The Awasis Solar Project
Project Overview
Cowessess First Nation and Elemental Energy partnered to develop the Awasis Solar Project. It is located on Cowessess First Nations land, east of Regina, Saskatchewan, and currently produces 10 Megawatts of solar energy. It has been operating successfully since 2022.
Laying the Groundwork
The Cowessess First Nation (CFN) is a community that saw the challenges people are facing globally when it comes to energy production, and they wanted to act proactively before it became a challenge for their community.
Before they became partners on the Awasis Solar Project, CFN partnered with the First Nations Power Authority (FNPA) to complete a rural energy assessment for their community. From this, they implemented a 400 Kilowatt solar array on a collection of local buildings including the school and band office. This made them uniquely qualified to excel as partners on the Awasis Solar Project.
FNPA’s Role in the Awasis Solar Project
The Awasis Solar Project was a first for the First Nations Power Authority. This project agreement came into effect shortly after the beginning of the FNPA. SaskPower, the Government of Saskatchewan, and the Federations of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) had just come together to form the First Nations Power Authority, and the Awasis project was their first First Nations Opportunity Agreement (FNOA).
Many organizations play a role in an energy project like this one. For example, SaskPower outlines parameters for the project including size, production, and regulatory matters.
The FNPA manages a lot of the project specifics and logistics. For this project, they met with a number of First Nations communities to understand which ones would:
- Benefit most from a project like this.
- Continue investing in clean energy following the initial project.
- Have the capacity to be involved.
For the Awasis Project, it was Cowessess. They had the internal capacity built from a previous solar project, a clear interest in investing in the space, and an enthusiasm for seizing the economic opportunity. This project was majority Indigenous-owned from the beginning, with CFN owning 51%. At this point, they’ve bought out far more ownership in the project.
The Results of the Awasis Solar Project
Clean energy project involvement has impressive benefits for both communities and individuals.
The Awasis Solar Project helped the CFN community build internal capacity to manage clean energy projects. In fact, their own team won a bid on another clean energy project following Awasis, so now they’re involved in a 200-megawatt wind farm project. In addition, the CFN community enjoys many benefits in the form of ownership experience, equity returns, and lease revenue.
As individuals go through the process with their community to bring a clean energy project to life, they gain valuable experience and skills that are transferable to future roles and projects.
The First Nations Power Authority has been proud to watch the Awasis Solar Project come to successful fruition, and, as a result, watch the growth of the CFN into the clean energy space. Our role in laying the groundwork, completing assessments, and facilitating partnerships in the initial projects for this community will forever be viewed as a win for our team.
Let’s talk about a partnership today!
FNPA is a Indigenous governed, not-for-profit development company, reducing development costs and risks for Indigenous-led projects. FNPA is the pathway to powerful opportunities.