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Every few years, Glooscap First Nation asks its members for feedback: where do they want to invest their money? <\/p>\n
In 2017, renewable energy entered the conversation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn’t the highest scoring, but it made it into the top three for the first time,\u201d said Michael Peters, CEO of Glooscap Ventures, the community\u2019s economic development arm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSo that was kind of our, you know, green light to start looking at renewable energy opportunities,\u201d Peters said in an interview.<\/p>\n
Glooscap started small, with an array of solar panels on a commercial building. Peters said he hoped to cut down on energy costs and reduce Glooscap\u2019s carbon footprint.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His ambitions have since grown, and so has the community\u2019s endorsement. He said investment in renewable energy was the No. 1 priority in the latest round of community consultation.<\/p>\n
Now, Glooscap is frequently connected with renewable energy projects in Nova Scotia as an investor or owner \u2014 as are many other Mi\u2019kmaw communities. The same is true of other First Nations and energy projects across the country.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The trend is thanks, in part, to a push from multiple levels of government for Indigenous participation in major projects as a form of economic reconciliation. And equally important is the appetite from communities and their leaders. Case in point: Glooscap.<\/p>\n
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Glooscap Chief Sidney Peters says he wants to ensure the Mi’kmaw perspective is integrated into new energy projects. (David Laughlin\/CBC)<\/p>\n
Peters said further solar installations have made many of Glooscap\u2019s community buildings and businesses energy self-sufficient. Now the community is focusing on renewable energy production as an enterprise, with the goal of turning it into a significant part of the business portfolio alongside fisheries and gaming, he said.<\/p>\n
The work Glooscap is doing on renewable energy was recognized this fall by the Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA), which named Glooscap Ventures the Indigenous Clean Energy Company of the Year.<\/p>\n
Jean Habel, a senior director with CanREA, said Glooscap won the prize because it\u2019s \u201creally poised to be part of the energy transition.\u201d<\/p>\n
More than dollars and cents<\/p>\n
Glooscap is now a majority partner in two wind projects that are under development. Neither is generating power yet, but one has a deal to sell electrons to Nova Scotia Power<\/a> for general use on the grid and the other has a deal to sell power to big consumers<\/a> through a provincial program called Green Choice.\u00a0<\/p>\n Glooscap is also part of a Mi\u2019kmaw agency \u2014 a collective of all 13 Mi\u2019kmaw nations \u2014 that is going big on renewable energy.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Wskijinu\u2019k Mtmo\u2019taqnuow Agency (WMA) is a majority owner of two wind projects and several battery storage facilities \u2014 all of which are in the planning or development phases \u2014 and it\u2019s set to have a large stake in the Nova Scotia-New Brunswick intertie, which Nova Scotia says is a critical part of its clean power plan<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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The transmission lines leading away from the Onslow substation will be doubled in the coming years as part of a major project to improve the connection between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick’s grids. Glooscap and other Mi’kmaw nations are equity partners in the project. (Brian MacKay\/CBC)<\/p>\n