Here are the numbers some top-level Nalcor contractors did not want you to see
7 contractors, including longtime lead Paul Harrington, have ended their fight to keep earnings secret
Seven senior contractors working with the Muskrat Falls project delivery team, including longtime project leader Paul Harrington, have ended a fight to keep their earnings a secret.
Harrington and others had filed an objection with Newfoundland and Labrador's information and privacy commissioner to block a request by CBC News for their 2019 earnings.
But information and privacy commissioner Michael Harvey confirmed Thursday that the complaints were "resolved informally," without the need for a formal report.
Harvey said he was unable to comment on why the contractors withdrew their complaints, but it's possibly because the contractors had little chance of getting their way.
A 2017 ruling by the information and privacy commissioner's office determined there is "no evidence" that releasing such information would unfairly expose contractors to "risk of financial or other harm."
Courts in Newfoundland and Labrador have also come down on the side of full disclosure in similar cases, and legislative changes made by the provincial government three years ago lifted the veil of secrecy over such data.
CBC received the full list of 21 senior team members, including the seven holdouts, from Nalcor on Thursday, and it revealed that a company called Erimus Consulting Limited billed Nalcor subsidiary Lower Churchill Management Corporation just shy of $494,000 in 2019 for Paul Harrington's services — an average of more than $41,000 per month.
The second biggest earner on the list was Scott O'Brien, whose title is project manager for generation. He is represented by a company called SRO Consulting Services Inc., which billed roughly $448,000.
The five other contractors — and the companies that represent them — who withdrew their complaints are Malcolm Jennings, Exigo Consulting Inc., $366,660; Dave Pardy, NSB Energy, $397,884.36; Ron Power, RJP Services Inc., $393,238; Jeff Reid, NSB Energy, $420,001.48; and Donald Samson, NSB Energy, $348,739.99.
Contractors like Harrington and O'Brien who hire themselves out to major projects like Muskrat Falls are typically represented by a company, so the amount billed does not necessarily mean all the money went the individual named on the list, with a cut going to the company.
The billing amounts exclude refundable taxes such as HST.
The owner of one of the companies on the list — who agreed to speak off the record, with his name withheld — said rates being paid to these contractors are in line with what's paid to consultants on major construction projects around the world.
In the past, contractors like Harrington have gone to court to protect their privacy, arguing that, among other things, the release of earnings information would not serve the public interest, and would cause financial harm because private contractors and consulting companies compete with each other for business.
In December, CBC filed an access-to-information request with Nalcor, asking for a comprehensive list of contractors serving with the project's senior management team, and their earnings in 2019.
That listed included 21 at the time, according to Nalcor.
Under access-to-information laws, Nalcor was required to inform the individuals about the information request.
Initially, eight team members filed a complaint with the information and privacy commissioner, though Ray Butler quickly withdrew his complaint, so in early March, Nalcor released data on 14 of the 21 contractors.
The full list was released Thursday morning, with a Nalcor official saying some of those on the list are no longer involved with the project.
Meanwhile, followup information revealed the full project delivery team, as of early March, was comprised of 188 members.
Nalcor is a provincial Crown corporation that manages Newfoundland and Labrador's energy resources, including development of the Lower Churchill project, which includes an 824-megawatt power generating station at Muskrat Falls in central Labrador, and an 1,100-kilometre transmission line from Muskrat Falls to Soldiers Pond on the Avalon Peninsula.
The project is billions over budget and years behind schedule, threatens to send electricity rates soaring once completed later this year, and was the subject of a public inquiry that labelled Muskrat a "misguided project."
Inquiry commissioner Judge Richard LeBlanc found that former Nalcor CEO Ed Martin, current vice-president Gilbert Bennett and members of the project team "frequently took unprincipled steps" to secure sanctioning of the publicly funded project, and "concealed information" that would undermine its business case.
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