A proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City and Saskatchewan Water Corporation (SaskWater) could mean more development of water projects in Lloydminster.
The agreement could see the City distributing water to several municipalities on the Saskatchewan side as the MOU states both parties need to negotiate a way “to govern the development of a regional pipeline to communities surrounding area of Lloydminster for the purpose of SaskWater redistributing potable water to those communities from Lloydminster.”
City Councilor Jonathan Torresan says potentially partnering with SaskWater could mean more revenue for the City to help pay for future infrastructure projects.
“As we look at out water utility system overall we’ve got some very big costs coming and some big long-term debt payments coming so anything we can do to potentially increase the revenue could be of benefit to the City.”
Torresan says there are a lot of things that need to be looked at before any decisions can be made, for example, the location of pump stations and the corporation’s requirements.
“Either way we have to look at what are the facts, what are the studies as far as how closely that will put us to needing to renew our water treatment plant and things like that. I think it’s a great idea, it’s low risk to do right now and we could possibly get a significant amount of benefit for our neighbours and ourselves.”
The MOU outlines several things that need to be discussed, including an capital investment, a plan of growth for the City and terms of the agreement. The MOU will be brought back to Council with more information at a later date.
