The $21M Cowesss First Nation solar project is now up and running – EQ Mag Pro
A multi-million dollar solar power project primarily owned by the Cousins First Nation is now online.
The $21 million Avasis Solar Project, located on Cowes First Nation Reserve land about three kilometers southeast of Regina, marked its official grand opening on Wednesday.
According to SaskPower, it will provide 10 megawatts of solar power to the provincial grid – enough to power an average of 2,500 homes per year.
Cowesses chief Cadmus Delorme hopes the project will inspire other Saskatchewan First Nations to participate in renewable energy projects.
“You can do what the Couse is doing today,” Delorme said at a ceremony Wednesday afternoon.
“Just make sure you’re on the table, know your values and have experts on hand to help lead a project of this nature that we know we’re capable of.”
The solar project was developed by Avesis Solar LP, a partnership between Cause’s First Nation and Elemental Energy. Cowesses currently owns 95 percent of Awasis, and Elemental Energy owns the remaining 5 percent.
Awasis is the Cree name of Littlechild, the last hereditary chief of the Caucasus, said Delorme, and the Solar Project is named to honor the chief, “who agreed to the treaty that led us to this relationship today.”
The power generated by the plant will be sold to SaskPower for the next 20 years as part of the power purchase agreement.
“This project is going to bring 20 years of economic prosperity,” Delorme said.
A portion of the revenue from the project will go towards CAVES’ goal of becoming Canada’s greenest first nation.
“We will use the revenue from this project to reinvest in our renewable energy projects,” Delorme said.
“Second, some of the profits will go to the un-financed areas – language, family and culture closed and reserved.”
Federal funding helps Cauce-led project
Work on the site began in 2019, with Cause Citizens managing the Avasis project.
Delorme credits the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action 92 for helping make the project a possibility – which focuses on economic reconciliation.
The federal government provided Awasis $18.5 million for the project, allowing Cowesses to partner with companies such as Elemental Energy.
Federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said, “I think we can all agree that we need to think about how we build more renewable energy and non-emitting sources of energy into our grids.”
“It’s going to be important not only to achieve our climate goals but also to advance a competitive economy.”
“Avasis” is a great example of a partnership between the province, the federal government, and of course the first nation to lead the project, Wilkinson said.
According to a news release from the federal government, and by about 350,000 tons over the project’s expected 35-year lifetime, Avasys is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 14,000 tons in its first year of operation.
The total is equivalent to the emissions of more than 70,000 gas-powered cars driven for a year, according to a federal government news release.
Source: PTI
