ST. JOHN’S — Several politicians in Newfoundland and Labrador say they won’t vote in favour of a new 50-year agreement to share energy from Labrador with Hydro-Québec.

Government representatives have spent the past four days arguing in the legislature about the multibillion-dollar energy proposal. They were expected to vote Thursday on whether they endorse the deal and want officials to keep hammering out final agreements.

Bettina Ford, the Opposition Liberal member for Gander, stood in the legislature to say she could not support the draft deal.

Her speech reflected the history of hydroelectric failures still haunting Newfoundland and Labrador as it looks to tap the massive hydroelectric potential of the Churchill River and free itself from crushing debt.

“Will future generations look back and say that we secured the best possible return for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians?” she said. “What will members of the house of assembly be saying 50 years from now? Will they stand in this chamber and question why we settled for less when we had the opportunity to negotiate for more?”

Liberal Leader John Hogan told reporters later that he knew of about six members of his party who planned to vote against the agreement. If all of the governing Progressive Conservatives support the deal without any support from opposition parties or independents, the endorsement could pass by a single vote.

Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Tony Wakeham unveiled the framework agreement last month alongside Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette and Prime Minister Mark Carney. The deal outlines plans for more than $50 billion worth of hydro and wind energy developments along the Churchill River, which cuts through south-central Labrador.

Carney touted it as “the largest clean energy investment in North American history.”

If approved, the deal could end decades of hard feelings toward Quebec in Canada’s easternmost province.

Provincial utilities in Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador co-own and operate the 5,428-megawatt Churchill Falls hydroelectric plant according to a contract first signed in 1969, which gives Hydro-Québec the lion’s share of the energy from the facility for just a fraction of a cent per kilowatt hour.

Many in Newfoundland and Labrador have long felt cheated as Hydro-Québec made tidy profits selling the majority of the power from a plant in their province for much higher market rates.

The new agreement would end the 1969 arrangement 15 years early and set higher, escalating rates for Churchill Falls energy.

Wakeham opened his successful election campaign last year with a promise to hold a public referendum on any agreement with Hydro-Québec. He walked back that promise last month and instead opened the legislature Monday for a four-day debate. If the vote approves the framework deal, final agreements could be struck by the end of year.

Keith Russell, who announced Monday that he was leaving the governing Progressive Conservative party to sit as an Independent, said Thursday that he would also vote against the agreement. He said his former party was not paying close enough attention to his central Labrador district, Lake Melville, which could see a massive influx of workers if the developments outlined in the agreement go ahead.

“Lake Melville is going to be expected to absorb the pressures of this development. And what’s been guaranteed … to Lake Melville at this point in time? Nothing,” he said.

“I can’t go back and look the people of Lake Melville in the eye … I can’t say, ‘The government told me it’ll all work out, so that’s good enough.”

Russell said the four-day sitting this week was a “sales pitch,” rather than a debate.

The Liberals have repeatedly questioned the pricing scheme for Churchill Falls energy, saying it should be based on market prices, rather than the consumer price index. The former Liberal government first unveiled a draft deal with Hydro-Québec in late 2024 for Churchill River energy, but Wakeham demanded it be renegotiated after he was elected nearly a year ago.

Hogan has accused Wakeham of giving up market-based pricing in favour of a rate strategy that will keep prices too low. He has said the province could wind up regretting the agreement 50 years in the future, just as it regrets the 1969 contract now.

The Progressive Conservatives hold half of the 40 seats in the legislature, while the Liberals hold 15 and the NDP have two. There are also three Independent members, one of whom is the Speaker, who only votes in the event of a tie.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2026.

Sarah Smellie, The Canadian Press