SAULT STE. MARIE – The Ontario government is providing more than $327,000 through the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC) to two tech companies in Sault Ste. Marie. This investment will help create highly skilled jobs, expand business operations and stimulate economic development and diversification in the region.

“Today’s investment of over $327,000 is supporting the creation of 40 jobs and a competitive and innovative tech sector in Northern Ontario,” said Ross Romano, MPP for Sault Ste. Marie. “With this funding, we are investing in Sault Ste. Marie’s future and ensuring its economy continues to grow and diversify.”

The following projects are receiving NOHFC funding:

• $200,000 for Cygnus Technology Group Inc. to develop a digital hub that provides secure data hosting and IT support services for local businesses
• $127,176 for Village Media Inc. – an online community media company – to purchase equipment and renovate office space.

“Supporting local tech companies creates jobs, attracts new investment and keeps the North competitive and current,” said Greg Rickford, Minister of Northern Development. “Our investments help businesses thrive and provide real opportunities for northerners.”

The NOHFC promotes economic prosperity across Northern Ontario by providing financial assistance to projects—big and small, rural and urban—that stimulate growth, job creation and skills development. Since June 2018, the NOHFC has invested more than $608 million in 5,070 projects in Northern Ontario, leveraging more than $1.93 billion in investment and creating or sustaining over 8,100 jobs.

Quick Fact

• In 2021, the Ontario government launched new and improved NOHFC programs that support more projects in rural northern communities and make it easier for more people and businesses to apply. The programs target existing and emerging markets, provide more work opportunities for Indigenous people and address the skilled labour shortage in the North.

Additional Resources

• The NOHFC, Northern Development Offices and Small Business Enterprise Centres are available to support northern communities, businesses and other stakeholders in identifying economic development opportunities and assist in accessing government funding programs.

Quotes

“Thank you to the NOHFC for its support. Cygnus provides Northern Ontario boutique data centre services to clients embarking on their digital transformation journey to cloud and hosted business computing models. In addition, Cygnus provides consulting services including business process automation, data storage and isolation, complimented with a full suite of cyber security services.” – Don Bruni, President, Cygnus Technology Group Inc.

“We appreciate the support from the NOHFC through its Invest North Program. The funds have been utilized to upgrade our infrastructure and facilities, which have supported the addition of over 20 staff. Village Media now employs approximately 140 people, almost all of which are located in Ontario. Village Media now operates 30 news publications throughout Canada and the U.S., and provides its proprietary in-house software to over 50 other news publishers worldwide.” – Jeff Elgie, CEO, Village Media Inc.

Media Contacts

Erika Robson, Minister’s Office — 416-450-1309 — erika.robson@ontario.ca

Media Desk, Communications Branch — mediadesk.ndm@ontario.ca