For Ed Martin, the chief executive officer of Newfoundland and Labrador's Nalcor Energy Corp., this is the province's last chance to win a better deal from Hydro-Québec.
After decades of fighting a legal battle to force Hydro-Québec to offer more generous terms for electricity produced by the Churchill Falls project in Labrador, Mr. Martin says a fresh challenge launched yesterday in Quebec Superior Court will be the last one.
"We think this [case]is very strong," Mr. Martin said yesterday. But he conceded that no other legal options exist if this one fails.
The case - in which Newfoundland and Nalcor, the province's public energy utility, argue that a 1969 contract is grossly unfair because of the ridiculously cheap rates Hydro-Québec pays for Churchill Falls electricity - has been fought in a variety of courtroom venues using different legal arguments and even made its way to the Supreme Court of Canada twice over the years. But to no avail.
Efforts at a political resolution have also failed.
Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams has slammed the deal as being representative of a "gross inequity" that must be corrected.
Mr. Williams has stated that Hydro-Québec's profit from the Churchill Falls contract in 2008 was $1.7-billion, compared with a paltry $63-million for Nalcor.
Adding to the tension is Hydro-Québec's recent agreement to take over New Brunswick's power generating plants, raising concerns over its growing dominance as an electricity giant in Atlantic Canada and the Northeastern United States.
Mr. Martin says Nalcor believes it has the basis for a solid case on the grounds that Quebec's civil code requires the parties to a contract to act in good faith, not only during negotiations but also after the signing and through the lifetime of the agreement.
Nalcor argues that circumstances have changed over the 40 years since the 80-year contract was signed and that the good faith provision requires it to reopened.
The company cites soaring oil prices, which boosted the value of hydro-electricity over the decades; as well as the opening up of export markets since 1969, when selling surplus electricity to Quebec was just about the only option.
Mr. Martin said Nalcor decided to launch a new court action after Hydro-Québec did not even respond to a letter last November requesting talks.
A Hydro-Québec spokesman said yesterday it will contest the court filing. He reiterated the utility's position that it assumed all the costs and all the risks associated with the project when the contract was signed in 1969, and that the purchase price for the electricity was established based on the costs of the project, not on the evolution of market prices.
Bertrand Marotte