The Bay du Nord oil field is located northeast of St. John's, Newfoundland. The offshore development is owned by Equinor.
History The Bay du Nord discovery, located approximately 500 kilometres east of St. John's in water depths of about 1,200 metres, was discovered in 2013 and was estimated to contain nearly 300 million barrels of recoverable oil. The Bay du Nord (BDN) development project consists of six fields within close proximity. Two significant discovery licenses (Bay du Nord and Baccalieu) comprise the core BDN development area.
July 26, 2018: Announcement In July 2018, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and Equinor Canada announced a framework agreement to develop the Bay du Nord oil project, marking the province's first planned deepwater offshore oil development and opening the Flemish Pass Basin as a new producing region beyond the established Jeanne d'Arc Basin. Premier Dwight Ball described the project as the beginning of a “new frontier” for the province's oil and gas industry and stated that it demonstrated Newfoundland and Labrador's emergence as a globally recognized location for deepwater oil production.
At the time of the announcement, the project was expected to be sanctioned in 2020, with first oil targeted for 2025 (this ultimately did not occur). Government and company officials emphasized that Bay du Nord would be the province's first remote deepwater development and would establish production in an entirely new offshore basin.
The proposed development was valued at approximately $6.8 billion, with Newfoundland and Labrador securing a 10 per cent equity stake through its provincial energy corporation. Government estimates projected approximately $3.5 billion in provincial revenues through royalties, taxes, and equity participation over the life of the project. Premier Ball argued that the province's investment would generate significant long-term returns and ensure that residents directly benefited from offshore resource development.
Economic benefits were a major focus of the announcement. The provincial government estimated that Bay du Nord would generate more than $14 billion in economic activity, support approximately 22.3 million person-hours of employment over its lifetime, and create roughly 500 operational jobs. Officials presented the project as a major source of long-term economic activity that would bring employment opportunities and investment to Newfoundland and Labrador for decades.
The agreement included substantial commitments to local participation. Approximately 90 per cent of project and procurement management activities were expected to occur within Newfoundland and Labrador, while 51 per cent of engineering work during pre-development and development phases would be completed locally. The project also included plans for approximately 5,000 metric tonnes of fabrication work within the province, along with investments intended to strengthen local subsea engineering and fabrication capabilities.
A key component of the benefits package was a commitment to invest at least $75 million over ten years in research and development, education, and workforce training. The goal was to position Newfoundland and Labrador as a deepwater centre of excellence, developing the technical expertise and skilled workforce required to support future offshore developments. Government officials viewed these investments as important to building long-term industrial capacity beyond the Bay du Nord project itself.
The project was also significant because it became the first offshore development negotiated under Newfoundland and Labrador's Generic Oil Royalty Regulations. Natural Resources Minister Siobhan Coady stated that Bay du Nord aligned with the province's Advance 2030 – The Way Forward on Oil and Gas strategy by opening a new basin, encouraging subsea development, attracting investment, and helping create a sustainable and globally competitive offshore industry.
Overall, the 2018 announcement positioned Bay du Nord as a transformational project for Newfoundland and Labrador. Beyond the expected billions in economic activity and government revenues, it was intended to establish the province's first deepwater oil field, expand offshore production into the Flemish Pass Basin, strengthen local engineering and fabrication industries, create thousands of years of employment, and lay the foundation for future offshore growth. Government and industry leaders characterized the project as the start of a new chapter in Newfoundland and Labrador's offshore petroleum industry.
December 2021: Environmental Assessment Report The Bay du Nord Development Project Environmental Assessment Report (December 2021) was prepared by the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada to assess the environmental, social, cultural, and economic implications of Equinor Canada Ltd.'s proposal to develop a large offshore oil production project in the Flemish Pass Basin, approximately 500 kilometres east of St. John's, NL. The assessment was conducted under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 (CEAA 2012) and involved extensive review by federal agencies, Indigenous groups, industry stakeholders, environmental organizations, and the public.
The project proposes the development of the Bay du Nord and Baccalieu discoveries through a subsea production system connected to a Floating Production, Storage and Offloading vessel (FPSO). Over its life, the project could involve drilling up to 60 wells, including 40 wells in the core development area and up to 20 future tieback wells. Production is expected to continue for approximately 20 to 30 years, making it one of the largest and longest-lived offshore petroleum projects ever proposed in Newfoundland and Labrador. Oil would be transported from the FPSO by shuttle tankers either to Whiffen Head or directly to international markets.
