Savanna Energy Services - Building Trust With Community Partners

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When Savanna Energy Services Corp. began working in partnership with First Nations nearly a decade ago, its goal was to develop a business model that worked well for everyone: for its customers, for the communities and for Savanna.

"We had to make sure our goals were aligned," says Dwayne LaMontagne, Executive Vice President and Chief Development Officer at Savanna, a premier contract drilling and well servicing company headquartered in Calgary.

"We worked very hard to build trust with the communities that are our partners, making sure we treated them right, and making sure we got into deals not just for the sake of doing a deal, but for the sake of building what made the most sense for the community, our customers and ourselves."

Savanna provides a complete range of safe, efficient and cost-effective energy services to the petroleum and natural gas industry throughout Western Canada, the U.S., Mexico and Australia. In Alberta, the company has been working in partnership with First Nations since 2001, first with the Dene Tha' First Nation in the High Level area, and since then, with several additional Aboriginal communities from all Alberta Treaty areas. An estimated two per cent of Savanna is now owned by First Nations and Métis communities. "We are very flexible and creative in how we involve the communities in Savanna," LaMontagne says. Savanna's partners and shareholders include Dene Tha' First Nation, Saddle Lake Cree Nation, Duncan's First Nation, the Blood Tribe, Alexander First Nation, Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation, Heart Lake First Nation, Cold Lake First Nation, Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation, Frog Lake First Nation and the Métis Nation of Alberta. "These partnerships have all worked out very well," LaMontagne says, noting that Savanna works to build capacity in its partners wherever possible.

The company's in-house training program for First Nations and Métis community members has also done very well. Organized by Savanna's Partner Relations Co-ordinator, Tweela Nepoose, the week-long training program features three days in the classroom and two days of intensive hands-on training. Taught by First Nations instructors, the classroom component addresses job readiness issues, while the greenhand training covers everything from health, safety and environmental issues, to job duties and responsibilities, with students putting in a regular 12-hour workday, doing all the things they would do in the normal course of their job, including time spent on Savanna's training rig in the company's yard in Blackfalds.

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In all that it does, Savanna works hard to stay connected with First Nation communities. Tweela Nepoose, who in addition to her role as Savanna's Partner Relations Co-ordinator is active as a board member of the Circle for Aboriginal Relations (CFAR), works with Savanna Business Development and Partner Relations Manager Brian Cardinal to stay in touch with First Nations communities.

"We do our best to participate in community events," LaMontagne says. "Whether it's the local golf tournament, powwows, Christmas feasts or any of those events, we try to stay involved and have some visibility with the whole community. We want to make sure we are involved and in tune with what's happening. Brian and Tweela do a tremendous job at that."

Victor Buffalo, the former Chief of Samson Cree Nation and a former director of Savanna, plays another key role as special advisor on Aboriginal issues to Savanna's board of directors.

These are some of the reasons why Savanna is widely recognized as an industry leader in working with First Nations communities. As one recent example, Savanna won the prestigious Premier's Award of Distinction at the 2010 Alberta Business Awards of Distinction, handed out by the Alberta Chambers of Commerce to the company that best exhibits outstanding achievement and leadership in Alberta, with consistent involvement in community events and organizations.

No matter what the challenges, Savanna is there for the long haul, working to ensure a brighter future for First Nations and its energy industry customers.

"When the energy industry took a turn for the worse in October 2008, the way our partnership model with First Nations and our future partners needed to change, because the economics of owning a drilling rig had changed substantially," LaMontagne says. To this end, Savanna has put into place a marketing alliance between First Nations communities and the oil and gas companies that are working on their traditional land. "If we are all working together to find the best solution, there will be benefits that will flow back to community. We've had tremendous success with that so far."

Going forward, LaMontagne sees the relationship between the energy industry and First Nations communities becoming even more important. "The duty to consult by oil and gas companies, and the responsibilities the First Nations communities have to look after the land - all these issues are all increasing in importance," he says. "If there is anything that Savanna can do to bridge any gaps, or to strengthen these relationships, that's the goal of our programs. It's got to be a win-win."

Contacts:

Savanna Energy Services Corp.
Tweela Nepoose, Partner Relations Co-ordinator
T: (403) 247.7159
E: tnepoose@savannaenergy.com

Brian Cardinal, Business Development and Partner Relations Manager
T: (780) 619.4020
E: bcardinal@savannaenergy.com