Canadian Biomass • Winter 2022 • Editorial

As Canada looks to scale-up the use of renewable fuels, Indigenous communities lead the way

Since joining Canadian Biomass in 2018, I’ve seen a big uptick in investments in biofuel, biogas and bioenergy projects, particularly in the past year. A large percentage of these new investments have been in Indigenous communities where renewable energy sources, such as wood waste, are readily available to replace costly traditional fossil fuels.

For example, in December 2021, BioNorth Energy, a joint-venture partnership between the Arrow Group of Companies, the Nak’azdli Whut’en First Nation, and Nexus Management Group, acquired a shuttered biomass power generation facility in Fort St. James, B.C. The facility came back online in January, providing green energy and jobs to locals. Read more about the biopower project on page 18.

Another example of Indigenous-led biomass investments is the Meadow Lake Tribal Council (MLTC)’s new Bioenergy Centre. The MLTC consists of nine First Nations in Meadow Lake, Sask. They saw an opportunity to use wood waste from their mill which was being burned in beehive burners. As stewards of the land, Indigenous communities and organizations have an inherent understanding of how important it is to use as much of every tree as possible, said Tina Rasmussen, corporate development and administration officer with MLTC Industrial Investments.

Now, the Bioenergy Centre will power 5,000 homes in the community, as well as provide heat and power for their sawmill’s new continuous kiln. The project is the first of its kind in Saskatchewan, and sets a strong precedent for investing in Indigenous- led bioeconomy ventures. In my opinion, the multitude of benefits for local communities, both economically and environmentally, speak for themselves. It is a major step forward for Saskatchewan and Canada as the world begins more earnestly to transition to renewable fuel sources. As Rasmussen told me, the MLTC sees this as just the beginning. Read more about the project on page 10.

While much of the focus has been on bioenergy power, the backbone of the bioeconomy – the wood pellet industry – has also seen a lot of growth. That growth is predicted to continue as demand for renewable fuels takes off, particularly in Asia and Europe. William Strauss, CEO of FutureMetrics, shares in our annual pellet markets outlook article on page 13 that “the industrial wood pellet markets have been growing at an annualized rate of about 1.66 million metric tonnes per year from 2010 through 2021.”

That’s not a small number by any means. In fact, it reinforces the case for investing in the wood pellet industry, something which international companies such as Drax have realized. Drax came onto the Canadian scene in a big way last year when it acquired Pinnacle Renewable Energy, and recently announced plans to double its pellet production capacity by 2030. Matt White, the company’s executive vice-president, shares some insights about their plans on page 16.

As we move into 2022, I look forward to seeing the Canadian bioeconomy continue to develop, with Indigenous communities leading the charge.