Stéphane Sainte-Croix

Still no commitment to Quebec content in wind farms

Local Journalism Initiative / The Gaspé Spec / July 9, 2025 / gaspe, mna, nelson sergerie, Stéphane Sainte-Croix, wind farms

Nelson Sergerie, LJI Journalist

GASPÉ – Quebec still has not committed to including regional and Quebec content requirements in wind power projects, even though Hydro-Québec is set to develop 10,000 megawatts of wind energy.
Following the adoption of Bill 69, the Member of the National Assembly (MNA) for Gaspé, Stéphane Sainte-Croix believes that Hydro now has the agility and flexibility to create winning conditions for Quebec content.

Mr. Sainte-Croix believes that the sector will be able to focus on its objectives and will be included in the development plan.

The elected official indicates that there will be room for Quebec companies such as LM Wind Power in Gaspé and Marmen in Matane.

However, conditions have not yet been set. “We are not yet in concrete discussions to see how this will play out. We have given Hydro-Québec the tools to consider these elements. But we are aware that the contribution of these companies is important for the future,” says Mr. Sainte-Croix.

Meanwhile, the MNA believes that the abolition of the minimum price for gasoline, which came into effect on June 9, is a step toward stimulating competition. He notes that other measures are in the works, including mandatory disclosure of price variations, which will make it easier to track market trends.

The MNA points out that Haute-Gaspésie, Côte-de-Gaspé, and part of Rocher-Percé still have some of the highest gasoline prices in the province.

“It will take some time for the market to regulate itself based on supply and demand. The Clark report in recent years indicated that Gaspésie more often than not had the highest prices in Quebec. The abolition of the price floor will stimulate this impact on prices,” he believes.

In place for 28 years, Quebec felt that the previous price floor mechanism limited competition among retailers and, as a result, led to higher prices.

Meanwhile, when it was withdrawn on June 9, motorists in the Bay of Chaleur were paying the fair price for regular gasoline, according to data from the Régie de l’énergie, However those in Rocher-Percé and Côte-de-Gaspé were paying more.

In Avignon and Bonaventure, gasoline sold for an average of $1.514 per litre, with a profit margin of 11.2 cents, slightly below the annual average of 11.7 cents.

In Chandler and Gaspé, a litre should sell for $1.54, but it is priced at $1.57.

The margin on the Gaspé Peninsula is 14.8 cents, compared to an average of 12.5 cents last year. In Rocher-Percé, it was 12.8 cents, compared to an average of 11.6 cents last year.

Government actions in recent months have lowered the average profit margin by 3 to 4 cents, depending on the sector.

The report by economist Robert Clark, published in May 2024, who was tasked with investigating the practices of oil companies, concluded that the Gaspé region had the highest annual pre-tax gasoline price in the province over the past decade.

Furthermore, for the third time since 2019, a report showed that the annual profit margin for retailers in Gaspé was the highest in the last decade.

The expert noted in his report, for example, that the profit margin in Gaspé rose from 9 cents in 2021 to 15.2 cents in 2023.

According to him, lower sales volume did not explain the higher prices charged in the region.
The Quebec government has since forwarded the Clark report to the Competition Bureau.

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Quebec government sinks the Blue Zone

Local Journalism Initiative / The Gaspé Spec / October 23, 2024 / Blue Zone, Gaspé, nelson sergerie, Stéphane Sainte-Croix

Nelson Sergerie, LJI Journalist

GRANDE-RIVIÈRE – The Quebec government has rejected the Blue Economy Innovation Zone after four years of efforts and investments.

Gaspé Member of the National Assembly (MNA), Stéphane Sainte-Croix, first mentioned this during a press briefing on October 15 in Gaspé, before the Blue Zone board of directors confirmed the information shortly after.

“The concept of developing a blue innovation zone would not go forward according to the established criteria,” said the MNA.

“There was essentially a lack of private investment in the project, and the governance issues in recent months weakened the issue. It is a rational decision, not an easy one considering the effort people have put into the project for many years. We are not throwing in the towel, but we are reconsidering an approach that would be more, I also think, up to the level of the region and respond to our challenges,” explains Mr. Sainte-Croix.

The promoters of the Blue Zone mentioned $750 million in investments, including $250 million in the region.

“It is not so much about whether investments were sufficient. It is in terms of carrying out concrete projects. We had difficulty aligning the notion of investment with the notion of project development,” specifies the MNA.

Allegations surrounding project manager Martin Beaulieu regarding the management of organizations in Rimouski have undermined confidence.

“It did not help the cause in terms of a relationship of trust and in terms of results. Budgets were committed, steps were taken, and it did not arrive to the satisfaction of the parties,” mentions the MNA cautiously.

The Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Energy had granted $150,000 for the first steps and mentioned that it would not finance the creation of a more ambitious industrial cluster.

“It’s a big disappointment given that we’ve been working on this project for four years,” says the mayor of Grande-Rivière and Blue Zone administrator, Gino Cyr.

The mayor recalls that on December 9, 2022, the organization was told that it had passed all the administrative steps, and a meeting with former minister Pierre Fitzgibbon was held in November 2023 to ensure a designation.

“At that time, we were still going for a designation. There were elements raised such as promising projects in each of the regions, at the governance level and ensuring private investments during an announcement,” says Mr. Cyr. The mayor recalled that a 2022 study established the value of landings at $329 million and economic spinoffs of $157 million in the Rocher-Percé MRC.

He had letters from companies that were investing $10 to $15 million of the $250 million.

“Except that what was requested was to ensure that there was a promising foreign investment, particularly in aquaculture. We had two companies ready to invest, but when they want to invest in Canada, it is easier in the Maritime provinces than in Quebec. It was a major constraint and we had expressed it. I can tell you that of the $746 million, when we added these private investments, we raised the project to perhaps $1.5 billion,” notes Mr. Cyr.

“It was the politician who made the final decision. We were given to understand the possibility of working on a promising project for Grande-Rivière and Rimouski. We are talking about an innovation centre. We have decided to continue working together to maintain cohesion,” adds the mayor of Grande-Rivière.

“We will have a residual amount to develop a business plan on a promising file that we would like to implement by March 31, 2025,” Mr. Cyr says.

“We know that our application file was of high quality and all government analysts have confirmed to us that we have successfully passed the administrative process requests. The Bas-Saint-Laurent and Gaspésie had decided to rally the forces of the two regions around a common project at the request of the government and we are betting on continuing the efforts already undertaken. The stakeholders from all the sectors concerned have built a synergy that allows us to work towards success,” comments his colleague from Rimouski, Guy Caron.

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