The company is reiterating its interest in the development, but serious doubt has once again been placed on the future of Bay du Nord as Equinor and its partner bp announce a three year postponement of the offshore oil project.
Equinor Canada spokesman, Tore Løseth says they’re using the delay to continue to “actively mature Bay du Nord towards a successful development.”
First oil from Bay du Nord was originally anticipated by late 2028. It’s widely believed that Bay du Nord could be the last offshore oil project approved in Newfoundland and Labrador.
After an extended period of uncertainty, the project finally received federal environmental approval one year ago.
The company is citing volatile market conditions for “significant cost increases in many aspects of the development.” Senior Vice President of Project Development with Equinor, Trond Bokn says Bay du Nord remains an important project for Equinor and they are looking at it to see if there are “further optimizations” that can be made.
The Bay du Nord project includes five discoveries with “significant” additional near field prospectively according to Equinor. The company is reiterating its interest in the development and will continues to assess exploration drilling around the Bay du Nord Field in 2024.
Furey, Johnson Disappointed With Delay
Reaction to the news was swift.
Premier Andrew Furey says he’s disappointed to hear the news, but he does take some encouragement from the fact that the project has not been cancelled.
He’s been assured by the company that the decision is based on market forces and is not a cancellation. He says Equinor is now evaluating the best way forward and at 8 kg per barrel, “it’s one of the lowest-carbon footprint products in the world, and they see it as such.”
The news put a damper on the Energy NL conference underway in St. John’s. CEO Charlene Johnson told delegates the news came as a great disappointment.
She says they’ve seen project delays in the past and have come out the other side. “We will do so again” she told the conference over the lunch hour today.
Johnson Statement to Energy NL Conference
