The Arctic Energy Alliance (AEA) and the Wood Pellet Association of Canada (WPAC) held the Arctic Bioenergy Summit and Tour—Sustainable Bioenergy for Northern Communities: Reliable. Affordable. Local. in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, January 26-28, 2026. Below are the presentations from the event.

Bioenergy in Canada’s North

NWT Leadership, Proven Pathways, Global Experience, Fahimeh Yazdan Panah, Associate Executive Director, WPAC

Heating Buildings with Biomass in the NWT, Ben Israel, Manager, Strategic Energy Planning, Government of Northwest Territories (GNWT) on behalf of Robert Sexton, Director of Energy, Department of Infrastructure, GNWT

Wekweeti Wood Chip District Heating Network, Fred Behrens, Senior Administrative Officer, Wekweètì

Biomass Success Stories and Lessons Learned

Woolgar Avenue Biomass District Heating, Owner, J&R Mechanical

Housing Northwest Territories Biomass Initiatives, Mischa Malakoe, Manager, Housing Projects, Government of Northwest Territories

Teslin Tlignit Biomass Program, Geoffrey Cartwright, Community Energy Coordinator, Teslin Tlingit Council

Supply Chain Challenges and Opportunities

Biomass Fuel Characteristics and Supply Logistics, David Dubois, Manager of Business Development, Fink Machine Inc.

How Wood Pellets Reach the NWT, Fahimeh Yazdan Panah, Associate Executive Director, WPAC

Development of Supply Chain for Wood Pellet Heating Applications in the Canadian Northwest Territories, Omid Gholami Banadkoki, Post Doctoral Fellow, University of British Columbia

Supplying Wood Pellets to Remote Communities, Sheena Adams, Project Manager, Energy Infrastructure, GNWT

International Experience

Bioenergy Experiences from Finland, Hannes Tuohiniitty, Sector Manager, The Bioenergia Association of Finland

Galena Community Energy: Building Energy Literacy with Community Members, Tim Kalke, General Manager, Sustainable Energy for Galena Alaska, Inc. (SEGA)

District Heating in the Arctic: Critical Infrastructure for Energy Security, Adaptability, and New Pellet Demand, Tom Antle, Director of Engineering, TorchLight Bioresources on behalf of Jamie Stephen, Managing Director, TorchLight Bioresources

Advancing Combined Heat and Power and District Heating Systems

Lessons from Two Projects: Inuvik, NWT and New Glasgow, NS, Tom Antle, Director of Engineering, TorchLight Bioresources on behalf of Jamie Stephen, Managing Director, TorchLight Bioresources

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Academy—What We Learned: Operational Realities of Community-Scale CHP, Noel McKinnon, Maintenance & Infrastructure Development Technician, The University of British Columbia Alex Fraser Research Forest

Small-Scale Biomass Combined Heat and Power for Northern Rural and Remote Communities—2026 Update: Technologies, Suppliers, Lessons Learned, Sebnem Madrali, Engineering Projects Leader, Natural Resources Canada

Practical Skills and Support

Funding Opportunities and Capacity Building Support in Northern Communities for Clean Energy Projects, Brad Morrissey, Operations Manager, AEA

Fink Machine Practical Learning, David Dubois, Manager of Business Development, Fink Machine Inc.

The Dehcho Wood Stove Project: The Realities of Biomass in Remote Communities, Jason Collard, CEO, Gonezu Energy

Galena Biomass Project, Tim Kalke, General Manager, Sustainable Energy for Galena Alaska (SEGA)

Forests, Carbon and Bioenergy

Bioenergy for Forest Management: Putting GHG Reductions in Context, Tom Antle, Director of Engineering, TorchLight Bioresources on behalf of Jamie Stephen, Managing Director, TorchLight Bioresources

The Co-operative Approach: Wekweeti FireSmart Program Fall 2025, Reg Renner, President, Renner Consulting Ltd.