Project Spotlight: Chatham to Lakeshore Transmission Line
The Chatham to Lakeshore Transmission Line is a 49-kilometre, 230-kilovolt Hydro One transmission asset in Ontario's Windsor-Essex Region, now operating with First Nations acquiring a targeted 50% equity stake under Hydro One's First Nations Equity Model. Rather than a single ownership transaction, Indigenous equity in the line has been assembled in stages.
Project Overview
The line runs between the Chatham Switching Station in the Municipality of Chatham-Kent and the new Lakeshore Transformer Station in the Municipality of Lakeshore, adding approximately 400 MW of transmission capacity to a region facing rapid industrial and residential load growth. Construction began in spring 2023 and the line entered service in December 2024, a full year ahead of schedule. Hydro One credits collaboration with partners and communities for accelerating timelines and reducing costs by approximately $30 million.
Project Details
Location: Chatham Switching Station to Lakeshore Transformer Station in Ontario
Technology: 230 kV double-circuit transmission line (49 km)
Capacity: 400 MW added to the regional grid
Status: Operating (in-service December 2024)
Estimated Cost: ~$253 million
Industry Partner: Hydro One Networks Inc.
Indigenous Partners: Caldwell First Nation, Aamjiwnaang First Nation, Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation, Walpole Island First Nation, and Chippewas of the Thames First Nation
Indigenous Ownership
Hydro One's First Nations Equity Model offered five local First Nations, whose traditional territories lie along the transmission corridor, the opportunity to jointly acquire a 50% equity stake in the transmission line component. Rather than closing as a single transaction, that equity has been assembled in tranches:
Caldwell First Nation announced its equity investment on July 29, 2025 supported by the Ontario Indigenous Opportunities Financing Program with a $45 million loan guarantee.
Aamjiwnaang First Nation and the Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation jointly acquired a combined equity interest of nearly 20%, announced March 10, 2026 with the support of the Canada Indigenous Loan Guarantee Corporation.
Walpole Island and Chippewas of the Thames First Nation also acquired or were offered stakes in the project.
"Every new major transmission line offers an opportunity for First Nation partnership." Matthew Jackson, Vice President, Hydro One
Why This Project Matters
Multi-Nation equity assembled in tranches. Rather than one Indigenous partner or development corporation acquiring the full stake at once, five First Nations along the corridor are participating individually, with equity being built up over separate transactions in 2025 and 2026.
A dual-government financing stack. Chatham to Lakeshore is one of the few Canadian assets where Indigenous equity has been enabled by both a provincial loan guarantee program and the federal program at different stages of the same project.
An early proof point for the federal loan guarantee program. The March 2026 transaction was only the second deal completed under the federal Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program, giving policy and finance readers a concrete early data point for a program that was just doubled in size and broadened beyond energy and resources.
A template, not a one-off. Aamjiwnaang and Kettle and Stony Point have signaled Chatham to Lakeshore is the first of five Hydro One transmission line equity opportunities in their territory, suggesting this ownership model will recur across Hydro One's broader Southwestern Ontario buildout
Indigenous Energy Ownership Tracker
Chatham to Lakeshore is one of the many Indigenous-owned power projects tracked in IEM's Indigenous Energy Ownership Tracker (IEOT). It was built to centralize project ownership details, identify partnership models, and improve transparency across Canada's energy transition.
🔗 Explore the IEOT:
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