The Owl River Métis Community has entered into an agreement with Culture Pathways Development Corp to build three solar power plants in Lac La Biche, which are expected to generate a combined 65 megawatts of clean energy once they go online.
The partnership was officially announced at a Dec. 16 press conference at Edmonton’s Fairmont Hotel Macdonald.
The plans consist of a small five-megawatt, medium 20-megawatt and large 40-megawatt plant, which a handout provided to attendees said will be used to power hydroponic agriculture, AI and blockchain data centres and green hydrogen production.
Jack Quintal, president of the Owl River Métis Community, which is located at Lac La Biche’s northeastern shore, told attendees that the development will be “huge for our youth, our Elders [and] our culture that we need to bring back.”
“Aboriginal people …