March 16, 2023 – Whitesand First Nation’s Sagatay Co-Generation LP is getting $35-million from Ottawa to deploy a combined heat and power facility that uses locally sourced wood waste.

“Whitesand’s vision of energy independence and economic growth began in 1992 when we proposed a biomass cogeneration facility,” said Chief Allan Gustafson. “Although that proposal was not accepted—and despite the many barriers we have faced through the years—we did not give up and, today, our vision of a sustainable future through the use of our local forest is at hand.”

Once constructed, the 6.5-MW facility will reduce the use of diesel fuel for heat and electricity in Whitesand, and the communities of Armstrong and Collins, Ontario. The facility will also provide heat and power to a new wood pellet plant and a fully electric wood merchandising yard.

Federal funding for this project is provided by Natural Resources Canada’s Smart Renewables and Electrification Pathways (SREPs) program—a $1.56-billion program that provides support for smart renewable energy and electrical grid modernization projects, including projects that support capacity building.

NRCan had previously provided $4,168,000 in funding for this project (for pre-development work) from the Clean Energy for Rural and Remote Communities (CERRC) program.