Search KamloopsBCNow
With a slowdown in the mining sector due to low commodity prices, the BC Government has announced that they will be helping out the province’s mining companies.
Minister of Energy and Mines Bill Bennet announced on Friday morning during a conference in Williams Lake, that mining companies will now be able to defer a portion of their hydro bills.
The five year program will allow companies operating metal and coal mines to defer up to 75 per cent of its electricity costs over two years of the program.
However, as the market recovers, the companies will then repay the deferred costs, plus interest
“Rural communities across BC depend on high-paying jobs that their mines provide residents,” said Bennett. “We are in the midst of a challenging time for the sector and this will provide some temporary support to help the mines stay open as long as possible, hopefully until commodity prices bounce back.”
Mines are encouraged to first borrow funds from other sources. If companies choose to defer their power bills, companies with lower levels of debt will pay an interest rate of 12 per cent, and companies with higher levels of debt will pay prime plus five per cent or eight per cent annually.
Companies that choose to participate in the program will enter into a formal agreement with BC Hydro.
Many companies have been affected by the low copper and coal prices. Currently, eight metal mines and five coal mines in the province are employing about 7,500 people.
“While this program can’t guarantee mines won’t eventually go into a temporary care and maintenance, it will help mines stay open for as long as possible,” a press release reads.