Unlocking Canada’s stranded renewable energies
Press Release
June 05, 2025
Considerations for policymakers in developing frameworks for Indigenous-inclusive electricity transmission projects
The authors dedicate this paper to the late Byron LeClair. His efforts made this work possible.
Introduction
In uncertain times, one thing is clear: Canada’s Indigenous communities will play a pivotal role in the evolving clean energy transition. A recent Canadian Climate Institute piece shows that this process of sustainability-rooted economic reconciliation is well underway; the last few decades have seen a surge in Indigenous clean energy generation projects. But times are changing, and Indigenous entities are now playing important roles in other aspects of the energy transition beyond generation hallmarks like solar, run-of-river hydroelectricity, and wind. That necessary evolution includes the commissioning of new transmission infrastructure. The excerpt below from the above mentioned 2022 Canadian Climate Institute Waves of Change Report confirms the emerging Indigenization of transmission, and that this increase in Indigenous electricity transmission participation is not some abstract, theoretical, or wishfully normative future:
The 2015–2020 period also saw a significant rise in Indigenous participation in electricity transmission projects. A total of 19 such projects are now completed or in construction, including some linked to grid access for major projects (e.g., La Romaine Hydro, Quebec), off-grid community interconnection (e.g., Wataynikaneyap Power, Ontario), and grid strengthening (e.g., Bipole III, Manitoba).
Notably, Indigenous organizations are participating in these capital-intensive sectors as leaders and majority owners. In this new participatory environment, additional community-rooted, policymaker-focused commentary is necessary. There are legal, social, economic, and (of special relevance here, given the fora) environmental benefits associated with Indigenous inclusion in new transmission lines. It is essential that Canadian policy leaders carefully consider these benefits when determining the best way to allocate scarce time and money towards Indigenous economic reconciliation and climate change mitigation—two defining challenges for Canada in the 21st century.
[Click here to see the English version] Ōma nīhithaw kakīskīkīmowin-masinahikan ikīmasinahikātīk, kawīcihikocik omistikōsiwak, aniki kātoskātākwāw pithīsīskotīw, ka-kiskīthītākwāw īsi nīhithawak ka-mitho-wītatoskīmīcik, īsi nīhithawak kā-isi-nistōtākwāw ōmītowak atoskīwin.
We see our work as partially addressing an imbalance in the energy transition literature towards Indigenous engagement in clean electricity generation. This historical (over)emphasis, while laudable and understandable, needs to now expand to include transmission (as well as other relevant topics spanning the electricity value chain, such as electricity distribution). Extensive research highlights that Indigenous leadership and participation is possible across multiple dimensions of the complex energy transition (see here for our most recent work on this topic, and here for past work on novel Indigenous transmission ideas). We emphasize in this piece concrete and realistic conceptual foundations for policymakers keen to advance Indigenous-inclusive electricity projects that broadly benefit Canadians.
Led by Frank Busch, the first ‘treaty status’ CEO of a Canadian Tier 1 publicly traded company, this perspective integrates an Indigenous viewpoint rooted in, and corroborated by, the thoughts and experiences of the collaborating authors. We open this section by emphasizing the following: this Indigenous perspective is an informed, but highly person(s)-specific perspective rooted in Indigenous community energy and economic development practices. Moreover, it is not the defining perspective for every community. In fact, it is not even to be taken as the collective perspective of Busch’s home of Nisichawayasihk (Nee-chise-away-a-see) Cree Nation. Instead, it is our hope this work contributes to a budding Indigenous-led dialogue around the non-generation aspects of clean energy transformation.
As a team of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous authors, we seek to provide what our practitioner and academic experiences suggest are select best practices for communities navigating what their participation in Canada’s transmission future will ultimately entail. Our recommendations are conscious of select theory and extant literature while remaining anchored in practice (with a special grounding in both the lived experiences and direct observations of the lead author).
As just some examples of the background on which we will be drawing, Busch has visited over 300 Indigenous communities over the last two decades, while others members of the authorship team have lived in remote communities (Krupa) or supported Indigenous-led environmental assessments in Western Canada (Hanna – see Nishima-Miller et al.). This work synthesizes these decades of energy transition and community development experience and is, in turn, supplemented by literature-based and/or real-world examples spanning early-stage feasibility testing to long-term operations.
The implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), which Canada has signed, mandates that all electricity transmission projects planned for Canada’s goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2050 must involve Indigenous consultation, equity participation, and/or construction participation. Even in 2025, many Indigenous communities remain reliant on expensive, often unreliable, and occasionally dangerous diesel-generated electricity that inhibits Nation-led efforts to expand local economies and provide better opportunities for young people. This status quo, which stems at least in part from transmission gaps, culminates in what van de Biezenbos calls Canada’s energy persistent poverty. As van de Biezenbos points out, this not only creates unacceptable energy injustice, but also stifles much-needed economic growth. Energy persistent poverty is unlikely to change without new thinking around transmission projects in particular.
Beyond the sound sociolegal basis for new transmission efforts outlined thus far, the climate-related motivation for increasing analysis on Indigenous-friendly electricity transmission projects is similarly clear. This could be executed under a wide array of scenarios: expansions of existing planned or mid-term intraprovincial lines, ties facilitating greater interprovincial electricity trade, additional lines connecting Canada to the United States, or even (more theoretical) long-distance intraprovincial connections between sparsely populated, but clean electricity-rich, regions and the industrial heartlands or urban areas where extra electricity supply is needed. The clean energy transition is commonly envisioned as an exercise in commissioning much greater levels of wind, solar, and hydroelectricity resources. However, without adequate transmission interconnections, renewable energy generation outputs (many of which are situated in distant places full of excellent wind resources or sunny skies) have nowhere to go. Although underappreciated, transmission is the anchor for realizing lofty climate change ambitions.
Canadian research shows systemic cost efficiencies and emission abatement potential associated with transmission expansion and interconnection, such as better value extraction from existing clean energy assets and enhancing the value of carbon pricing policies. As elucidated in the important paper The cost of decarbonizing the Canadian electricity system, transmission also offers one of the lowest cost emission reduction options for Canadians.
[Click here to see the English version] ōma pithīsīskotīw atoskīwin ōta ministik kānata kwayask mistahi atoskīwin, mistahi mīna ikota oci kakī-sōniyākipathiw māka, poko nīhithawak kawītatoskīmīcik.
Of course, achieving optimal outcomes is easier said than done. The reality is that constructing transmission lines is lengthy and arduous work. Power transmission involves enormous capital outlays, the ability to marshal and organize a diverse team of professionals (legal, technical, and others) over multi-year or even decadal time frames, and the capacity to overcome a remarkable array of different obstacles. Of concern, the historical record of enhanced transmission integration (such as in Busch’s home province of Manitoba) suggests that ultimate environmental outcomes are not uniformly beneficial. While such constraints and downsides are well beyond the scope of this short case study, we wanted to ensure they are acknowledged upfront as we move towards concrete starting points for policymakers in particular to consider.
Many Indigenous communities are seeking greater opportunities to develop local, sustainable, and environmentally-sound economies, as well as increase access to employment opportunities for community members via revenue-bearing assets that can improve a nation’s financial standing. The following constitute five specific recommendations, all of which overlap with the much lengthier series of recommendations provided in the recent First Nations Major Project Coalition’s National Indigenous Electrification Strategy. We offer the following recommendations as starting points for Indigenous-linked policymakers to consider as possible ways forward in achieving greater economic and political sovereignty for their energy futures.
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