WHEREAS the Province of Alberta will deregulate the electric industry on January 1, 2001;AND WHEREAS this action is causing great concern for Albertans because of forecasted rate increases brought about by deregulation;AND WHEREAS deregulation will not provide Albertans with price stability or security of rates and, as customers, Albertans do not like uncertainty;AND WHEREAS Albertans have concerns with the domino effect increased electric prices will have on the overall cost of producing and bringing products to market;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the AAMDC urge the Government of Alberta to reconsider its approach to deregulation.

With the recent electricity auction, there is considerable confusion as to what is going on. The auction fell far short of generating anywhere near the $4 billion that was calculated as the amount needed to level the capital cost playing field. Unfortunately the auction raised only 25 per cent of the monies needed for the power purchase arrangements. While the government has sought to blunt concerns about the impact of deregulation by providing $300 to individual users, this does not resolve the fundamental issue of deregulation.