The Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board (C-NLOPB) has issued Calls for Bids for Exploration Licences in the Eastern Newfoundland and South Eastern Newfoundland Regions.

Call for Bids (Cumulative Parcels) No. NL23-CFB01 (Exploration Licences, Eastern Newfoundland Region) consists of 28 parcels and a total of 7,222,551 hectares.

Call for Bids (Cumulative Parcels) No. NL23-CFB02 (Exploration Licences, South Eastern Newfoundland Region) consists of 19 parcels and a total of 4,982,275 hectares.

Interested parties will have until 12:00 p.m. Newfoundland Time on November 1, 2023 to submit sealed bids for the parcels offered in these Calls for Bids. Notification of any changes to either of the Calls for Bids will be posted on the C-NLOPB’s website.

The issuance of these Calls for Bids has received C-NLOPB Board approval, along with ratification by the federal and Newfoundland and Labrador governments. Those steps will also be required in the awarding of any Exploration Licences to successful bidders, which would occur in early 2024.

The sole criterion for selecting a winning bid will be the total amount of money the bidder commits to spend on exploration of the parcel during Period I (the first period of a nine-year licence). The minimum bid for the parcels offered is $10,000,000 in work commitments.

Offshore safety and environmental protection are paramount in all Board decisions. The C-NLOPB supports action by the federal and provincial governments to address climate change and protect notable marine areas, and will continue to work closely with governments and others in this regard. Emissions-related considerations will be assessed as part of the regulatory review process when companies propose specific plans.

Planning, monitoring and assessment of offshore petroleum activities will ensure they occur in an environmentally responsible way. The timing, spatial extent, and nature of proposed oil and gas activities, in addition to mitigations already prescribed by legislation or regulation, will determine the level of restriction or mitigation that may be required. Regional and/or site-specific mitigation measures to be undertaken before and during petroleum-related operations within a licence area, will be conditions of C-NLOPB approvals and authorizations.

The Eastern and South Eastern Newfoundland Regions include a number of important areas for fish harvesters who fish crab and other species. The C-NLOPB fully appreciates the importance of both the fisheries and petroleum sectors and will continue to engage with fisheries stakeholders, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), other federal and provincial agencies and other stakeholders throughout the land tenure process. Any companies acquiring Exploration Licences pursuant to this Call for Bids will be required to engage with fishing interests before any oil and gas activities are authorized.

Some of the parcels in these 2023 Calls for Bids also overlap the Northeast Newfoundland Slope Marine Refuge. The C-NLOPB is focused on the protection of environmentally significant areas and will also continue to work closely with DFO and others in this regard.

For any lands entirely or partially beyond Canada’s 200 nautical mile zone, additional terms and conditions may be applied (e.g. through legislation, regulations, amendments to licences or otherwise) to any resulting licence from a Call for Bids in order to meet obligations arising pursuant to article 82 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Based on an assessment of nominations and land tenure considerations, the C-NLOPB has decided not to proceed with a Call for Bids in the Jeanne d’Arc Region in 2023. The decision to proceed with future Call for Bids in the Jeanne d’Arc Region will be assessed on an annual basis, per the C-NLOPB’s Scheduled Land Tenure System.

Further detailed information about these Calls for Bids is available here.