The provincial regulator wants to probe secret filings made by Nova Scotia Power.
The Utility and Review Board is upset about the number of documents stamped confidential that the utility has filed with the board.
"We are concerned that some information is being marked as confidential as a matter of routine rather than intent," the board’s executive director, Paul Allen, wrote to Nova Scotia Power lawyer Rene Gallant on Jan. 8.
"This tends to undermine the public’s understanding of, and confidence in, the regulatory process. It also complicates administration and security of files here at the board."
For instance, Nova Scotia Power filed six applications to the board for approval of capital expenditures, and while the evidence may be confidential, the applications are not, Allen said in his letter.
The board states that "the public interest demands a transparent regulatory process," and it wants to investigate Nova Scotia Power’s propensity for marking documents confidential. It is looking for information by March 25.
It sent a letter Tuesday to lawyers and businesses involved with a recent Nova Scotia Power application to spend $120 million on a wind farm and the confidential filings to the board.
"The board is concerned that the level of confidential filings in certain proceedings as currently before it impairs the ability of the board to produce a transparent decision," the board’s regulatory affairs officer wrote in a letter Tuesday.
During a review of the Nuttby Mountain wind farm, the lawyer for Jodrey-owned Scotia Investments Inc. complained about being denied access to confidential information from Nova Scotia Power.
Robert Patzelt of Scotia Investments protested that the company was unable to make informed decisions about Nova Scotia Power’s application because it was refused access to the utility’s documents.
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