As time runs out for Atlantic Power's Williams Lake biomass energy plant, the city said it is "encouraged" by a push for talks between the plant's corporate owners and BC Hydro.
Adrian Dix, the minister of energy and climate solutions, is asking BC Hydro to "engage Atlantic Power Corporation to find a workable solution" stated a press release from the city of Williams Lake on Feb. 18.
After promising to send a delegation to the provincial legislature in Victoria at the last council meeting, the city said it is now leaving things in the province's hands after receiving assurances from both Premier David Eby and Minister Dix.
“With just weeks remaining to secure a path forward for Atlantic Power Corporation, council has exhausted every avenue to bring attention to the importance of this facility to our community and the province,” stated Mayor Surinderpal Rathor in the news release.
The planned delegation would have included municipal leaders, First Nations leaders and business and union representatives. The city was seeking authorization for an estimated $1,262 to $1,622 in flights, food and accommodations per person for the projected seven-person delegation, with the possibility of an increase to around $2,000 per person if another night's stay was required.
The city has been working for over a year to try and find a solution to the potential closure of the power plant, the city's largest single taxpayer. With time running out, the city had increased pressure on the province by expanding their media exposure and promising the in-person delegation.
Atlantic Power's Williams Lake plant employs an estimated 30 full-time personnel either directly or through contractors.
The push to save the power plant was heightened when a 2024 annual report revealed BC Hydro had to import as much as $1.4 billion in electricity in 2024 from Alberta and the United States.
“It makes sense to save a fully operational source of renewable energy within our jurisdiction rather than relying on purchasing power from Washington State during peak demand times,” Rathor stated in the release. “We have tremendous cross-sector support for finding a solution for the Williams Lake Power Plant.”
Rathor said if nothing comes of the talks, he wants Williams Lake residents to know the city did everything it could to "facilitate a positive, common-sense outcome based on the current and uncertain economic climate."
