This is the first time Hydro has shared ownership of a transmission line. The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake will own 10% of the Hertel-New York line.
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The agreements were signed Thursday, in Kahnawake, by Kahsennenhawe Sky-Deer, grand chief of the Mohawk community, the CEO of Hydro-Québec, Michael Sabia, and Ian Lafrenière, minister responsible for Relations with First Nations and Inuit.
Photo Pierre-Paul Poulin
The Mohawk Council’s share in the project, which represents $10 million according to Michael Sabia’s explanations, could increase to 49%. But greater participation is not yet on the table.
“We have the possibility of going anywhere between 10% and 49%, it will depend on our risk tolerance and interest rates,” mentioned Kahsennenhawe Sky-Deer.
This historic partnership will allow the Mohawk community to generate a return “around” 8% on their investment, underlined the CEO of Hydro-Québec. “The level of yield is consistent with the yield we ourselves earn on regulated activities,” he added.
Photo Pierre-Paul Poulin
Historical connection with New York
“Kanien’keháka ironworkers participated in the construction of the New York skyline; today, Kahnawàke once again contributes to the lives of New Yorkers by transporting renewable energy that will illuminate this same skyline built with the help of the Mohawks, declared Kahsennenhawe Sky-Deer in a press release released at the end of the ‘event.
“This agreement is particularly remarkable because it is the first time that Hydro-Québec has entered into a co-ownership agreement for a transportation asset with a third party and an Indigenous community,” she added.
“The agreement signed today gives me hope that other similar partnerships will emerge in the future so that more communities participate in the realization of important projects,” declared, for his part, Minister Ian Lafrenière.
The Hertel-New York line, a 400 kV underground transmission line, will connect the Hertel substation in La Prairie to a crossing point at the New York State border.
The line will be used to transport electricity to New York, under a contract that begins in 2026 and will transport 10.4 TWh of electricity to New York per year, for a period of 25 years.
To compensate for the passage of the line over granted ancestral lands, formerly known as the “lordship of Sault-Saint-Louis”, Hydro-Québec had established, in 2021, a partnership with the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake, but the Details of this partnership had not yet been disclosed.