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Nova Scotia's utility regulator has stopped its review of a $208-million proposal to burn wood to generate power while it reviews alternative energy projects.
The Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board shelved the biomass proposal Thursday. Board members said they wanted information about other options so they can do a thorough comparison.
Nova Scotia Power Inc. wants to burn 650,000 tonnes of wood a year at the NewPage Port Hawkesbury Corp. mill in Cape Breton.
NSPI says that would power 50,000 homes, or meet about three per cent of the province's total electricity needs. The company says the biomass project would help it meet targets for renewable energy.
Half of the wood would come from sawmills, while the other half would be harvested from Crown land and private woodlots.
NSPI issued a tender for competing renewable energy projects in April. While a review is still underway, company officials say the biomass plant is the cheaper option.
Comparison urged
But the review board was told this week that it should study all of the options.
Consultant Barry Sheingold, who was hired by the province's consumer advocate, said the only way that ratepayers can be sure they're not paying too much is to compare the biomass proposal to the others.
"Proposals were received last month and a critical and urgent question is how the evaluation of those proposals interacts with the board's consideration of NSPI's application," Sheingold said Wednesday.
Some environmentalists and woodlot owners object to the biomass project, saying it would lead to more clearcutting and is not sustainable.
A date to resume the hearing has not been set.
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