CEA Board of Directors’ Report on Northern Energy Symposium

The Board of Directors of the Canadian Electricity Association met in the Yukon from June 19 to 21, 2018. This was the first time in the association’s history that a Board meeting was convened in Canada’s North. CEA marked the occasion by hosting in partnership with two member companies that operate in the North, Yukon Energy and ATCO, a symposium on the energy needs of the North. The symposium yielded a very engaged discussion and from this CEA produced the attached report. It contains the key takeaways of the discussion, and the following 5 strategic recommendations for the federal government.

1. The Federal Government must support transformative renewable energy infrastructure projects in Canada’s North in terms of financial capital, and research, development, and deployment;
2. The Federal Government must work to accelerate research underway to find innovative efficiencies in diesel generation, while concurrently promoting non-diesel alternatives;
3. The Federal Government should work to facilitate transmission interconnections between the North and the South in an effort to end its energy isolation;
4. The Federal Government must find and implement “flexible” funding mechanisms for the territorial governments to achieve their climate objectives and targets; and.
5. The Federal Government must continue to build new and dynamic partnerships with Indigenous communities, if those communities are to be economically prosperous and sustainable.