The assessment focused on a series of "valued components" considered most susceptible to environmental change. These included fish and fish habitat, marine mammals, sea turtles, migratory birds, species at risk, special marine conservation areas, commercial fisheries, Indigenous use of resources, Indigenous rights, air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, cumulative environmental effects, and accidents or malfunctions such as major oil spills.
A major concern throughout the assessment was the effect of routine drilling operations on marine ecosystems. The project would generate large volumes of drilling mud and drill cuttings deposited onto the seabed. The Agency concluded these wastes could bury sensitive benthic habitats, including deep-water corals, sponges, and sea pen communities that provide habitat for numerous fish species. Installation of subsea wells, pipelines, anchors, mooring systems, and protective structures would physically disturb areas of seabed habitat. The Agency noted that recovery times for deep-water communities are uncertain and may require decades because many deep-sea corals and sponges grow very slowly. Despite these concerns, it concluded that impacts could be mitigated through extensive seabed surveys, relocation of infrastructure where necessary, environmental monitoring, and habitat protection measures.
Underwater noise emerged as another significant issue. The project would generate noise from drilling rigs, support vessels, FPSO operations, subsea construction, and future seismic surveys. Such noise has the potential to alter fish behaviour, displace marine mammals, interfere with communication and feeding, and affect migratory species. Marine mammals identified as potentially affected include fin whales, blue whales, northern bottlenose whales, harbour porpoises, sperm whales, and numerous dolphin species. The Agency acknowledged substantial uncertainty regarding marine mammal use of the project area because scientific data remain limited. Nevertheless, modelling suggested that behavioural effects rather than direct injury would be the most likely impact. Mandatory monitoring programs, vessel speed restrictions, marine mammal observers, and seismic shutdown procedures were recommended.
Particular attention was given to Atlantic salmon, one of the issues most frequently raised by Indigenous groups. Atlantic salmon populations across Atlantic Canada have undergone significant declines, and there is still considerable uncertainty regarding their ocean migration routes. Indigenous participants expressed concern that drilling discharges, underwater sound, and cumulative industrial activity could affect salmon survival and migration. Although Fisheries and Oceans Canada advised that interaction between salmon and the project area was likely low, the Agency acknowledged ongoing uncertainty and required the proponent to support Atlantic salmon research programs and annually report findings to Indigenous groups and regulators.
The assessment also devoted extensive attention to migratory birds, particularly the Leach's Storm-Petrel, a species experiencing significant declines and known to be highly attracted to offshore lighting. Artificial light from drilling platforms, vessels, and the FPSO could attract birds over long distances, increasing risks of collision, disorientation, exhaustion, and mortality. Flaring operations posed additional risks. Since little is known about the actual scale of bird mortality offshore, the Agency required extensive monitoring of stranded birds, reductions in unnecessary lighting, evaluation of bird-friendly lighting technologies, careful management of flaring, and participation in ongoing seabird research initiatives.
The report examined numerous special marine conservation areas that overlap or occur near the project area, including Ecologically and Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs), NAFO fisheries closures, Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems (VMEs), and marine refuges. Many of these areas contain important coral and sponge communities and support commercially important fish stocks and marine mammals. Although project activities would occur partially within some of these sensitive areas, the Agency concluded that the relatively small physical footprint of infrastructure, combined with mitigation measures and monitoring, would limit impacts to a level that was not considered significant.
Commercial fisheries represented another major issue. Domestic, Indigenous, and foreign fisheries overlap portions of the project area, particularly in NAFO Divisions 3L and 3M. Operators, fishing organizations, and Indigenous groups worried about restricted access, gear conflicts, displacement from fishing grounds, and potential contamination concerns. The assessment found that exclusion zones around infrastructure would affect only a small portion of fishing grounds. However, the Agency required comprehensive communication plans, fisheries liaison programs, compensation mechanisms, and ongoing engagement with fishing interests throughout the life of the project.
Indigenous consultation was extensive and involved Inuit, Innu, Mi'kmaq, Mi'gmaq, Wolastoqey, and Peskotomuhkati communities across Atlantic Canada and Quebec. Many groups expressed concerns about Atlantic salmon, commercial fisheries, marine mammals, cumulative effects, accidents, and climate change. The Agency concluded that no Indigenous communities currently exercise rights directly within the project area itself, but acknowledged that migratory species affected offshore may later be harvested in Indigenous territories. It determined that mitigation measures directed at fish, marine mammals, birds, fisheries, and spill response would also serve as accommodations to reduce potential impacts on Aboriginal and treaty rights.