I don't have the figure with me.
Evidence of meeting #60 for Natural Resources in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chair.
A video is available from Parliament.
Evidence of meeting #60 for Natural Resources in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chair.
A video is available from Parliament.
11:15 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Natural Resources
I don't have the figure with me.
11:15 a.m.
NDP
11:15 a.m.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
That would be wonderful. Thank you.
Has AECL signed any contracts subsequent to the sale?
11:15 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Natural Resources
For AECL, the crown corporation that remains, no, it has not, because it has basically gotten out of the business of pursuing commercial sales of reactors. Candu Energy is now working on a new contract in Argentina, which is a refurbishment of the reactor in Argentina.
11:15 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Natural Resources
That was announced in the summer of 2011. It was actually announced shortly before the sale that the contract would be going ahead.
11:15 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Natural Resources
I think that's correct, sir.
11:15 a.m.
NDP
11:15 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Natural Resources
I don't know whether any of my colleagues would know that date.
The transaction was negotiated by AECL, on the condition that it could be transferred over to Candu Energy.
11:15 a.m.
NDP
11:15 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Natural Resources
I would like to confirm with you in writing, but if memory serves, it was in the range of $450 million.
11:15 a.m.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Okay. We sold assets of potentially hundreds of millions of dollars, and a contract that was negotiated by AECL of $440 million was announced shortly after the sale. Just to confirm, we obtained for the taxpayer $15 million, plus some royalties.
I'm not trying to put you on the spot; I just want to confirm—
11:15 a.m.
Deputy Minister, Department of Natural Resources
No, that's okay.
Number one, you said hundreds of millions of dollars of assets. I did not say that; you said that. I will have to come back to you on the assets.
On the contract, the $400-some million—$440 million, as I recall—is essentially a revenue stream that has to be matched by the actual commitments on the part of Candu Energy to meet that requirement, to do the work.
I will remind the committee that AECL had also received some funding and revenues from some of its contracts, but had managed to lose a lot of money on those contracts. The fact that there is a sale number attached to a contract does not mean there is a value unless there's a company that's able to produce that for less than the revenue.
11:15 a.m.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
I understand your explanation, but I think the taxpayers would be hard-pressed to understand the logic behind this.
We have an additional payment, then, that is in effect a subsidy, of $76,800,000.
I appreciated your answers to my questions. I would certainly appreciate getting the asset amount.
11:15 a.m.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
No, I'm going to move on, because I only have another minute or two.
11:20 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
Mr. Julian, I think it's important.
I like the members to manage their time as much as they can—
11:20 a.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
—but I think it's important to allow the witnesses to answer.
Monsieur Dupont, go ahead.
11:20 a.m.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Mr. Chair, I want to go on to the pine beetle funding. You could certainly ask a Conservative to follow up on that.
On the pine beetle funding, I'd like to know—
11:20 a.m.
Conservative
11:20 a.m.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Mr. Chair, I would appreciate asking about pine beetles.
11:20 a.m.
Conservative