Work is underway at the Ikayuut Solar and Energy project in Naujaat following a groundbreaking ceremony held Sept. 5. From left, Mayor Kevin Tegumiar; Lucy Maynard, vice-president operations at Sakku Investments Corp.; Blaine Chislett, manager of energy and sustainability at Sakku; Chris Lentz, vice-president construction at Sakku; Malek Tawashy, president and CEO at Northern Energy Capital; Lori Ann Tulugak, Naujaat assistant senior administrative officer; Dana May, project manager at Northern Energy Capital; Natange Sararas, construction project manager at Solvest; and David Kakuktinniq, president and CEO at Sakku. (Photo courtesy of Kivalliq Alternative Energy)

Construction is underway in Naujaat on a renewable energy project planners say will reduce the community’s dependence on diesel by 30 per cent.

When complete, the Ikayuut Solar and Energy Storage Project is expected to supply enough electricity to power about 130 homes in the hamlet of about 1,200 residents, with peak energy production occurring in the spring and summer.

Work started Sept. 5. The project is organized by Kivalliq Alternative Energy, an Inuit-led partnership between Sakku Investments Corp. and Northern Energy Capital, which helps develop and support renewable energy projects in remote and northern areas of Canada.

“We have the opportunity to produce the entire energy demand during the summer months,” Blaine Chislett, manager of energy and sustainability at Sakku, said in an interview.

Battery storage will be used for the power that’s produced and the project will utlilize about 2,500 solar panels.

The project will allow Naujaat’s diesel generators to be shut off for periods of time — a first for Nunavut, Kivalliq Alternative Energy said in a news release.

The name Ikayuut was chosen by the hamlet council and means “help, support, or resources” in Inuktitut, which symbolizes the project’s role in supporting the community’s power grid.

The hamlet also considered more expensive wind-generated power, but chose a solar project because it would provide the most power at the best price, Chislett said.

The Ikayuut project will reduce the community’s dependence on diesel fuel by about 400,000 litres per year while cutting carbon dioxide emissions by about 30,000 tonnes over its expected 30-year lifespan.

The project area will take up approximately four hectares east of the airport on a site that was previously a metal landfill where the land couldn’t be used anymore, Chislett said.

“We’re in our first 10 per cent of construction, which is going to be fencing, the gridding is already done and by next month we’ll be starting to lay down our piles for the racking system for the solar,” he said.

Chislett said a range of jobs including skilled labour such as electricians, construction labourers, equipment operators, maintenance, and polar bear monitoring will be targeted toward local Inuit.

Construction will run through 2025 with commercial operations anticipated to begin in March 2026.

No full cost estimate was available, but in July the federal government announced $18.5 million in funding for it.