Disappointment in plans for LNG Power plant in Midgic

I write to express my disappointment with the decision to move forward with a natural gas plant in Midgic, NB. Natural gas has played an important role in displacing coal globally, and will continue to do so in many parts of the world that are not in the position Canada is now. This project represents a failure of foresight.

Building natural gas infrastructure in Canada now is to use a 20-year-old solution to today’s problems. This is short-sighted, economically regressive, and an insult to ratepayers who deserve a forward-thinking energy strategy. At a time when wildfires ravage our province’s forests due to extreme heat (a crisis we all understand is driven by greenhouse gas emissions) the doubling down on fossil fuel dependency is indefensible. Canadians are disproportionate emitters; we must leverage our wealth, expertise, and moral responsibility to lead, not lag behind.

I emphatically oppose this project and urge reconsideration. Instead, New Brunswick should maximize renewable energy sources of wind and solar with grid-scale storage. We should improve the capacity factor at Point Lepreau to its highest potential. We should invest in non-fossil fuel grid stability solutions to maintain grid inertia, and frequency stability, and invest in our grid to support a green energy build-out, rather than fossil fuel dependant peaker-plants.

Awarding this contract to a US firm further compounds the issue, outsourcing both economic benefits and energy sovereignty. NB Power and the provincial government must consult broader expertise to prioritize a resilient, low-carbon grid, not lock us into decades of LNG purchases.

We can do better, and the world is watching.

Sincerely,
Nicholas Thompson