“This is a huge win for all four First Nations who want to pursue energy sovereignty and self-sufficiency efforts.”
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A new solar energy project outside of Regina will be the largest of its kind in Saskatchewan when it’s operational in 2028, with four First Nations owning half of the equity.
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The Mino Giizis Solar Energy Facility in the Rural Municipality of Lajord, located southwest of Regina, was announced on Wednesday morning by Neoen, a Paris-headquartered renewable energy company.
Neoen will be an equal shareholder on the project with four Treaty 4 First Nations that make up the Anishinabek Power Alliance (APA), which includes Zagime Anishinabek Nation, Kinistin Saulteaux First Nation, Cote First Nation and the Key First Nation.
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“This is a huge win for all four First Nations who want to pursue energy sovereignty and self-sufficiency efforts, because it’s a significant amount of revenue that will help to provide much-needed funding,” said Guy Lonechild, chief officer of the non-profit First Nations Power Authority (FNPA).
The FNPA worked on behalf of APA and approached SaskPower about maximizing First Nations participation in the renewable energy project.
Neoen was chosen through the procurement process to develop and undertake the project.
Ryan Dick, Neoen’s provincial director for Alberta and Saskatchewan, says it’s the first time the company has had a joint partnership with a First Nation in any of its global projects.
The project is slated to produce 157 megawatts of renewable electricity annually at its peak. The 25-year purchasing power deal outlines that all output from Mino Giizis will be bought by SaskPower for its electricity grid. That’s enough to power 30,000 four-person homes in Saskatchewan, says Dick.
The Mino Giizis project, set to take up a section of land, is still in the permitting and financing stage, with construction expected to start in early 2027, says Dick.
Mino Giizis means “good sun” in Ojibwe, which Lonechild says was put forward by the APA.
Neoen wants to maximize the job opportunities for Indigenous people throughout the entirety of the project.
“We’re going to be working with these groups to really find out training opportunities for local Indigenous people that are in Regina, that are from the nations that we’re partnered with, and from the local community,” Dick said. “That is going to be a priority for us.”
Neoen estimates the project will lead to 350 construction jobs during the peak building phase, and five full-time jobs when it’s in operation.
The federal Minister of Indigenous Services, Mandy Gull-Masty, said the project provides an example of industry and First Nation partnerships.
“The Mino Giizis solar project demonstrates how First Nations leadership and industry partners can work together to generate long-term local revenue, deliver clean energy and advance economic reconciliation,” Gull-Masty said in a prepared statement.
nyking@postmedia.com
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