Canadian Whitesand tribe finally gains $35M funding to build Wood-fired CHP plant
The Canadian government will invest $35 million ($25.6 million in U.S. dollars) to a power generation entity owned by an indigenous tribe to build a combined heat and power plant fueled by local wood waste.
Natural Resources Canada announced the investment to the Sagatay Co-Generation Limited Partnership, which is owned by Whitesand First Nation. The planned wood-fired CHP facility will reduce the use of diesel fuel for heat and electricity within the tribal boundaries including communities of Armstrong and Collins in Ontario.
The 6.5-MW CHP plant will provide local, resilient power and “helping to power low-carbon solutions in the region while supporting indigenous,” Hon. Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources, said in a statement. The Sagatay facility “is an important local energy solution that will cut emissions from diesel fuel and provide good jobs in northern Ontario.”
Once operational, the CHP plant will connect to the local microgrid. Some of the electricity generated also will provide heat and power to a new wood pellet plant and all-electric wood merchandising yard.
The Whitesand First Nation had lobbied for the project about 30 years ago, according to news reports.
The project planners hope to complete and commission the Sagatay CHP plant in about three years.
