UCP minister says hydrogen can provide pathways for indigenous economic reconciliation

EDMONTON — A clean start.

That’s how Indigenous Relations Minister Rick Wilson is describing the potential for indigenous investment in clean hydrogen projects.

Speaking at the Canadian Hydrogen Convention in Edmonton on Thursday, Wilson said the UCP government is committed to encouraging investment from Alberta First Nations as a collaborative effort to spread the wealth in what government officials believe could be Alberta’s next major resource opportunity.

Wilson, the MLA for Maskwacîs-Wetaskiwin, was a major player in the establishment of the Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation (AIOC) which provides up to $3 billion in loan guarantees for native enterprises across a variety of industries including energy.

“There are many groundbreaking opportunities to work with indigenous-owned businesses who, through our economic development programs like our Aboriginal business investment fund, the Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation, we can access financial supports and resources for new projects in emerging fields,” he said. 

“The Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation… continues to be a game changer for attracting economic growth in the region.”

The Wetaskiwin region south of Edmonton encompasses several large aboriginal reserves and Wilson says in his personal biography that his time attending school with the First Nations of Maskwacîs is “an integral part” of his personal story.

The AIOC was pioneered under Premier Danielle Smith and has become a model for other governments, including British Columbia and Ottawa, to forge a path to true ‘economic reconciliation’ with First Nations by facilitating investment on their traditional lands.

One of the conference sessions was led by Enoch Cree Chief Billy Morin, who is the federal Conservative candidate in the riding of Edmonton Northwest and director of Axxcelus Capital Advisory, which wants to take an ownership stake in the TransMountain pipelines if and when Ottawa gets around to selling it.

Morin has previously told The Western Standard that the Enoch band wants to operate it.

Morin was the youngest chief elected in Canada at age 33 and has expressed a desire for native enterprises to expand beyond casinos — Enoch owns the successful River Cree resort outside Edmonton — and into more stable, longer-term investments like pipelines.

He has insisted that true ‘reconciliation’ isn’t about assigning blame for past wrongs but accepting intergenerational trauma and moving on. He’s considered to be the most pro-business of Canada’s aboriginal leaders.

Resource development is one of doing it from a practical and economic perspective.

Wilson said hydrogen represents an ideal opportunity to partner with native firms that are serious about grabbing hold of the opportunities in the hydrogen sector.

Earlier this week, Premier Danielle Smith said hydrogen could be Alberta’s next trillion-dollar industry.

“There are great opportunities to partner with indigenous communities on hydrogen projects while supporting economic reconciliation across the province,” Wilson said. 

“We've had some big success early on with a number of energy projects in Alberta, (but is) still in its infancy.”