Renewable energy producer and developer Neoen is partnering with two First Nations on solar projects in Ontario, one of which is a 200-megawatt (MW) installation slated to be the province’s biggest to date.

The 200 MW AC project is to be sited 55 kilometres east of Sault Ste. Marie. Neoen is partnering with the Garden River First Nation on the project, which is to be co-owned by the two parties in a 50 per cent equity partnership. Its anticipated electricity production is said to be the equivalent of the consumption of 42,500 Ontario households per year.

The second project, a 50 MW AC installation, is planned to be located approximately 20 kilometres southeast of Temiskaming Shores. Like its larger peer, it is to be developed in 50-50 equity partnership between Neoen and the Matachewan First Nation.

Construction on both projects is scheduled to start in 2028. The 50 MW project is expected to begin operations in 2029, followed by the 200 MW project in 2030. Ontario's Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) is to receive the power from the two solar farms under 20-year contracts.

“First and foremost, the interconnection capacity,” Emmanuel Pujol, Neoen’s regional CEO for the Americas, said in an interview with Sustainable Biz Canada about why the company chose the location for the 200 MW project.

Tender focused on Northern Ontario

The projects were awarded under the Ontario government’s Long-Term 2 Request for Proposals, a tender for power contracts. The awarded projects were announced early April, with the province offering contracts for 14 projects —12 solar and two wind – totalling capacity of 1,315 MW.

An Indigenous equity partnership is in all the projects. The assets are the first utility-scale renewable energy projects for the Garden River and Matachewan First Nations, and are expected to generate economic gains.

"This 50 per cent equity partnership marks an important step in advancing Indigenous economic sovereignty and leadership in Canada's energy sector,” Karen Bell, chief of the Garden River First Nation, said in an announcement.

The latest tender prioritizes Northern Ontario, with 10 of the 14 projects being developed in the region. Pujol believes the IESO wants to balance out Ontario’s grid by not concentrating too many projects in the urbanized, densely populated south, which would increase the risk of interconnection limits if developed there.

Another major factor behind the choice of locations is likely to do with how solar farms take up a great deal of land, which is in short supply in Southern Ontario, Pujol added.

Developing projects in different locations helps “diversify our development and construction risks,” Pujol said.

The largest Ontario solar projects in operation today are two assets each with 100 MW of generating capacity.

While the project near Sault Ste. Marie is expected to be Ontario’s largest solar project once operational, Pujol said it will not be significantly larger than its peers. The latest tender includes solar projects with 167.2 MW and 154 MW of capacity, for example.

Pujol would not disclose the financial value of the two projects.

Canada’s renewables sector on a “very good trend”

Headquartered in Paris with offices in Canada, Neoen is majority owned by Brookfield Renewable Holdings. Its global portfolio of solar, wind and energy storage assets totalled nine gigawatts of capacity in operation, construction or management as of 2025.

The company entered the Canadian market in 2022 and operates in Alberta, Ontario and Saskatchewan. It has almost 1,000 MW of projects in operation or awarded contracts, Pujol said.

Its only operating project in Canada today is the over 90 MW Fox Coulee Solar Farm in Alberta. That is expected to change eventually, with the company developing the Mino Giizis solar project in Saskatchewan expected to generate over 100 MW AC, and four battery storage projects in Alberta and Ontario totalling over 900 MW of capacity.

The Canadian renewables market is “clearly on a very good trend,” Pujol said, naming big tenders in Ontario and Quebec. Neoen is also hopeful about Alberta because the province is expected to revamp its regulations which harmed renewables development, he said.

“There is strong (artificial intelligence) demand that is due to come online shortly and that will require emission-free energy, whether it be nuclear or renewable,” Pujol said. “And as well to sustain those assets that will come online very quickly, you will need batteries to stabilize the grid.”