Why Canadian taxpayers have to pay $28 mill for an Ontario wind farm that never got built
Because Ottawa, not Ontario, signed NAFTA, federal taxpayers must compensate the investors. And if Windstream’s project never sees the light of day, they will likely have to pay the New Yorkers a lot more than the $28 million the NAFTA panel said they already owe — possibly closer to the $568.5 million that Windstream initially sought in its NAFTA case.
“We are currently assessing the (NAFTA) decision to determine next steps,” Diana Khaddaj, a spokeswoman for Global Affairs Canada, said in an email to the Financial Post.
They complained to the Permanent Court of Arbitration under Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement. A panel of three arbitrators heard the case in Toronto last February.
“The claimant’s claim that the respondent has failed to accord the claimant’s investments fair and equitable treatment in accordance with international law, contrary to Article 1105 of NAFTA, is granted,” the panel ruled last month.
Police are now apparently probing whether Ontario government employees broke the law when they deleted documents related to the offshore wind project. A source told the Financial Post that Mars will answer police questions in Toronto next week.
Why Canadian taxpayers have to pay Wall Street bankers $28 million for an Ontario wind farm that never got built | Financial Post
