NLIS 13
April 16, 2003
(Mines and Energy)

 

Minister delivers speech to NOIA

Mines and Energy Minister Walter Noel today delivered his first speech to the Newfoundland Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) since becoming the minister responsible for petroleum development in the province.

"In my first address to NOIA, I took the opportunity to discuss ways in which we can make our province more attractive for future exploration. We are currently doing many things to facilitate this process. This includes developing attractive royalty regimes, meeting with our industry partners and ensuring a stable and effective investment climate in the province.

"Getting more exploration must be our top priority. Without new discoveries, there will not be new developments. We must also demand change to our equalization formula and improve our federal system so that Newfoundlanders and Labradorians benefit from the development of our resources.

"Industry has advised us that duplication in the regulatory process is hurting new investment. Government recognizes these issues and the federal legislation that has encroached upon the Atlantic Accord Acts. We are currently going through a roundtable process to try and rectify these issues.

"We believe the Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board (C-NOPB) is doing a good job in fulfilling its mandate. This year�s provincial budget provided for increased funding to the Board of approximately $300,000.00. This demonstrates our commitment to, and confidence in, our regulatory body and the growth of our offshore industry.

"I am also working on encouraging development of our fourth offshore project, Hebron-Ben Nevis. I�ve met with officials from Norsk Hydro and Petro-Canada, and I am arranging meetings with Chevron and Exxon-Mobil. I want to see how we can assist in moving this project forward. It�s too valuable a project not to aggressively pursue every option for early sanction.

"I will continue to promote our offshore petroleum industry, and I am always willing to listen to advice from our industry partners and industry associations such as NOIA. We have to maintain momentum in our petroleum sector and continue to identify and eliminate barriers to new investment. I believe that by working together we will achieve our goals."

Minister's address to NOIA

Media contact: Darrell Mercer, Communications, (709) 729-5777.

2003 04 16                                       5:20 p.m.


SearchHomeBack to GovernmentContact Us


All material copyright the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. No unauthorized copying or redeployment permitted. The Government assumes no responsibility for the accuracy of any material deployed on an unauthorized server.
Disclaimer/Copyright/Privacy Statement