Precise 3D Data for Better Outcomes

Buffalo InDigital is a corporation created:

• to collect and licence three-dimensional (“3D”) geospatial data and provide associated services, and  

• as an opportunity for First Nations and Métis shareowners to participate in the marketing, expansion, and success of Buffalo InDigital’s business.

The shareowners of this corporation are:  each First Nation and Métis community in Alberta that chooses to participate in this venture, a wholly owned subsidiary of ATCO Ltd. (“ATCO”) and OGL Engineering (“OGL”).  Buffalo InDigital has been structured so that it may be majority owned by the First Nation and Métis communities of Alberta.

Buffalo InDigital has collected and owns a library of comprehensive, foundational, best-in-class 3D geospatial data for certain land in Alberta, including data collected in 2023 and 2024 for all First Nations reserves and Métis settlement lands in Alberta.  The 3D geospatial data is a digital twin of the physical environment as it existed at the time the data was collected, which is both precise and accurate for any number of applications (see answer to ‘How is 3D geospatial data used?’ for more details).  Buffalo InDigital is also able to collect additional 3D geospatial data on request.  All of Buffalo InDigital’s data can be licensed and used by the public through an online store.  

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Buffalo InDigital’s future plans include: expanding its library of 3D geospatial data that may be licensed by the public, offering additional related products and services, education and co-creation opportunities with individual First Nation and Métis communities, such as the creation of community controlled platforms that combine the 3D geospatial data that exists for that community with that community’s Traditional Knowledge.  

The shareowners of Buffalo InDigital will collectively own and benefit from the licensing of Buffalo InDigital’s 3D geospatial data and sales associated with related services.   Shareowners may participate in making certain decisions regarding Buffalo InDigital and will benefit from any dividends that may be issued.

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Customers of Buffalo InDigital benefit from access to a trusted, current, and Indigenous-supported 3D geospatial data set that is available on demand.  The data specifications of the 3D geospatial data set were designed to balance acquisition and processing costs while accommodating several applicable use-cases. These uses are listed in detail below, and include infrastructure management, environmental modelling, and emergency planning.  

Data can be licensed through our online store or directly through Buffalo InDigital by contacting one of our representatives at mail@buffaloindigital.com.  Licenses for small data sets (less than 10 sections) can be purchased using a credit card and the data can be downloaded directly from our online store.  For larger data sets, we recommend contacting a representative to find the best way to obtain the data in a timely manner.

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If you can’t find the data you’re looking for, please contact us at mail@buffaloindigital.com and one of our representatives will be happy to assist you.  

Communities who wish to be shareowners enter into a Unanimous Shareholder Agreement and receive shares in Buffalo InDigital for a nominal fee ($0.001 CAD per share).  The number of shares each community receives is directly proportional to the amount of First Nations reserve and Métis settlement land allocated to each community as of September 2024.  

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As 13,362 km² of 3D geospatial data has been collected for Buffalo InDigital, 13,362 shares (representing 51% ownership) are available for First Nations and Métis communities.  For example, a community with 100 km² of reserve or settlement land will receive 100 shares (0.35% ownership) in Buffalo InDigital.  

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There is only one class of shares issued, and ATCO and OGL each have the remaining 10,218 (39% ownership) and 2,620 shares (10% ownership), respectively, as described in the summary table below.

If you are a First Nation or Métis community in Alberta and would like more information about how to become a shareowner in Buffalo InDigital, please contact us at mail@buffaloindigital.com.  We are excited to speak with you!

All shares allocated to each First Nation and Métis community will be held by InDigital Holdings Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of OGL, until a community enters into the Unanimous Shareholder Agreement.  Shares for communities that choose to not be shareowners will remain with InDigital Holdings Ltd. and will be voted in support of the majority vote of the First Nations and Métis community shareowners.  Any dividends received for shares held by InDigital Holdings Ltd. will be used for the benefit of Indigenous communities in Alberta, including for scholarships and training opportunities specific to remote sensing.

• All shares are of the same class.

• Each shareowner has one vote per share.

• Buffalo InDigital will not issue dividends until the initial investment of ATCO and OGL is repaid.  All shares will have the same dividend rights.

• The Board of Directors will consist of nominees from ATCO, OGL, and the First Nations and Métis shareowners.  

• The Board will manage the business and affairs of Buffalo InDigital, with certain day-to-day functions initially delegated under Service Agreements to ATCO and OGL.

• An Advisory Circle, open to all shareowners, will meet at least once annually to provide recommendations and feedback to the Board.

• Shareowners’ decisions will be made at annual general meetings.

3D geospatial data can be used in many different contexts, including:  

• In infrastructure planning, to map existing above ground assets, compute cut and fill volumes, and estimate construction material costs.  

• In environmental modelling, to estimate biomass or forest inventory, rainfall accumulation and runoff, or land erosion or accretion.  

• In emergency management, for fire mitigation plans, flood hazard prediction and planning, and disaster response or remediation.  

• To preserve historical sites by creating 3D models, CAD drawings and digital twins.

• As a base dataset for the co-creation of community-specific and community-controlled platforms that combine the 3D geospatial data with that community’s Traditional Knowledge.

ATCO and OGL have collected and processed the 3D geospatial data for all First Nations reserve and Métis settlement lands designated as such as of September 2024.  This data is owned by Buffalo InDigital and its shareowners.  The data is available to be licensed for use today.

None of the 3D geospatial data will be publicly available.  This data will be provided to customers on the terms and conditions of licence agreements, which will restrict the use of the data to a specific project or purpose.  If a First Nation or Métis community chooses to create a database that combines the 3D geospatial data with their Traditional Knowledge on a Buffalo InDigital platform, that Traditional Knowledge will be secured for use in the manner determined by the community that owns the Traditional Knowledge.