This agreement comes on the heels of the Council of the Federation’s announcement of the Canadian Energy Strategy, which identified energy in off-grid communities as a priority.

In Canada, there are nearly 300 off-grid communities with a total population of approximately 200,000 people. These communities include Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal settlements, villages or cities as well as long-term commercial outposts and camps for mining, fishing and forestry activities. Of these sites, approximately 175 are indigenous communities (First Nations, Innu, Inuit or Métis) with approximately 130,000 residents.

The Pan-Canadian Task Force will be chaired by Manitoba, and consist of officials from each of the provincial and territorial ministries and agencies that have policy responsibility for electricity supply in remote off-grid communities and remote off-grid aboriginal communities.

This initiative is long overdue. Forty years in fact. Communities like Shamattawa First Nation have hydro dams and converter stations in their back yard but no roads and no electricity. Forty years and no action has been taken by Manitoba Hydro or the Manitoba government.

View July 21, 2015 Ontario Government news release
View July 21, 2015 Electrical Business article
View July 22, 2015 Global News article
View August 2011 Government of Canada report