To the Editor:
In his letter of Oct. 20, (“Open letter to Manitoba Hydro regarding Keeyask dam project”) Mr. Wil Tailwater stated the major beneficiaries of employment on the Keeyask Generating Station project are out-of-province workers, rather than Manitobans.
This is completely false – Manitobans account for 68 per cent of the total project employment to date. That represents more than 4,600 Manitobans.
The Keeyask project is being developed by our four First Nations partners – Tataskweyak Cree Nation, War Lake First Nation, York Factory First Nation, Fox Lake Cree Nation – and Manitoba Hydro. Employment from members of these partner First Nations and other Indigenous Manitobans has been very strong on the Keeyask project. In fact, this past summer we surpassed four million person hours worked by Indigenous employees, of which over two million were from members of our partner communities.
As of Sept. 30, we currently have over 1,000 Indigenous employees at site, and over half of all employees currently on site are Manitobans.
Keeyask is a very large and complex project, and to complete it successfully we need to access technology and skills on a global basis. However, all contractors working at the Keeyask project are required to follow hiring preferences that provide first opportunity to qualified northern Indigenous residents and are structured to maximize the employment of qualified Indigenous, northern and Manitoba residents.
More information on the Keeyask project, including construction updates and employment statistics, can be found on our website at www.Keeyask.com.
We appreciate the opportunity to set the record straight for readers of the Thompson Citizen.
Lorne Midford
President
Keeyask Hydropower Limited Partnership
