Michael-Joel Hansen
StarPhoenix
Northern Saskatchewan is about to undergo an economic boost because it has an abundance of natural resources, especially uranium, which is quickly becoming a hot commodity as much of the world is looking to nuclear power to reduce carbon emissions.
The area is currently home to a number of uranium mines including Cameco Corp.‘s McArthur River/Key Lake and Cigar Lake. There are also a number of mines currently in development including NexGen Energy Ltd.’s Rook I Project
The potential growth in the mining sector means there is an increase in demand for a range of services such as aviation and drilling.
Saskatoon-based Athabasca Basin Development Ltd. Partnership is one company that will be playing a crucial role in providing many services to the mines when they become operational, along with helping with development work.
The company, which is owned by Black Lake Denesuline First Nation, Fond-du-Lac Denesuline First Nation, Hatchet Lake Denesuline First Nation and the northern communities of Stony Rapids, Wollaston Lake, Uranium City and Camsell Portage, has a stake in several companies, including an airline, a drilling company and some construction firms.
Athabasca Basin Development chief executive Geoff Gay said its companies are used to making adjustments in response to changes in the mining sector.
“Our companies are used to the up-and-down cyclical nature of the resource industry,” he said.
From 2014 to 2020, there was a large contraction in the resources sector that forced Athabasca Basin Development to reduce the size of its businesses due to the slowdown of operations at many mine sites. But starting in 2021, Gay said the sector started to turn around as commodity prices, specifically uranium, began to increase, which led to a strong recovery for the company and its businesses.
“With the commodity price starting to increase, not only are we recovering from COVID, but we’re going at a much more robust pace than we were from 2015 to 2020,” he said.
With the uranium industry in a good position, Gay said a number of his companies are in a position where they are looking to ramp up preparations to meet the expected demand for their services.
The increase in demand is positive, but he said there are challenges that come with the growth.
“It does put a strain on management teams and the employees as there’s more demands,” he said.
One Athabasca Basin Development company that has been working to deal with a big labour force challenge is Rise Air. The airline, which serves northern communities in Saskatchewan along with many mine sites, is grappling with a shortage of pilots, like many other airlines. To meet the challenge, the company is looking in its own backyard.
Derek Nice, chief executive of Rise Air, said three-quarters of the pilots employed by the company currently come from outside the province. He said many of these pilots eventually move on and take positions with larger airlines.
“Part of our need, our strategy, is to develop made-in-Saskatchewan solutions where we can have more homegrown pilots working with us,” he said.
Tracy Young-McLean, Rise Air’s vice-president of human resources and corporate services, said in order to recruit more homegrown pilots, the company has launched its Dziret’ Al Program. The initiative recruits people from northern communities who are interested in becoming pilots. Those who are accepted and complete the program will be trained to fly different types of aircraft and will be guaranteed employment.
Young-McLean said the program is open to everyone, but the company is prioritizing people from the north along with applicants who are Indigenous. She said creating employment opportunities for Indigenous people is part of the Indigenous-owned company’s mission.
“That is very important to us as well,” she said.
While the mining industry is a major component of the north and Rise Air’s business, Nice said the company recognizes the important role it plays when it comes to day-to-day life in the entire region.
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“Part of our need, our strategy, is to develop made-in-Saskatchewan solutions where we can have more homegrown pilots working with us,” he said.
Tracy Young-McLean, Rise Air’s vice-president of human resources and corporate services, said in order to recruit more homegrown pilots, the company has launched its Dziret’ Al Program. The initiative recruits people from northern communities who are interested in becoming pilots. Those who are accepted and complete the program will be trained to fly different types of aircraft and will be guaranteed employment.
Young-McLean said the program is open to everyone, but the company is prioritizing people from the north along with applicants who are Indigenous. She said creating employment opportunities for Indigenous people is part of the Indigenous-owned company’s mission.
“That is very important to us as well,” she said.
While the mining industry is a major component of the north and Rise Air’s business, Nice said the company recognizes the important role it plays when it comes to day-to-day life in the entire region.
“Aviation is absolutely critical here in Saskatchewan, particularly in northern Saskatchewan,” he said. “There’s no social or economic development in the north without aviation.”
