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Marlene Poitras, Regional Chief of Alberta for the Assembly of First Nations.
Postmedia files
Tsuu T'ina, Alta. – Alberta First Nations are considering acquiring a stake in the Trans Mountain Pipeline from Ottawa, but the Senior Project Authority has stated that there will be nothing to sell until the expansion project is completed. not approved.
Marlene Poitras, Alberta's influential Regional Director for the Assembly of First Nations, said she informed Finance Minister Bill Morneau of the interest shown by Aboriginal communities in Alberta to gain ownership of the project. .
Speaking at the Indigenous Energy Summit hosted by the Tsuu T & # 39; ina Nation, a reserve on the outskirts of Calgary, Poitras said that she had also informed the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, Perry Bellegarde, and the Government of Alberta that Aboriginal groups were seeking to purchase the pipeline project.
"I think that to create real savings on the reserves, real progress needs to be made in terms of the actual indicators," said Poitras, adding that there are plans to increase the wages of indigenous peoples, as well as the opportunities they offer. of education and property.
However, Ian Anderson, President and CEO of Trans Mountain Corp., said on Wednesday that "there is no investment project in this moment" because Expansion still requires new regulatory approvals from the National Energy Board before they can proceed with construction, increasing oil shipments from Alberta to the West Coast. He said that obtaining these approvals is the current priority before entering into agreements to sell stakes in the project.
Nevertheless, he confirmed that the federal government had received information from Aboriginal groups interested in acquiring a stake in the pipeline system and the expansion project purchased by Ottawa from Kinder Morgan Inc. of Houston for $ 4.5 billion. in 2018.
"All I can really say at this point are the ideas, the thoughts, the participants have all been heard. I can not say today what the outcome will be, "Anderson said at the event.
At Wednesday's conference, which brought together oil and gas executives and Aboriginal leaders, discussions focused on First Nations' interest in taking a stake in the Trans Mountain Pipeline and how could fund this participation, which goes beyond Alberta.
… The ideas, the thoughts, the participants have all been heard. I can not say today what will be the result
Ian Anderson, CEO of Trans Mountain
Earlier this week, Chief Mike LeBourdais of the Whispering Pines First Nation, a community north of Kamloops, British Columbia. told a radio station that a group of First Nations that supported the project had met with banks, industry representatives and other potential capital participants.
He added that the group was seeking a "preventative" offer before this year's federal election and could bid as early as April or May, the Vancouver Sun reported on Tuesday.
At Wednesday's conference, several First Nations involved in resource extraction were encouraged to engage with the federal government to negotiate a stake in the project.
"I think the time has come to raise our voices," said Barrie Robb, CEO of Fort McKay First Nation Business Development and principal of Fivars Consulting Ltd., most of whom were Aboriginal.
The executive negotiated with the Cree First Nations of Fort McKay and Mikisew when they spent $ 503 million to acquire a 49% interest in oil storage tanks near Fort McMurray, Alberta. by Suncor Energy Inc. in 2017, the largest agreement ever entered into by an Aboriginal group in Canada.
Robb told reporters that First Nations should negotiate an agreement that the project would be "less risky" by having the necessary regulatory approvals and possibly the completed construction, in order to recover the revenues from the completed project.
I think we can discuss the amount of equity, but I do not think we can discuss whether there is more equity.
Michael Binnion, CEO of Questerre Energy
In the energy sector, there is growing recognition that Aboriginal communities need participation in pipelines and other projects to be able to proceed and that businesses need to work directly with them, said the Chief Executive Officer. General of Questerre Energy Corp., Michael Binnion.
"I think we can discuss the amount of equity, but I do not think we can discuss the question of whether there is more equity," said Binnion.
He said there was now a "complete and different attitude to true First Nation partnerships" across the sector.
While First Nations have very diverse views on natural resource development in Alberta and across the country, many of the speeches made on Wednesday focused on whether resource projects could First Nations reduce their reliance on Ottawa funding.
"Where development occurs, I see it as economic sovereignty," said Wallace Fox, former chief of the Onion Lake First Nation in Saskatchewan and chair of the Indian Resource Council, who hosted the conference. week.
"Bring us a proposal, we will work with you to create this economic sovereignty in order to become independent of government policy," Fox said.
• Email: [email protected] | Twitter: geoffreymorgan
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