia Power in the wake of the cyber attack and the billing issues and the incredible outages we’ve had,” Houston said. “They thought it was a nice time to ask for more money, more profits.”

Houston said they submitted a “thoughtful, detailed response” to the board which will make the decision. The provincial government wants the board to reject the application and take additional steps to reign in the power company, he said.

“Starting back in 2011… it really started to go much more in favour of Nova Scotia Power,” Houston said. He said government decisions since then have been hurting ratepayers.

“This is the time, right now, when we can start to get Nova Scotia Power playing by rules that are okay for ratepayers.”

Nova Scotia NDP Leader Claudia Chender has called for a full review of the utility but Houston said his government’s submission calls for detailed steps to improve rates.

“Looking at the ownership structure is one thing but actually what I care about are the bills people get,” he said.

“We’re also trying to diversify the grid to give people more options.”

Houston said developing natural gas in Nova Scotia is a good example of the province’s potential.

“There’s a lot of things that can be done. We’re trying to move forward on all of those fronts and also address the affordability challenges that we see right now in this moment.”

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