Tech company launches in Saskatchewan through First Nation investment – MBC Radio
A new IT firm officially launched in Saskatchewan Wednesday morning thanks to the investment of two Indigenous-owned companies.
The Peter Ballantyne Group of Companies and Athabasca Basin Development have invested in Optek Solutions.
Optek Solutions is an IT company looking to provide technical support for all types of organizations.
“We are excited to be part of an investment in the technology sector, an investment that contributes towards our goal of having ownership in companies in a wide variety of industries,” said Geoff Gay, CEO of Athabasca Basin Development.
“This investment made perfect sense for us to participate in,” added Gary Merasty, CEO of Peter Ballantyne Group of Companies. “We’ve all come to see how important technology is to business, especially in the past couple years where meetings have all gone virtual. We also feel there’s a significant opportunity for Indigenous employment in this industry, and we look forward to introducing Optek to the market.”
Optek Solutions will be led by Kevin Aebig, an engineer with over a decade of experience in the financial and health sectors.
“I am very excited to have Peter Ballantyne Group of Companies and Athabasca Basin Development as investors in Optek,” says Kevin Aebig, CEO of Optek. “These companies collectively have investments in over 30 businesses in a wide variety of industries. They are well-positioned to provide solid support and I very much look forward to working together to grow this company.”
Athabasca Basin Development is owned by the seven far North communities in Saskatchewan while the Peter Ballantyne Group of Companies is the business arm of Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation.
Optek’s announcement also comes on the same day that the Government of Saskatchewan announced strong momentum for Saskatchewan-based tech companies in 2021. The province reported that Saskatchewan’s investment in the technology sector reached a record-breaking level of $171 million in the first half of 2021.