Question Period Note: Northern Energy Security

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• Strengthening energy security across the North is an important element in securing Canada’s sovereignty and unlocking the region’s full economic potential.
• Investments that Canada has made in projects are critical to ensuring the North has access to clean, dependable, and affordable power. On November 13, 2025 the Prime Minister referred the second tranche of transformational projects to the Major Projects Office for further study; including the Iqaluit Nukkiksautiit Hydro Project.
• To date, my Department of Northern and Arctic Affairs has invested $104 million into 262 northern clean energy projects and related capacity building initiatives, including the Iqaluit Hydro Project ($27 million) and the Kivalliq Hydro-Fibre Link ($9.8 million).
• The Northern REACHE program has reduced diesel to date by 5.7 million litres and the program is on track to achieve its target of 7 million litres annually by 2030.

In the three territories and Inuit Nunangat there are 73 isolated diesel microgrids, and 3 regional hydro grids serving 24 communities which are not connected to the North American grid.
CIRNAC’s climate change programs are actively readying northern and Indigenous communities and key enablers to lead on climate change resilience and clean energy through investments in people, communities, and infrastructure. These programs are developing community leaders, closing critical data gaps, advancing community safety, strengthening the northern energy sector, de-risk projects and enable proponent access to larger investments, and providing expertise to partners.
For example, CIRNAC has invested $85 million in over 400 community-led climate change adaptation projects in northern and Indigenous communities that support self-determined community priorities.

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