The Town of Fundy Shores wants to talk about nuclear energy with the province.
According to Mayor Denny Cogswell, though, it hasn’t been easy to have the conversation.
“We’ve been actively working on the energy file for the past year or more for Fundy Shores,” Cogswell said. “Just to get some feeling of some commitment.”
Cogswell said town council wanted to have open and frank conversations about small modular reactors, a second Candu reactor or a second reactor in general in the region, or a medical isotopes facility.
“We did meet with (Energy) Minister (Réne) Legacy a while back as well as the premier and we asked for that,” he said.
But Cogswell said it was a bit of a surprise when on Oct. 24 Legacy made an announcement that an agreement had been reached between New Brunswick and Ontario to improve performance at the Point Lepreau nuclear generating station.
Point Lepreau is the largest employer in Fundy Shores.
Cogswell said the town has had a good relationship locally with NB Power and the on-site executive at Point Lepreau.
“As a council, we were hoping for more provincially,” he said. “Even to give more warning that this announcement was even coming to legitimize it, or to inform council or have the opportunity to even host it down here.”
Fundy Shores has only been incorporated since 2023, coming into existence as part of the Higgs government’s municipal reforms. Cogswell says since that incorporation, the energy file has been a top priority.
“We want to expand on it not only for good paying jobs, but to boost the economy in southwest New Brunswick and uphold our tax base.
The town is in the middle of building a new community complex and Cogswell said the hoped-for conversations would have helped determine where the province was headed as far as nuclear energy and the town could build around whatever ideas were being considered.
“We want them to be a partner and we just felt this past year, we just don’t feel that we have a partnership,” he said.
Cogswell said it’s possible the town might have been fully onboard with the latest announcement.
“We don’t know because we were never given that opportunity.”
Cogswell said he believes the disconnect can be corrected, and the Fundy Shores council is willing to talk.
“Our door’s always open to meet with anyone for the betterment of the community and for southwest New Brunswick,” he said.
