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The Northern Bioenergy Partnership (NBP) is an industry-led coalition of businesses, academic institutions and government and First Nations organizations involved in the bioenergy industry in Northern British Columbia.
The NBP’s vision is for Northern British Columbia to be the national leader in a technologically advanced, forest-based bioenergy industry.
The mission of the NBP is to be a catalyst for the development of a vibrant, innovative and sustainable forest-based bioenergy industry in Northern British Columbia.
The NBP’s primary strategic goal is to develop a bioenergy “centre of excellence” for the Province of BC by driving the growth of the forest-based bioenergy sector. Our success will be measured by jobs, investment and the region’s contribution to climate change objectives through the sustainable use of forest biomass.
Who We Are
A group of community leaders from Northern BC founded the Northern Bioenergy Partnership and organized the first Northern Bioenergy Forum on May 5, 2009 at the University of Northern BC.
There, leaders in the bioenergy sector from business, government, First Nations, academia and financial sectors gathered to discuss proven and emerging technologies, critical success factors for the growth of the industry, the role of partnerships, and the strategic importance of strengthening the bioenergy cluster in Prince George in order to deliver these objectives.
At the conclusion of the Northern Bioenergy Forum, delegates were invited to participate in a more formal effort to position Northern BC as a leader in the bioenergy economy. All delegates to the Forum were invited to a further meeting to discuss actions.
Subsequently, the Northern Bioenergy Partnership was expanded and formalized at an inaugural meeting on May 27, 2009.
At the conclusion of the May 27 meeting, it was agreed that a core group of individuals representative of each of the partners at the table would form a Steering Committee to develop a vision and a business plan for the NBP. In 2011 a board of directors was formed to govern the partnership and an executive director was hired.
The Board Members are:
- Charles Jago, Chair, Northern Bioenergy Partnership
- Brian Fehr, Vice-Chair, Owner, Bid Group/Deltech Manufacturing
- Greg Stewart, President, Sinclar Group Forest Products
- Leonard Legault, CEO, Alterna Biocarbon
- Gail Fondahl, Vice-President, Research, UNBC
- Kristy Brown, Supervisor Utilities Engineering, Utility Division, City of Prince George
- Tim Knoop, General Manager, Pacific BioEnergy
- Chief Ralph Pierre, Tl'azt'en Nation
- Rob MacDougall, Mayor, Village of Fort St. James (represents OBAC)
- James Wilkin, Director, NRC-IRAP
- Heather Oland, CEO, Initiatives Prince George (Ex-officio)
Northern BC is considered to include the area from Williams Lake north to the Yukon border. Presently, the NBP’s operations are confined to the North-Central region of BC. Going forward, the NBP will seek to involve the Northwest and Northeast regions of the province in a coordinated effort to grow a pan-northern bioenergy industry.
The BC Bioenergy Network and OBAC provided startup funding to support the activities of the Northern Bioenergy Partnership. Their assistance is gratefully acknowledged.
