KO joins Wataynikaneyap Power

Five Keewaytinook Okimakanak communities and AECOM, a Fortune 500 company, have joined the Wataynikaneyap Power partnership group to help develop a new transmission line to service remote First Nation communities.
“Our communities require a reliable power source to be able to participate in economic development opportunities taking place in the region,” said Peter Campbell, KO’s executive director. “We look forward to benefiting from this very important infrastructure project – now and into the future.”
Deer Lake, Keewaywin, McDowell Lake, North Spirit Lake and Poplar Hill joined the partnership, which includes 13 other First Nation communities and Goldcorp, on Oct. 8 during a signing ceremony in Thunder Bay.
“We are pleased to welcome the five KO communities, who joined our company today,” said Margaret Kenequanash, board chair of Wataynikaneyap Power. “Our communities see the merit of getting off diesel and having a reliable source of energy to enable community growth and to be able to participate in the economic opportunities throughout the region. We look forward to working with all of the communities.”
AECOM, working in association with PowerTel and Deutsche Bank, signed a memorandum of understanding on Oct. 17 to help build the transmission line by providing design, construction and financial services for the project.
“AECOM and our project partners share Wataynikaneyap Power’s vision to bring grid transmission connections to other remote areas in the region,” said Damien Tholomier, AECOM’s regional energy business line leader in Canada. “We are excited that this work will improve residents’ quality of life while creating infrastructure that meets the highest technical and professional standards.”
Wataynikaneyap Power is planning to complete a new transmission line to Pickle Lake, subject to approval by provincial authorities. The line will eventually be connected to the 15 remote First Nations communities that are currently serviced by diesel generation.
“We view it as one project, broken into two phases,” Kenequanash said. “Phase one is connecting up to Pickle Lake — the in-service date for that is targetted as 2015. (For) connection to the remotes, our target date is 2017.”
Kenequanash said the project is currently on schedule.
“Wataynikaneyap is going to be securing a transmission partner who will build the line,” Kenequanash said.
The Ontario Power Authority determined the cost of diesel generation in remote communities is three to 10 times more than the average cost of power in Ontario. As well, the use of diesel generation rather than transmission power results in significant health, safety, environmental, social development and economic impacts.
“The projection is that it will be very costly in the future if we continue with the status quo,” Kenequanash said. “Most of our communities are already on load restrictions, so they can’t connect their new housing and there are a number of other factors, with winter road issues and climate change, that are really preventing our communities from being able to access different business opportunities or economic development opportunities.”
Kenequanash said the communities are developing the Wataynikaneyap Power project to have ownership and control of the transmission line.
“It’s part of developing capacity at the community level,” Kenequanash said. “If we are going to make headway in terms of how we develop our governance and financial structures as First Nations people, we have to start developing these initiatives with the intent of owning them. How else are we going to develop future opportunities for the next generation?”
Kenequanash emphasized that for any development to happen in the north, there has to be mutual engagement and support.
The Wataynikaneyap Power 230 kilovolt power transmission line project was first announced in December 2011.
“My community can no longer afford the cost of expensive diesel power,” said Wunnumin Lake Chief Rod Winnepetonga at the time. “Together our communities must move quickly to bring transmission line connectivity.”