If you know a Hydro employee, give them a pat on the back and say “hang in there” the next time you see them.

You see, morale is in the tank right now at Manitoba Hydro.

Documents and information that the public should know about the new power line project (known as Bipole III) have been leaking out of the crown corporation left, right and centre.

It sounds like every time that happens, paranoia seems to heighten about information getting out to the public in an uncontrolled fashion. After the latest Bipole III leaked document went public, one employee privately remarked “now we can expect another witch-hunt.”

Thankfully for taxpayers, many Hydro employees are sticking their necks out on the line to inform the public as to what’s really happening.

You can imagine what will happen if they get caught.

The latest document that was snuck out of the crown corporation shows the $2.2 billion estimate for the Bipole III project was known to be around $4 billion as early as August 2009. A previous leaked document that was prepared in October, 2010 shows it’s now estimated to be $4.1 billion.

But this isn’t just another government project that is about to experience huge cost overruns.

The Bipole III project is extremely contentious as the NDP government is making Hydro abandon its plans for a short line to northern Manitoba up the east side of the province. Instead, Hydro is going to have to run the line all the way from just outside Winnipeg, over to the west side of the province, up north and then back east. As a result, it will be about 500kms longer than what Hydro had recommended.

A longer line of course means it will tear up more of our environment and cost more to build and maintain. It’s estimated to cost taxpayers about $1 billion more or approximately $1,000 more per Manitoban.

Hopefully there will still be a witch-hunt though.

Taxpayers deserve to know who isn’t telling the truth – the NDP government or Manitoba Hydro executives?

Days before the first leaked document came out in January, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation suggested publicly that we heard the project would cost $4 billion. Rosann Wowchuk, the government Minister responsible for Manitoba Hydro, lashed out and told one media outlet that “four billion dollars is a number picked out of the air. I can tell you that's a number which has not been discussed.”

So if Hydro had internally come up with estimates for the line of $4 billion back in August, 2009, how was the Minister responsible completely unaware of the figure a year and a half later? Incredibly, Wowchuk even suggested in January that the line could still come in under $2.2 billion.

Now assume you’re a Manitoba Hydro executive for a moment. When your own employees tell you that the line will cost upwards of $4 billion, how could you not report that possibility to the government? How could you spend the next year and a half giving the government the impression the line could still come in under $2.2 billion?

There needs to be a witch-hunt alright, but keep rank and file Manitoba Hydro employees out of it.

By: Colin Craig
Posted: March 22, 2011
Topic: Manitoba

Contact the regional director Colin Craig for further information.

Type: Commentary

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