First Nations equity is now a structural feature of major renewable projects, and a set of programs exists specifically to finance it. The Canada Infrastructure Bank's Indigenous Equity Initiative offers loans that can finance up to 90 percent of a First Nation's equity position in projects the CIB is backing. Alongside it sit federal and provincial loan-guarantee programs designed to let Nations take on meaningful ownership without carrying all the upfront capital themselves. On the recent BC wind awards, mechanisms like these sit behind roughly $4.3 billion in private investment. The programs work, but they each carry their own eligibility tests, structuring rules, and reporting obligations, and navigating them well is where a project either builds momentum or stalls.
How we help First Nations clients navigate it. For a Nation weighing an ownership stake, the questions are practical: which program fits this project, what does the equity actually buy, how is the technical and financial due diligence handled, and who is protecting the Nation’s interests through structuring and negotiation. As an independent advisor, we help Nations answer those questions on their own terms, translating between the technical, financial, and legal moving parts so the ownership decision is informed rather than rushed.
Why an Indigenous partner strengthens a project. For developers, a genuine Indigenous partnership is not only about meeting a program requirement. It unlocks financing pathways that are not otherwise available, it reflects the rights and jurisdiction that are central to how these projects proceed, and it tends to produce more durable projects, because a partner who is a co-owner is invested in the outcome over the long term rather than consulted once and moved past. Structured early and genuinely, that partnership becomes one of the project’s strengths.
Where PRI offers leadership. This is owner’s-engineer and advisory work at its core. We can sit on either side of the table: helping a Nation understand and steward its ownership position, or helping a developer structure a partnership that is real, financeable, and built to last. Getting the ownership model, the funding pathway, and the governance right at the front end is what turns a partnership from an intention into a project that gets built.
Contact Our Team.
We would love to hear more about you and the project that you have in mind.
Jesse Unke, P.ENG., PE, PMP, RMP, CMC
Vice President, Transportation & Infrastructure
jesse.unke@priengineering.com