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Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Atlantic Accord

The Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Atlantic Accord is an agreement signed in 1985 between the Government of Canada and the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to manage offshore oil and gas resources adjacent to Newfoundland and Labrador.[1]

Background

In 1979, oil was first discovered off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador.[2]

The Pierre Trudeau government proposed that "Newfoundland should enjoy the major share of the revenue that offshore resources are expected to generate" in 1983.[3]

Implementation

The agreement established the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board, originally known as the Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum (C-NLOPB, formerly known as C-NOPB).[4] The board became responsible for:[5]

  • developing resources (such as placing calls for bids)
  • issuing exploration
  • licensing significant discovery and production
  • assesing royalties, interests and penalties
  • administrating and enforcing agreements
  • regulating operations
  • sharing revenue

A 2003 report by PricewaterhouseCoopers revealed that the province was receiving a relatively small fraction of the revenue generated under the agreement.[4][3]

In 2005, the provincial government and the federal government renegotiated the accord.[4][3] At one point the provincial government ordered Canadian flags to be stripped from their poles in provincial buildings.[4][3] The negotiations led to a transfer of CA$2,000,000 from the federal governemnt to the provincial government.[4]

In 2007, the federal government reneged on the agreement, under Stephen Harper through changes made to the equalization payments.[6][7]

In 2018, the provincial government wrote to the federal government to request a review of the agreement, which was required to happen by 2019.[8] In 2019, the federal government and the provincial government announced changes to the agreement.[9]

In 2023, the federal government and the provincial government announced changes to the agreement, which would mean that offshore renewable energy would fall under the agreement.[10] The amendments to the federal legislation were made under Bill C-49 which received royal assent in October 2024.[11]

Further developments

The name was also used to describe a 2005 cash transfer[12] agreement between the Government of Canada and the governments of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador under a similar legislative framework.[13]

References

  1. ^ "The 1985 Canada-Newfoundland Atlantic Accord". www.heritage.nf.ca. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  2. ^ "The 1979 oil discovery that could change St. John's". CBC Archives. 2019-10-20. Archived from the original on 2019-10-21. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  3. ^ a b c d "Why Williams walked, why Martin balked: the Atlantic Accord dispute in perspective". Policy Options. Institute for Research on Public Policy. 2005-02-01. Archived from the original on 2024-11-12. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  4. ^ a b c d e "What the heck is the Atlantic Accord? We explain it in 6 gifs". CBC News. 2019-04-04. Archived from the original on 2019-05-07. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  5. ^ Fraser, Gail S.; Ellis, Joanne (2009-03-01). "The Canada-Newfoundland Atlantic Accord Implementation Act: Transparency of the environmental management of the offshore oil and gas industry". Marine Policy. 33 (2): 312–316. doi:10.1016/j.marpol.2008.07.012. ISSN 0308-597X.
  6. ^ O'Neill-Yates, Chris (2019-05-06). "What the new Atlantic Accord deal says — and does not say". CBC News. Archived from the original on 2023-09-27. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  7. ^ "Equalization difference could have paid off debt: Marshall". CBC News. 2007-04-16. Archived from the original on 2025-05-01. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  8. ^ "N.L. to receive $2.5B from Ottawa over 38 years in renewed Atlantic Accord". CBC News. 2019-04-01. Archived from the original on 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  9. ^ O'Neill-Yates, Chris (2019-05-06). "What the new Atlantic Accord deal says — and does not say". CBC News. Archived from the original on 2025-05-01. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  10. ^ Mercer, Juanita (2023-05-30). "'A big day': Atlantic Accord amendments would enable offshore wind farms in Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia". PNI Atlantic News. Archived from the original on 2025-05-01. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
  11. ^ Foxwell, David (2024-10-04). "Canada passes legislation to seize offshore wind's "enormous opportunity"". 2025-05-01.
  12. ^ "Cash-strapped Newfoundland wants talks on 2005 Atlantic Accord". CTVNews. 2018-02-13. Retrieved 2024-06-23.
  13. ^ "Ottawa reaches deal with N.S. over offshore revenue". CBC News. 10 October 2007. Retrieved 8 February 2024.