Tarquti Energy wins provincial award for community involvement
Tarquti Energy Inc. has been recognized for its work in helping Nunavik move away from relying on fossil fuel energy.
The only regionally owned renewable energy developer operating in Nunavik, Tarquti was presented the Communty Energy Initiative Award at the Quebec Renewable Energy Conference held June 11 to 13 in Carleton-sur-Mer in southeastern Quebec.
“It means a lot to be recognized, it shows that we have been working hard,” Andy Pirti, the company’s community partnership and business development director, said in an interview.
The Montreal-based company helps communities develop their own clean-energy projects by doing research and funding.
Tarquti vied with two other groups for the award: Alliance de l’énergie de l’Est, or Eastern Energy Alliance, a partnership covering the lower Saint-Lawrence region of Quebec; and Griffon Community Centre, based in the province’s Gaspé region.
The award is given by Nergica, a renewable energy research company.
The event aims to celebrate the work in clean energy being done in Quebec.
According to Tarquti’s website, contest judges were “inspired by Tarquti’s mainspring [or driving force] and the significant impact of its work in leading the energy transition in Nunavik and beyond.”
It said the fact that socio-economic benefits from projects led by Tarquti remain in Nunavik also factored into the judges’ decision.
“The business model itself of Tarquti is to focus on maximum benefit for the communities,” Pirti said.
In addition to winning the award, he said the event was an opportunity for networking and exchanging ideas with other leading clean energy companies in the province.
“Clean energy is not widely practiced just yet,” Pirti said, but more and more companies are working on renewable energy and events such as this help lead to further investment.
“It’s important to think outside the box,” he said. “You just have to pave the way and be persistent,” adding that those are Tarquti’s mottos.
Pirti said Quaqtaq and Puvirnituq are two communities where clean energy projects are advancing well, and there are six communities where research is being done to create their own projects.
Cedric Gallant, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News
