Premier Kathy Dunderdale used the podium of the St. John's Board of Trade to talk directly to the business community today.
Dunderdale painted the current economic and business climate in the province as prosperous. She said one of the core goals of her government is to make things easier for businesses.
Dunderdale and the PC government has typically use speeches at the Board to make big announces and lay out broad government vision.
The speech comes as the provincial government moves towards the final stages of sanctioning the massive Muskrat Falls hydroelectric project.
Dunderdale rattled off economic indicators and trends to paint the current economic mood as optimistic and prosperous.
She talked about the value of offshore oil revenues, but also talked up mineral developments and other economic sectors.
"Our story is one of strength," she said. "This province, in the last five years, has witnessed nothing less than a sea change."
Dunderdale also talked at length about Muskrat Falls, saying no project has been more scrutinized and more transparently explained.
"This project will stand on its merits, or not at all," she said.
Dunderdale said the Muskrat Falls is a keystone of the province's energy plans, and she said energy is as important in the province's development as fish once was.
She once again laid out the case for why Muskrat Falls is the best option for both domestic power supply and export.
More to follow online and in The Telegram Thursday.
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There are no viable alternatives. NOIA made a big presentation during the PUB herrings, and can still be seen there. Explaning why gas would not be viable from present offshore sources. We all know that if the oil companies, who own the resource, thought they could make a buck from it they would be all over it like white on rice. But, they are saying that the billions it would cost to bring it ashore don't justify what's out there. just to convert one topsides facillity to transport NG, would cost billions, then we have the pipe line, which if ruptured could take 6 months to repair, and is very likely to rupture. Then there is the onshore storage problem, converting it to LNG, is likened to having a small nuclear bomb next to you house...no thanks. Nalcor already went through all the alternatives, years ago, and they thought that was good enough. But nope, they had to go to Navigant, nopr not good enough, then it was the PUB who went to MHI, the naysayers still not convinced...now we have to rehash the whole thing, for the benefit of the lunatic fringe, in the Hof A. We keep going over and over the same material, with the naysayers hoping beyond hope they will win the day...but they won't. Why? because the truth will prevail. There are only so many times we can get the same answer, before the deal is sactioned. I will pop a bottle of bubbly that day, in celebration of a well thought out, intelligent clean green answer to our future energy needs.