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Engaging Local and Indigenous Rights-Holders: Flint and the Fort McMurray 468 First Nation

Published October 3, 2022.
Est. Reading: 4 minutes
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Flint has maintained a local presence in Fort McMurray for 40 years. In March 2021, Flint Energy Services and the Fort McMurray First Nation Group of Companies entered into a joint-venture agreement with the purpose of creating employment and training opportunities for citizens of the Nation and expanding community investment to support capacity building within the Fort McMurray 468 First Nation.

In Fort McMurray today, Flint and the Fort McMurray First Nations Group of Companies are proud to help local clients bring resources to the world in a safe, responsible, and cost-efficient manner.

The Fort McMurray 468 First Nation is committed to working together to care for their people, culture, and land to create a vibrant and healthy community that is economically sustainable and self-reliant. The Nation is located 38 kilometers from Fort McMurray, and has 268 members on reserve and 568 members off reserve that are guided by eight community pillars founded in their Nation’s traditional medicine wheel.

The Fort McMurray First Nations Group of Companies is the business arm wholly owned by the Fort McMurray 468 First Nation. The Group of Companies was founded in 1987 to contribute to the overall growth and sustainability of the community by working with local businesses and industry partners. In alliance with selected industry partners, Fort McMurray First Nations Group of Companies is focused on increasing employment within the Nation, fostering a culture of safety, and creating sustainable business growth.

Our organization’s commitment to local and Indigenous inclusion in conjunction with the Fort McMurray First Nation Group of Companies’ goals to create growth and sustainability within their community has allowed for our two companies to engage in this joint venture relationship founded on transparency, trust, and communication. This joint venture leverages the experience of both Flint and the Fort McMurray First Nation Group of Companies.

Under the joint venture, in conjunction with the Fort McMurray 468 First Nation, Flint is proud to offer the following services:

What are the goals of the joint venture?

A major portion of our joint venture agreement is training Fort McMurray 468 First Nation citizens on heavy equipment as part of our Emerald Career Program. This program was developed for candidates who are interested in starting a career as a Heavy Equipment Operator but need the training and experience required in the resource industry. Further, the Emerald Career Program targets a portion of Fort McMurray 468 First Nation enrolment in an effort to assist citizens of the nation in acquiring the knowledge and skills they require to work as heavy equipment operators in the resource sector. The Emerald Career Program identifies exceptional candidates to join our team and enroll in a full week of one-on-one simulator training, followed by comprehensive on-site training for graduates of the program.

In addition to the Emerald Career Program, Flint and the Fort McMurray First Nation Group of Companies conduct significant business within the Fort McMurray/Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo area under the terms of our joint venture agreement, such as the provision of local fabrication, local machining, heavy equipment operators, mechanical, and maintenance/turnaround work together. This partnership allows for members of the Fort McMurray 468 First Nation to gain valuable experience in the oil sands region specific to their trade and promotes capacity building within the community.

Further, as part of Flint’s commitment to local and Indigenous communities in the areas in which we operate, our organization provides an annual scholarship to the Fort McMurray 468 First Nation.

The importance of Indigenous inclusion:

For over 40 years, our organization has been dedicated to creating long-term partnerships in the communities that we live and operate in. This includes a strong emphasis on commitment to local communities through the engagement of local Indigenous groups in the communities in which we work.

Our organization accomplishes this in two main methods:

  • Employment: Flint is committed to offer opportunities of employment to qualified applicants, and supports the recruitment, training, and hiring of Indigenous candidates.
  • Subcontracting: Flint is committed to offering subcontracting opportunities to prequalified Indigenous-owned subcontractors, and supports any potential subcontractor as required during the prequalification process.

Our formalized relationships are designed to leverage each party’s strengths. We align with entities who share the same core values as our organization – including fostering strong relationships, commitment to excellence, investment in people, and responsible decision-making. Our belief is that both parties must be committed to growing the formalized relationship, through development and agreement on key targets and common goals.

With relationships founded on transparency, trust, and communication, our organization takes a collaborative approach to the pursuit of opportunities and execution of work. We recognize the value of shared success, from cultural engagement, complementary execution expertise, economic, and social capacity building for shared economic value, and overall sustainability. Flint seeks to include key commitments around training, scholarship, investment, expanded opportunities, and capacity building. As such, our organization has formalized relationships with five Indigenous groups and commits to providing numerous employment opportunities and significant community investment to each partner.

In addition to the direct benefit of joint venture relationships, our organization has several corporate initiatives related to Indigenous Participation in its projects, along with a host of affiliations through which engagement is facilitated, such as: the Apprenticeship Program, Management Trainee Program, Ride Along Program, and the Building Environmental Aboriginal Human Resources (BEAHR) Program.

Contact Us

To contact Flint, please email the Flint Communications department at [email protected]

To contact the Fort McMurray First Nation Group of Companies, please email Ryan Coish at [email protected]

If you’re interested in the Emerald Career Program, apply here.

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