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Nalcor selects Italian firm as Muskrat Falls contractor

Muskrat Falls, on the Churchill River in Labrador, is shown in a Feb., 2011 file photo.
Muskrat Falls, on the Churchill River in Labrador, is shown in a Feb., 2011 file photo. Paul Daly/The Canadian Press

HALIFAX – Nalcor Energy, Newfoundland’s electricity provider, announced Wednesday it has chosen a preferred contractor build the Muskrat Falls hydroelectric generating facility.

The agreement is likely worth more than $1 billion, although the exact details of the contract have not yet been determined, the corporation said a release.

The agreement is with Astaldi Canada Inc., an Italian-owned and operated company.

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Power from Muskrat Falls will be sent from Labrador to Newfoundland and overland to a connection with the Maritime Link. Nova Scotia Power Inc. is responsible for building the subsea cable to connect the two provinces.

The Maritime Link has only obtained conditional approval. The Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board wants Nova Scotia Power Inc. to show it has guaranteed access to market-priced power. Both provinces’ energy providers have said a suitable agreement has been reached, although the details have not been published.

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Nova Scotia Premier-designate Stephen McNeil discussed the energy project Wednesday.

“If there’s a new deal coming forward, it’ll go before the regulator,” he said. “And we, like all Nova Scotians, will be looking at it and making sure it’s in the best interest of the ratepayers.”

Newfoundland’s Muskrat Falls site, meanwhile, is already ramping up for construction. Nalcor says site preparation will begin in the next few weeks.

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