New Report Shows Enbridge Tripled Spending with Native-owned Companies and Training and Hiring Indigenous Workers

UPDATED INFORMATION SHOWS 890 TRIBAL MEMBERS WORKED 700,000 HOURS ON THE PROJECT THAT ALSO GENERATED $378 MILLION IN ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY FOR TRIBAL NATIONS, COMMUNITIES, AND CONTRACTORS

(MAHNOMEN, MINN) Throughout the process to plan, permit, and complete the Line 3 Replacement Project (L3RP), Enbridge made making sure the project benefited tribal members, communities, and contractors a priority. A new report shows that not only did Enbridge meet this commitment, but it also more than tripled the economic impact and investment for tribal contractors, members, and communities. The economic impact statistics report was recently filed with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission and covers work through the end of last year.

“The report confirms what we saw first-hand throughout the entire project and really shows the commitment Enbridge made to include and engage tribal members, companies, and our broader communities,” said Matt Gordon, President of Gordon Construction, and an enrolled member of the White Earth Nation. “Enbridge’s goals from the start of the project were incredibly important, but it took an amazing amount of hard work to deliver these incredible results. For our communities, our members, and our tribal-owned companies, Line 3’s impact is incredibly significant.”

As part of its effort to make sure the project supported the entire community across the route areas, Enbridge had initially committed to creating $100 million in economic opportunities for Native American Tribes, tribal member businesses, and tribal members. This included a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) with the unions to establish training, support, and hiring preferences for the tribal workforce, creating opportunities for native individuals interested in joining the unions with the ability to do so. In addition, Enbridge worked with Five Skies Training, a native-owned business, to provide trainings to tribal community members that were tailored to employment opportunities in or near to tribal communities.

Construction started in December of 2020 and major work was completed in October of 2021 but work to engage tribal members started long before work began:

The L3RP prioritized the hiring of Minnesota tribal businesses for direct hiring through internal process, and for indirect hiring through the socio-economic requirements for general contractors.
Contracting opportunities were developed through first identifying tribal and tribal member-owned businesses with capacity to work on Line 3 Replacement.
Enbridge then worked with those businesses to become prequalified to work for Enbridge.
Labor opportunities for tribal members started before construction through a workforce development program with training open to participants who wanted to work for Enbridge or companies other than Enbridge.

According to the recent report, Enbridge significantly exceeded the $100 million goal:

As of December 31, 2021, through the Line 3 project, Enbridge has provided $378 million dollars in economic opportunity for tribal nations, communities, and contractors.
The work with labor unions and the workforce training helped more than 890 tribal members work 700,000 hours replacing Line 3.

“The jobs, the spending with tribal businesses, and the paychecks that Line 3 helped create helped change people’s lives,” Gordon said. “The training to be ready for work and then to be ready to join different construction teams has created new futures for our community members. They are now ready for new projects and a career of being highly trained and well paid. Enbridge was a true partner for our community and the results speak for themselves.

The Line 3 Replacement Project was the largest, privately funded construction project in Minnesota history. The Bureau of Business and Economic Research (BBER) at the University of Minnesota Duluth’s Labovitz School of Business and Economics study estimated the project would represent a total economic impact of more than $2.0 billion in Minnesota. A workforce of approximately 5,000 workers directly worked on the project and the UMD study estimated the project also supported more than 3,000 non-construction related jobs.

Click here to read the report.

We can’t afford to wait any longer for Line 3

“It’s long overdue for those making decisions in this state to pause and look at the facts. We cannot afford another appeal. Too much time and taxpayer dollars have been used to repeatedly determine that Line 3 is necessary.

If we do not approve Line 3 and get started soon, the people of Minnesota will deserve an explanation about why the most studied pipeline project in our state’s history – that literally checks every box – was stalled at a time when our economy needs it so much.”

Rich Siegert, Rochester Post Bulletin

Minnesota needs Line 3 project

“Let’s get one thing clear: Minnesota needs Line 3.

Replacing Line 3 will bring thousands of jobs to our state at a time when we desperately need it. While our legislature stalls on a bonding bill and other forms of relief, how about Governor Walz and his administration making an easy decision to stop delaying a project that will bring thousands of jobs to northern Minnesota?”

Craig Gaasvig, Grand Forks Herald

Nearly six years to replace Line 3 is too long

“My family has farmed in Clearwater County for 85 years. As farmers, we take pride in our land and work hard to take care of the soil and water around us. We also take very seriously planning our farming operations, including rotating our crops and maintaining our equipment.

For 48 years, we’ve hosted six pipelines on our property and have always had a good relationship with the company. In 2014, we received a letter from Enbridge about the company’s intention to replace its Line 3 pipeline. Since that initial letter, we’ve worked with Enbridge on the easement for the replacement pipe and have considered our farming plans to accommodate construction.”

Brian Emmel, Bemidji Pioneer

Support Minnesotans by supporting Line 3

“In trying times like these, you would think local governments would try to work together to get things done. The fact of the matter is, they can’t — or they won’t. The gridlock in our state house is at an all-time high, and neither side seems willing to concede anything to the other. You would think they would care more about the people than these political chess matches; but for the most part, that’s not the case. Minnesota needs jobs more than ever — as well as the hope that things can get better. As we struggle with COVID19, the changes it has forced upon us have left too many of our businesses to drop like flies, with more people applying for unemployment every day.”

Dave Langfeld, Duluth News Tribune

Letters to the Editor Supporting Line 3:

We can’t afford to wait any longer for Line 3

Minnesota needs Line 3 project

Nearly six years to replace Line 3 is too long

Support Minnesotans by supporting Line 3

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