CanWEA Awards Mesgi’g Ugju’s’n for Wind Energy Project
PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE PUBLICATION
Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA)
Awards Mesgi’g Ugju’s’n for Wind Energy Project
Gesgapegiag, November 1, 2018—The Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA), during the 34th Annual CanWEA Conference and Exhibition held in Calgary from October 23rd-25th, awarded Mesgi’g Ugju’s’n Wind Farm (MU) for Wind Project. Among the finalist were Parc éolien Mont Sainte-Marguerite, Pattern Energy and Parc éolien Nicolas-Riou, EDF Renewable Canada and Alliance éolienne de l’Est.
In Calgary attending the event, MU Chair and a Mi’gmaq from Gespeg, Nadia Robertson said that, “Receiving this award and being acknowledged for our Wind Project gives the Mi’gmaq communities of Gesgapegiag, Gespeg and Listuguj great pride and I feel that it will resonate in Canada and generate inspiration for other communities but mainly for our people in Gespe’gewa’gi. This project is a success because when the project started, “we weren’t thinking of building a Wind Farm, we had the intention on building a Nation”.”
Accompanying Ms. Robertson were Anthony Jerome, Gesgapegiag Councilor; Sky Metallic, Listuguj Councilor; Donald Jeannotte-Anglehart from Gespeg, Jeannette Martin, MMBC Board of Director; and Christianne Bernard, MMBC Chief Executive Officer. However, this success also recognizes all the tremendous efforts of former employees in management, administration, construction, environmental monitoring, and every individual that participated in this project, including and former leadership. These individuals have passed the torch to the present leadership, management, administration and operations workers, including the service technicians who are from the communities and region. Together with Innergex and all the operations staff, MU will continue to achieve milestones.
The wind farm project was started by the Mi’gmaq, and later selected Innergex through a vetting process, as their partner. The partners began constructing the 150 MW project in the Regional County Municipality of Avignon, Quebec in 2015, and kick started the operations in December 2016. Mesgi’g Ugju’s’n means “Big Wind” in the Mi’gmaq language, and it is the first wind farm developed in the Gaspésie in partnership with an Indigenous community. During construction, the project employed 389 people – 113 of whom came from Mi’gmaq communities, and an additional 225 from the surrounding region and province. The project will generate more than $200 million in revenue for the Mi’gmaq communities over the coming decades.
The Mi’gmawei Mawiomi Business Corporation (MMBC) is the general partner of the Mi’gmawei Mawiomi Resources Limited Partnership (MMRLP), whose three shareholders are the Micmac Nation of Gespeg, the Micmacs of Gesgapegiag and the Listuguj Mi’gmaq Government. It is MMBC who manages the MU Wind Farm for the Mi’gmaq and Innergex manages the operations.
For more information please contact:
François-Olivier Gagnon
Project and Communication Officer
418 759-3070
418 392-0901
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