Strategic partnership will accelerate tribal energy sovereignty

Native Sun Community Power Development, Inc. and Open Access Technology International, Inc. (OATI) announced a strategic partnership to accelerate energy sovereignty across Upper Midwest tribal nations through the deployment of smart electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure and related clean energy technologies.

The initiative supports electrification and clean energy adoption in tribal communities, while laying the foundation for future opportunities including microgrids, distributed energy resources, and energy market integration.

Native Sun, a Minnesota-based nonprofit, has entered the final phase of deployment for its pioneering Electric Nation program. Building on agreements Native Sun has made with tribal nations across the Upper Midwest, OATI, through its subsidiary EVolution, will provide the EV charging infrastructure, smart charging software platform, and customer support necessary for Tribal communities to have reliable charging options for their electric vehicles. Native Sun and OATI are coordinating the installation of the EV charging infrastructure for these tribal nations. Once installed, each Tribe will own their station outright, along with extended warranty service for long-term ownership and benefit.

"We at Native Sun are fighting a human health crisis on tribal lands, and we believe renewable energy and electrification can help cure this problem," says Robert Blake, executive director of Native Sun. "Technology and Native determination is what enables us to do this, and to empower our communities to be leaders in the clean transportation and energy space – to be able to partner with OATI on this important project, and gain so much more than a solutions provider, has been critical to our success and impact."

EV charging is an ideal first step in any tribal nation's electrification journey, and the EVolution Smart EV Charge Station Solution ensures a seamless experience that includes:

• Smart EV charging stations in multiple form factors and kW/MW power capacity
• A secure, cloud-hosted Smart Charge Station Network Management System (NMS)
• A robust EV driver mobile app, EVolution
• Full professional services for rollout and ongoing operations
• 24/7 support for reliability and customer service

With the EVolution NMS hosted in the OATI Cloud, designed specifically for mission-critical energy applications, tribal nations gain access to industry-grade security and reliability that also support data sovereignty.

"Tribal nations continue to drive the energy transition by investing in the electrification, reliability, and resilience tools critical to supporting their communities and expanding economic opportunities," says Sasan Mokhtari, president & CEO of OATI. "OATI is honored to partner with Native Sun to bring these valuable solutions to tribes in support of their energy sovereignty goals, and in providing clean technology leadership in rural and remote communities"

The program's impact extends far beyond deploying chargers. OATI can provide tribes with further consultation, design, and planning services for development of microgrid projects, which offer community resilience and additional revenue streams, such as energy market integration and the potential for commercial development from manufacturing and data center facilities. These technologies will help buffer the unreliable electrical service that can occur in these communities and provide options to mitigate the cost of "demand charges" that can spike the utility bills tied to EV chargers and other electrical demands.