This article is by Domenic Poli, of the Brattleboro Reformer, in which it was first published Oct. 25, 2014.
HINSDALE, N.H. — The town reached an agreement on Friday with TransCanada on the valuation of the Vernon hydroelectric station, resolving the pending property tax appeals for tax years 2010 through 2013.
According to TransCanada, the agreement sets the station valuation from 2014 through 2021 and establishes the value of the Hinsdale portion of the TransCanada facility at $73 million for those first three years, and at $75 million for the remaining five.
Bernie Rideout, the chairman of the Hinsdale Board of Selectmen, said the agreement allows for peace of mind for the future municipal management of Hinsdale.
“This arrangement allows long-term planning for the town without concern over how changes in the regional power market might alter the value of the hydro station, which makes up 24 percent of our tax base,” he said. “We are pleased that TransCanada recently expanded its station to generate more renewable power from the Connecticut River and increased its investment in the town. TransCanada has always operated responsibly in the town.”
Rideout told the Reformer New Hampshire owns the Connecticut River around the Vernon dam up to the high-water mark, making the majority of the generating facility in Vernon property of the Granite State. He said Hinsdale’s interests in the agreement were represented by Town Administrator Jill Collins, Town Attorney John J. Ratigan and Utility Assessor Skip Sansoucy.
Mike Hachey, TransCanada Hydro’s vice president, said the deal means a continuation of friendly partnership between TransCanada and Hinsdale.
“We are pleased to have reached this settlement after amicable and productive discussions with the town,” he said in a statement. “The long-term nature of the deal provides certainty and stability for both Hinsdale and TransCanada.”
TransCanada spokesman Shawn Howard said the North American energy giant always works hard to be a good neighbor and a responsible team member in the 53 communities it operates out of throughout the northeastern United States. According to the statement he sent to the Reformer, TransCanada has more than 60 years of experience as a leader the development and operation of energy infrastructure, including natural gas and liquids pipelines, power generation and gas storage facilities. The corporation operates a network of natural gas pipelines that extends more than 42,500 miles and is one of the continent’s largest providers of gas storage and related services, with more than 400 billion cubic feet of storage capacity.
This agreement has no bearing on TransCanada’s long-running tax dispute with Vernon, Vermont, though it involves the same facility. The separate dispute has been scheduled for trial early next year, but Vernon Selectboard members hope that can be avoided and voted this week to allow town attorney Richard Coutant to “continue settlement discussions” regarding the assessed value of the dam.
The two parties’ assessments are nearly $13 million apart.
Domenic Poli can be reached at dpoli@reformer.com, or 802-254-2311, ext. 277. You can follow him on Twitter @dpoli_reformer.
