A new report has found that cancelling the Site C dam in northeastern B.C. would be cheaper than delaying it. The new B.C. NDP government sent the $8.8 billion dollar project to the B.C. Utilities Commission, its independent regulatory agency, as one of its first moves in office.
A report by auditing firm Deloitte LLP says pressing pause on the B.C. Hydro project until 2025 would cost $1.4 billion. Cancelling it altogether would cost $1.2 billion.
According to Deloitte, the project is already facing significant schedule and cost pressures. It’s possible it could miss a start of river diversion milestone in 2019 that would push the budget to more than $12.5 billion.
The report identifies other risks, like geotechnical issues and and major contracts that haven’t yet been awarded. The BCUC is considering the Deloitte report as part of its review, which is expected to be written up by November 1, 2017.