Montréal: Innergex Renewable Energy Inc., the Pituvik Landholding Corporation and Hydro-Québec announced a project May 27 building a 7.5-MW run-of-river hydroelectric generating station on the Inukjuak River near Inukjuak, Nunavik, in northern Québec. The Innavik Project, an initiative of Pituvik, is in line with Hydro-Québec’s strategy to convert off-grid systems to cleaner and less costly energy sources. The project is designed to meet the community’s growing long-term energy needs while acting as a lever for sustainable development.
Innergex will oversee the construction and operation of the 7.5-MW run-of-river generating station, a project valued at approximately $125 million, with Pituvik as a 50% partner. Site preparation should begin in the fourth quarter of 2019 and construction, in 2020. The generating station should begin serving the community toward late 2022. The projected adjusted EBITDA for the Innavik Project’s first full year of operation is approximately $9 million.
“Innergex has entered into many partnerships with local and Indigenous communities to develop renewable energy projects and we are proud to have concluded our first partnership with an Inuit community in connection with the Innavik Project,” said Michel Letellier, President and Chief Executive Officer of Innergex. “This will be the first generating station built for an off-grid system in a remote community to help their transition from diesel to hydroelectricity. Our extensive expertise in small hydro projects and in partnerships with communities should be a key success factor for this unique project, with tangible benefits for the community and future generations.”
“Switching to hydropower will enable us to replace diesel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions for our basic electricity and heating needs, while saving on fuel costs,” said Eric Atagotaaluk, President of Pituvik.
Innergex Communiations Director Karine Vachon points out that the project will also enable the creation of new businesses that could not exist if they had to rely on relatively expensive diesel fuel. “There are already ideas for greenhouses to locally grow vegetables, improving food availability and affordability, in turn creating new employment opportunities. Available renewable electricity may even spawn business models that were once unthinkable in a northern community. This is the structuring effect that the community has been motivated by since Pituvik incepted the project over 10 years ago.”