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Sooke-area First Nations receive funding for renewable energy projects

Pacheedaht and T’Sou-ke to enhance community sustainability with $500,000 in government grants
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Pacheedaht and T’Sou-ke First Nations are in line to receive more than $500,000 in federal and provincial funding to develop clean energy projects. (Asia Chang/Unsplash)

Two Sooke-area First Nations will receive more than $500,000 in federal and provincial funding to develop clean energy projects.

The projects are funded by the BC Indigenous Clean Energy Initiative, a partnership between the federal and provincial governments and the New Relationship Trust.

Local projects receiving funding are:

• Pacheedaht First Nation: $265,080 towards the conceptual design and financial analysis report for a hydropower project.

• T’Sou-ke First Nation: $285,000 towards a 25kW solar PV and 100kWh battery energy storage unit for industrial greenhouses and a marine services/manufacturing facility.

“First Nations are key partners as we work together to build cleaner, more resilient communities and power B.C.’s growing economy with renewable electricity,” said Josie Osborne, B.C.’s minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation.

Throughout B.C., 35 First Nations are receiving funding through the program. Since 2016, the initiative has supported 135 projects worth approximately $30 million.

According to a government press release, projects funded through the program include clean energy generation, energy efficiency and energy storage. These projects help First Nations meet their current and future energy needs while creating more jobs in their communities.

RELATED: Sooke First Nations embrace clean energy