Despite a massive retrenchment in the nascent offshore wind industry in Europe and the US, the Newfoundland and federal governments are steaming ahead with what they hope will become a $1 trillion industry off the Grand Banks.That’s because Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey to develop a regulatory framework to develop massive offshore wind projects along The Rock’s equally rocky shores.Students of history — and Hollywood — know the Grand Banks as the site of the Titanic disaster in 1912..The MOU signed in Ottawa on Wednesday outlines the framework for Newfoundland and Labrador to administer land tenure and life-cycle regulation, including revenues for offshore renewable energy projects within provincial bays. It was made possible by Bill C-49, which establishes the legislative framework for offshore wind in the joint federal and provincial management areas set out under the Atlantic Accord Acts that dictated the scope and pace of offshore oil development on the Grand Banks. It also includes Nova Scotia.Dollar values weren’t disclosed.The irony is that Wilkinson last week scuppered a $1.5 million natural gas exploration licence near Sable Island off Nova Scotia under the very same Atlantic Accords. It was the only bid received under a provincial land sale designed to kickstart exploration in the province’s offshore oil and gas industry that has been dormant since 2018.Environmentalists had opposed the bid due to impacts on wildlife such as Northern Bottlenose whales from seismic blasting and drilling operations."The bid that came in was a very small bid," Wilkinson said. "That raises questions about the level of risk and the level of complexity you are willing to introduce for what is a very small amount of money.".Sable Island is also know for its population of wild horses that are damaging the ecology.Meanwhile, the global offshore wind industry is undergoing a severe period of retrenchment after several multi-billion dollar projects were cancelled off the US Eastern Seaboard and Gulf Coast despite massive subsidies under the Biden Administration’s signature Inflation Reduction Act.In November Danish wind energy developer Ørsted scrapped its proposed Ocean Wind I and II projects off southern New Jersey due to problems with supply chains, higher interest rates and a failure to obtain billions in tax credits it said were essential for the developments to proceed. Together, the projects were supposed to deliver over 2.2 gigawatts of power.Developers in New England cancelled power contacts for three projects that would have provided another 3.2 gigawatts of wind power to Massachusetts and Connecticut because they were financially infeasible despite billions in subsidies.“While macroeconomic headwinds are creating challenges for some projects, momentum remains on the side of an expanding U.S. offshore wind industry — creating good-paying union jobs in manufacturing, shipbuilding and construction,″ the White House said in a statement.There’s nothing to suggest the case, or past history, would be any different in Canada if it were to repeat here. Students of history know it often does.
Despite a massive retrenchment in the nascent offshore wind industry in Europe and the US, the Newfoundland and federal governments are steaming ahead with what they hope will become a $1 trillion industry off the Grand Banks.That’s because Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey to develop a regulatory framework to develop massive offshore wind projects along The Rock’s equally rocky shores.Students of history — and Hollywood — know the Grand Banks as the site of the Titanic disaster in 1912..The MOU signed in Ottawa on Wednesday outlines the framework for Newfoundland and Labrador to administer land tenure and life-cycle regulation, including revenues for offshore renewable energy projects within provincial bays. It was made possible by Bill C-49, which establishes the legislative framework for offshore wind in the joint federal and provincial management areas set out under the Atlantic Accord Acts that dictated the scope and pace of offshore oil development on the Grand Banks. It also includes Nova Scotia.Dollar values weren’t disclosed.The irony is that Wilkinson last week scuppered a $1.5 million natural gas exploration licence near Sable Island off Nova Scotia under the very same Atlantic Accords. It was the only bid received under a provincial land sale designed to kickstart exploration in the province’s offshore oil and gas industry that has been dormant since 2018.Environmentalists had opposed the bid due to impacts on wildlife such as Northern Bottlenose whales from seismic blasting and drilling operations."The bid that came in was a very small bid," Wilkinson said. "That raises questions about the level of risk and the level of complexity you are willing to introduce for what is a very small amount of money.".Sable Island is also know for its population of wild horses that are damaging the ecology.Meanwhile, the global offshore wind industry is undergoing a severe period of retrenchment after several multi-billion dollar projects were cancelled off the US Eastern Seaboard and Gulf Coast despite massive subsidies under the Biden Administration’s signature Inflation Reduction Act.In November Danish wind energy developer Ørsted scrapped its proposed Ocean Wind I and II projects off southern New Jersey due to problems with supply chains, higher interest rates and a failure to obtain billions in tax credits it said were essential for the developments to proceed. Together, the projects were supposed to deliver over 2.2 gigawatts of power.Developers in New England cancelled power contacts for three projects that would have provided another 3.2 gigawatts of wind power to Massachusetts and Connecticut because they were financially infeasible despite billions in subsidies.“While macroeconomic headwinds are creating challenges for some projects, momentum remains on the side of an expanding U.S. offshore wind industry — creating good-paying union jobs in manufacturing, shipbuilding and construction,″ the White House said in a statement.There’s nothing to suggest the case, or past history, would be any different in Canada if it were to repeat here. Students of history know it often does.
