"An aluminum smelter on Vancouver Island would be at the end of a very long extension cord, including a very long underwater portion," said David Austin, a Vancouver lawyer and energy critic. "Why would they build a new smelter on Vancouver Island when existing ones in the state of Washington are still shut down due to the price of electricity?"

But representatives of Alberni Aluminium Corp. believe they would have adequate electricity for the proposed 360,000-tonne-per-year operation, as long as the British Columbia government agrees to make available some of the so-called downstream benefits of the Columbia River Treaty between Canada and the United States.

Those benefits give Canada rights to some electricity generated in the United States in exchange for putting dams on waters running south from B.C.

"We are absolutely comfortable, based on the discussions we have had so far, that a sufficient quantity of power will be available at a justifiable price without subsidies or anything of that nature," Alberni Aluminium director David Krakoff said yesterday.

The company, referred to as Al2Co, was launched yesterday at a news conference in Port Alberni. It will be headed by Patrick James, former chief executive officer of Rio Algom Ltd.

An aluminum smelter in Port Alberni has been on and off the drawing boards since the late 1990s.

Al2Co now plans to conduct detailed engineering and environmental-impact studies, and also will seek to raise capital and to strike a long-term power supply agreement, Mr. Krakoff said.

British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority spokeswoman Elisha Odowichuk said the utility would treat Al2Co like any other customer, providing the company was able to meet requirements for connecting to the grid.

Mr. Krakoff said the proposal is reasonable despite difficulties faced by aluminum producers in the northwestern United States.

A combination of soaring wholesale electricity prices and a soft aluminum market led many smelters in the Pacific Northwest to temporarily close last year.