Opportunities for First Nations

Page 4

First Nations communities involved in the energy sector, or wanting to learn more about opportunities to get involved, should mark Feb. 27 and 28 on their calendars.

Those are the dates for this year's First Nations Energy Conference, to be held at the International Plaza Hotel in Toronto. The theme of the third annual conference is "Making it Happen."

"The main idea behind the conference was to let Aboriginal people know about the opportunities that were available in the industry," said conference co-ordinator Nancy Wood. "We're a small consulting firm and just based on the work that we do, we can see a lot of instances where people just aren't aware of the opportunities that are facing them. They just don't have the ability, the resources, to monitor what's going on. We thought it would be a useful way to let people know what's going on, and how they could benefit from it."

One of the focuses of this year's conference will be the opening up of Ontario's electricity market to competition, which is set to happen May 1. While the opening of the market has been a topic of discussion at the previous conferences, now that a date has been set, those discussions can be less speculative, explained Wood.

Some of the areas of opportunity that will be discussed at the conference will include operating local distribution companies, purchasing and operating generators, and the purchase and sale of electricity.

Presenters at the conference will be looking at the state of the electricity industry prior to market opening, as well as opportunities that exist in the industry. Raising money and dealing with investors, financing large generation projects, risk management, insurance, and signing long-term energy contracts will also be dealt with. Presentations about waterpower regulation, renewable energy technologies, green power, and energy efficient technologies are also scheduled.

Among the presenters expected to speak at the conference are conference chair Wally McKay from Windigo First Nations Council, Ontario Energy Board chair Floyd Laughren, and Assembly of First Nations Ontario Regional Chief Charles Fox.

While not a lot of First Nations are currently involved in the energy sector in Ontario, that is slowly changing, Wood said.

"We're involved with a group called the Five Nations Energy project that's in the process of building a transmission line company, and developing three local distribution companies. In the past those kind of opportunities certainly really weren't open to First Nations themselves," she said.

"With the competition in the industry, there will be wholesalers and retailers of power. Certainly those are opportunities that First Nations can take advantage of. But again, it's a case of kind of learning about what opportunities are there, and what steps you need to take to be able to get into that market."

For more information about conference, contact McLeod Wood Associates at 1-800-889-0697, or visit their Web site at www.mcleod-wood.com/energy/.