Sometimes I wonder why I get angry.
Posted at 6:00 am
Why do I get carried away too often, my bladder tweaking my brain to think about the feasibility of things, caught up in the details.
It prevents dreaming, that ugly tendency. That’s how you develop a reputation for being a “boring” guy who sees problems where there aren’t any.
Like flinching at the goal of increasing Hydro-Québec’s production capacity by 50%.
However, Mr Legault repeated it to us during the election campaign: we will build new dams.
Obviously, sad spirit as I am, I dared to believe that if it were so easy to build big booms it would be known, and that here, like the elephant, the government slept and dreamed on its feet.
I finally assumed that I was ignorant of the matter.
Hence the good news: the Quebec government has decided to hold a public consultation on our energy future to tell us their plan. All in good time !
Seriously, this had to be done, and well done!
I hope, however, that I am not naïve, that this exercise will not only be a political strategy. Like the crocodile, we will have to sleep with one eye open.
Because the last few weeks have been worrying in this case.
Beginning with the appointment of Pierre Fitzgibbon as Master After God, to which we added the political leadership of our crown jewel, hydropower.
But as he is, Fitz did not disappoint. As he left, he got another one in his slipper. bang! Telling all of Quebec that since he knew what Hydro had to do, he would explain to Madame Brochu how it works!
In my personal relationships, I would have gone for a lot less.
And that’s why Fitz isn’t entirely clear on Sophie Brochu’s departure. As in ice hockey, you believe in a high stick followed by a countercheck.
But he doesn’t care, the boss granted him permanent immunity.
However, in democracy, as in business, the government or the sole shareholder takes precedence over its subsidiaries.
Still, I appreciate Fitz’s economic activism.
Of course, liking him would be easier if he understood that public service requires more finesse than ethics. Let’s hope he gets it one day.
Therefore, the public consultation should allow Quebecers to understand the government’s game plan.
By the way, we should understand why it is worth granting certain companies discounted electricity prices.
Francis Vailles1 recently rightly questioned the viability of the discount rates afforded to Quebec aluminum smelters.
In response to the doubts expressed by Mr Vailles and others, the Prime Minister considered the treatment of his priorities “unfair”. Mental state.
Economics is also a science, although imprecise, and there are means of understanding its benefits.
In this case, prayer and devotion weigh less than facts and figures in converting the heretic.
So if it’s more profitable to develop our economy on electricity tariffs than to sell kilowatts to Americans, that’s calculated and explained.
And what about saving energy?
By the way, I want to do my bit and take a cold shower now. I got used to it throughout my career…
And where will the new dams be built, at what cost and in what decade will they be operational? And what about the indigenous peoples?
And the adequacy over time between the new production capacity and the new needs of the industrial projects that the minister says he has on his desk, which we understand in the shorter term.
We would also like to assess the vision developed by Mrs. Brochu and compare it with that of the government. There would be a discrepancy…
And I suppose we will go beyond the oral tradition. That we will be presented with a concrete plan to achieve a zero-carbon Quebec by 2050.
Fitz is adamant that the “drums” sector should be developed, that he’s going through it. Very well, we want to believe it. But since we’re not the only ones in the world who want it, let’s explain where we’ll be in this crazy race.
How many of us dress up the same steak?
Because he and the government will choose the projects. If they’re wrong, we’ll live with the damage for a long time.
And how much is this sector going to cost us in business subsidies, in electricity rebates, relative to profits?
For a true vertical integration of this sector, we need to extract materials from the subsoil, such as graphite and lithium. Accordingly, what is the orderly plan for mining development?
After all, is it wiser to invest that much in manufacturing compared to investing the same amount in technological innovation, where the jobs are also very rewarding?
Where does Quebec’s economic future lie?
And how many other questions.
In short, Quebec needs a clear vision. This is also the economy, a question of vision that includes accounting. MM. Lévesque and Bourassa have long since proved it when it comes to energy.
It must also take into account our major societal choices and give hope to young people while they are there.
Michel C. Auger2 wrote: “Mr. Legault often reiterates that he is obsessed with creating wealth. But the means to create that wealth aren’t the same as they were 50 years ago. Besides, when the CAQ government boarded the economic development train, MM Legault and Fitzgibbon got off at “Baie-James” station. And they’re still there…”
Many of us share this concern.
But I promise to inhabit the government bubble and remain responsive during the exercise.
Between us
Speaking of energy, a good book written by a Quebecer on the subject: See You More Thirst – Oil-Gas-Wind-Solar: Energy Issues and Conflicts, by Yvan Cliche.
Till the Thirst – Oil-Gas-Wind-Solar: Energy Issues and Conflicts
Yvan cliché
Fides
272 pages