Portrait
Name
Firman Latimer
Company
CEO & Founder of FNpower
Location
Serpent River First Nation, ON
Description
Firman Latimer is a First Nation business leader and a proud member from Serpent River First Nation. He holds a Commerce Degree and a Master of Business Administration degree from the Ivey School of Business. Before starting FNpower, Firman devoted his professional career to supporting the First Nation community’s economic and business development for 13 years, working directly for a number of First Nation communities in Alberta, Ontario and BC, where he held key roles in successfully establishing and managing First Nation-owned enterprises.
Leveraging a general understanding of rights and political positions First Nations now hold within Canada’s economic development landscape, Firman has navigated and implemented many strategies to create different successful partnerships and businesses benefiting Indigenous communities and people. In his senior management and executive positions, he has been responsible for building and managing governance structures that grew to oversee 100-plus employees in various business operations with combined free cashflows of over $40 Million per year. He has experience in business start-ups, First Nation-led industry negotiations, strategic business planning, business venture structuring, and project management, and has been actively involved in raising capital and overseeing business operations. He has led business development ventures relating to land development, commercial development, energy exploration, oil field services, timber harvesting and forestry licenses management, retail, gravel pits and aggregate operations, contracting and heavy equipment, and casino and hospitality.
Recognizing a gap in Indigenous participation in Canada’s renewable energy sector, Firman founded First Nation Power Development Inc (FNpower) to drive ownership and development of utility-scale renewable energy projects. With his background and the team of experts he has gathered, FNpower is supporting communities by accessing capital, investing in renewable energy projects, and providing the support and capacity needed to get these projects to the finish line. Most recently exemplified in the Tilley Solar Project and the Paul First Nation Solar Farm project.