First Nations exploring investment in renewable energy

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Saskatchewan First Nations are looking to increase investments in renewable energy projects just as the province aims to grow the sector and reduce emissions in the next five years, according to a First Nations chief executive.

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Sheldon Wuttunee, chief executive of Saskatchewan First Nations Natural Resource Centre of Excellence, an organization dedicated to supporting and increasing First Nations participation in the energy and resource sectors, said he sees opportunity in Crown-owned power company SaskPower’s push to expand renewable energy.

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The utility aims to grow renewable power generation to 50 per cent of its overall capacity by 2030, while also reducing carbon emissions by 40 per cent below 2005 levels.

“Those kinds of opportunities, they do provide some great partnership potential for our First Nations,” Wuttunee said.

First Nations already have either significant or majority ownership in a number of renewable energy projects throughout Canada. A recent example is the Oneida Energy Project in Ontario, jointly developed by Toronto-based Northland Power Inc., Six Nations of the Grand River Development Corp. and other public and private partners.

SaskPower requires all new projects reach a minimum threshold of investment by Indigenous partners. Its most recent approved projects, the Rose Valley Wind Project and the Southern Springs Solar Project, are both majority-owned by First Nations. Combined, the two developments are expected to generate 300 megawatts of power, enough to support 125,000 homes.

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Wuttunee said renewable power projects using wind or solar are attractive investments for many First Nations, in part because community members are more supportive of projects with a lower environmental impact.

“There’s not (as) big an impact to Mother Earth,” he said.

Wuttunee said SaskPower’s model for renewable energy procurement helps the utility meet its targets and allows First Nations to build partnerships with one another. Economic benefits tend to vary depending on the size of the development, but the positive impact goes beyond financial interests.

“It’s the empowerment of being able to be involved in such a large project,” he said. “It provides them a different outlook for the future.”

Wind and solar power are not the only sectors where Saskatchewan First Nations Natural Resource Centre of Excellence sees First Nations involvement expanding. Wuttunee said the organization, which is owned by all 74 of Saskatchewan’s First Nations, has identified potential opportunities in critical mineral development, along with the deployment of nuclear power generation.

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Jeremy Harrison, minister responsible for SaskPower, said the utility’s Indigenous participation policy in renewable projects is part of the government’s overall commitment to economic reconciliation, a key focus for the province.

“I think it’s, frankly, essential to the future growth of Saskatchewan,” he said.

The Seven Stars Project, a 200 megawatt wind farm near Weyburn in the province’s southeast, could serve as a blueprint for additional renewable project ownership structures, he said. The project is spearheaded by Enbridge Inc. and includes ownership by five First Nations along with Métis Nation-Saskatchewan. 

“That (project) really is what I see as being the future going forward,” Harrison said.

Companies bidding for renewable power projects have also been proactive in ensuring Indigenous equity ownership requirements are met, he said.

Renewable power is a critical part of the Saskatchewan government’s larger goal in developing enough capacity to become a major energy exporter.

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“(It’s) putting us in a position to be able to export power from the centre of (the) North American grid, which I think we are really uniquely positioned to do,” Harrison said.

To advance discussions about the role First Nations can play in North America’s energy transition, the Saskatchewan First Nations Natural Resource Centre of Excellence will host a future of energy forum in Saskatoon from May 27-29.

The forum, called From tradition to transition, empowering our energy future, will include discussions on workforce development and environmental stewardship.

“The partnership opportunities and the inclusion, the meaningful inclusion, is absolutely paramount,” Wuttunee said of First Nations involvement in renewable projects.

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He said that while economic development is a crucial part of the work being done by the organization, it is also focused on helping ensure Saskatchewan’s natural resources are used sustainably, in a way that doesn’t impact the environment.

“It’s very difficult to plan (preservation of natural resources) if we’re not engaged and involved in meaningful conversations and collaborative efforts around sustainability,” Wuttunee said.

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