6 power outages in 6 weeks: QEC president warns of challenging winter in Rankin Inlet

As a home owner, Nellie Kusugak has many worries when a power outage happens. 

“I worry most about my pipes freezing and the cost it's going to be to get them fixed. I also worry about the heat,” she said. 

Over the past few years, Kusugak says there have been more power outages than usual where she lives in Area 5 in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut. 

“It's been such a norm that you just go, ‘oh another one!’ And then you just wait for the power to go back on,” Kusugak said. “It's quite frustrating.” 

The hamlet has had six power outages in the same number of weeks. Ernest Douglas, the president and CEO of Qulliq Energy Corporation, says that’s because two of the community’s four generators — G5 and G6 — have been out of service since September. 

Douglas says one of the generators, G6, is expected to return to service in early February once parts arrive from down South. But, the replacement unit for G5 isn't expected until fall 2026.

He says Rankin Inlet residents should be prepared over the winter months. 

“What we're going to do is issue a public service announcement around this just to prepare folks that are in Rankin and to let them know, just be transparent,” Douglas said. “We are going to have a bit of a difficult or challenging winter.” 

Michael Shouldice, a hamlet councillor in Rankin Inlet, is concerned. He recently bought a small generator which can run for 10 to 15 hours when the power goes out. 

He says the growing population has put a strain on the hamlet's power generators.

“We have the same equipment we've had for I don't know how many years, and then you think of the dilemma. Well, that's the same in every community here," Shouldice said.

"The government in Nunavut is looking at a huge capital expense to replace all the aging infrastructure and part of it is the generating plants. What can they do?” 

Kusugak is taking matters into her own hands. When outages happen, she typically uses a qulliq to stay warm in her house. But, recently she bought a generator for $1,000 to help her get through future outages. She says she has heard many people in the community looking for backup power options. 

“Lots of people are concerned. There's lots of home owners and I've heard some talk about having a backup generator,” she said.