Natural Resources Committee on May 26th, 2026

[Jonathan Rowe, Conservative, Terra Nova—The Peninsulas, NL]

Yes.

[Drew Leyburne]

Is it the Alberta MOU?

[Jonathan Rowe, Conservative, Terra Nova—The Peninsulas, NL]

It's the Newfoundland and Labrador MOU.

[Drew Leyburne]

Oh, I see. I can quickly respond to that.

We were very heartened to see a willingness to get to the table again. Both provinces have appointed very strong negotiators.

In terms of the federal government, this is mostly a deal between two parties. We think the project has significant interest for Canada, and we'll certainly do anything we can to help those two parties come to an agreement.

[Jonathan Rowe, Conservative, Terra Nova—The Peninsulas, NL]

[Inaudible—Editor] writing the cheque.

[The Chair, Liberal, Terry Duguid]

Thank you both for that exchange.

Mr. Watchorn, welcome to the committee. You have five minutes.

[Tim Watchorn, Liberal, Les Pays-d'en-Haut, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I'd like to thank the witnesses for joining us today.

I have the honour of sitting on the Standing Committee on National Defence. Currently, we are hearing a lot about security in the north. I will therefore direct my questions to Ms. Ankersmit.

First, I would like to know how the energy strategy will help the north secure its energy supply. How will we gradually move away from diesel to promote other energy sources?

[Joanna Ankersmit, Acting Assistant Deputy Minister, Northern Affairs Organization, Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs]

Yes, we're working closely in the north with a number of departments. This isn't just a national defence issue. We are working with our partners in NRCan, CIRNAC, CanNor and a number of departments that have to be involved in this.

Most important are our territorial partners, the utilities and our indigenous partners across the north. It's a collective effort to work toward increasing the capacity of the north to meet the energy needs that will be coming with Arctic sovereignty. It will play into the execution of NRCan's strategy. We look forward to working with NRCan on that.

[Tim Watchorn, Liberal, Les Pays-d'en-Haut, QC]

That's great. We're also talking a lot about dual-use technology. There are dual-use technologies for bases and communities.

Do you see that as something that can be developed as we establish our security bases in the north?

[Joanna Ankersmit]

Certainly. That has been a very active conversation between our colleagues at National Defence and communities, including territorial government and indigenous partners.

[Tim Watchorn, Liberal, Les Pays-d'en-Haut, QC]

Thank you.

I would also like to know how the federal government can support indigenous equity in energy projects.

[Gurbux Saini, Liberal, Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC]

Mr. Chair, I'm having difficulty with interpretation.

[The Chair, Liberal, Terry Duguid]

One moment, we'll check with our interpreters and the clerk.

Mr. Watchorn, please continue. You have a little over three minutes left.

[Tim Watchorn, Liberal, Les Pays-d'en-Haut, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I'll repeat my question: how can the federal government support indigenous equity in energy projects?

[Joanna Ankersmit]

There are many ways. That's a big question.

One of the programs that we have been running out of CIRNAC is the northern REACHE program. That's a program that has been working with indigenous communities over the last decade to really promote their own innovation in their communities. Across the three territories, there are 55 independent diesel grids. There are three minor, or relatively small, regional grids. There's a lot of opportunity for growth and development in the indigenous space. The communities have been very active in projects across the three territories and in Inuit Nunangat.

I expect there will be plenty of opportunities to work in partnership with the other partners and indigenous leadership in this exercise to increase the off-diesel component and the renewable technology, which will increase the energy security of the territories in Inuit Nunangat.

We have a number of projects, most recently with Iqaluit hydro, which has the potential to significantly reduce the diesel needed to power Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut. That is an indigenous-led project that we really look forward to working on with our partners.

[Tim Watchorn, Liberal, Les Pays-d'en-Haut, QC]

Thank you very much.

I have one last question: Is the established indigenous loan guarantee program helpful for indigenous participation in these projects?

[Joanna Ankersmit]

There have been a number of positive reactions to that fund. My colleagues at NRCan may have some further comments on that, but I know that it has been very well received by our indigenous partners across the country and in the north.

[Tim Watchorn, Liberal, Les Pays-d'en-Haut, QC]

Mr. Bernier, do you have anything to add?

[André Bernier]

I would also mention, beyond the indigenous loan guarantee program, that the Canada Infrastructure Bank has been working in partnership and facilitating indigenous ownership of a number of projects across the country. The CIB has become an increasingly prominent player in terms of supporting equity and debt participation of indigenous partners.

[Tim Watchorn, Liberal, Les Pays-d'en-Haut, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Terry Duguid]

Mr. Simard, you have two and a half minutes.

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Guay and I had a very interesting meeting with a service provider for peak demand management, and it reminded me of two components of your strategy.

On the one hand, there is infrastructure for electricity producers. That involves developing infrastructure and interconnections. However, on the other hand, I don’t see how you can support the value chain that is developing around electrification and small service providers, who play a particularly crucial role. Indeed, in your opening statement, you mentioned storage strategies. I think we’re lagging behind in that area in Canada.

How can you provide support to these service providers within your strategy?

[André Bernier]

Thank you very much for the question.

The strategy identified eight areas for action. One of these areas is capacity building across the value chain. However, we need to conduct analyses, have conversations and collaborate to identify specific opportunities. At this point, we fully agree that this is a pressing issue, but there is still work to be done to identify which industries or companies are among the most important.

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

In other words, we’ll have to wait a few more years before seeing this materialize.

[André Bernier]

I hope it will be months rather than years. However, that is part of the work.