Sharing New Brunswick wealth

That’s the view of Tim Curry, president of Atlantica Centre for Energy, and guest speaker last Thursday at the Digby Area Board of Trade business awards dinner.

Already, there are people in Saint John’s construction industry forced to turn down contracts and he said this bodes well for Digby, one of Saint John’s nearest neighbours. “The energy hub development may provide a market for goods and services that you already provide,” he told his Digby audience.

He also envisions newcomers to Saint John enjoying tourism opportunities in Digby, which is just a ferry ride away.

The nuclear plant at Lepreau is currently undergoing a refurbishment and there is strong support for a second nuclear reactor there, says Curry. As well, Irving Oil is pushing for a second oil refinery in the area and those two projects alone will result in the creation of thousands of permanent jobs, as well as thousands of jobs during the construction phase.

Curry said there is 300 megawatts of new wind power under development in New Brunswick and the potential to harvest between 2,500 and 4,500 megawatts in the province. There’s also the Emera natural gas pipeline.

While the potash mine in Sussex is not technically an energy project, it is a $1.7 billion development that is creating more jobs, Curry adds.

The focus on energy in New Brunswick is partly because the province is next door to New England, a huge energy consumer. Those states have a legislated need for clean, green energy, he said, but there is also a ‘not in my backyard’ mentality that is preventing the development of power generators on their home turf.

Curry and his colleagues believe the energy industry will power the economy of New Brunswick. He sees the City of Saint John’s population growing by 20,000, and he envisions Maritimers coming home from the West and settling there. He sees the city becoming not just larger–but wealthier as well.

Curry fielded questions at the conclusion of his speech. Among them was one from Kevin Ellis who asked what can be done about the CAVE (citizens against virtually everything) factor.

Curry replied, “Get everyone in the same tent, thinking about the whole community. Look for ‘win-win-win’ situations that will get everybody rowing in the same direction.”