Canada is moving into a new era of nation-building projects. The Major Projects Office has referred 17 projects worth $126 billion for accelerated approval — 73% of which run through Indigenous territories. Indigenous participation has become essential to project success.

Yet the reality of Indigenous ownership remains poorly understood. Information is fragmented, inconsistent, and often incomplete, leaving a gap between how the market is discussed and how it actually operates.

As projects become increasingly capital-intensive, commodity-exposed, and first-of-a-kind, the absence of clear and reliable data introduces uncertainty into investment decisions, partnership models, policy objectives, and project execution.

​​

The State of Indigenous Equity Ownership 2026 Report addresses this gap by providing the most comprehensive and structured view of Indigenous ownership across Canada.

IEM data and analysis was used in RBC Thought Leadership’s Nations Building report and is informing C-suite, board level, and ministerial discussions on Indigenous participation at the 2026 FNMPC Stronger Together conference.

​​

Together, both IEM and RBC identified a critical finding: the ecosystem built to date — 86% concentrated in power and utilities, median project value $175 million — was built for a different project profile than what Canada now needs. Understanding that gap starts with knowing where Indigenous ownership actually stands.