Province appoints Dean MacDonald to CNLOPB chair selection panel

Minister of Natural Resources Ed Byrne announced today that Dean MacDonald, chair of the Board of Directors of Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro, will serve as the provincial government�s representative on the panel that will select a chair and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board (CNLOPB).

The provincial government�s appointment of Mr. MacDonald is in response to notice provided by the federal government that it will be appointing one member to a panel that will be charged with selecting the CNLOPB Chair and CEO.

�This position is critical to the future development of our offshore resources,� said Minister Byrne. �I have full confidence that Mr. MacDonald will represent the province�s best interests in the selection of the chair and CEO of our offshore petroleum board. We will continue to pursue a candidate that we believe will best represent this province�s interests while working with industry to further the offshore industry in Newfoundland and Labrador. Both the premier and I continue to believe that Andy Wells is the ideal candidate and we will be requesting that he be given primary consideration as this process moves forward.�

According to Section 12 and 24 of both the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Atlantic Accord Implementation Act (federal) and the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Atlantic Accord Implementation Newfoundland and Labrador Act, if the two governments do not reach an agreement on the candidate for the position of chair and CEO, a three-member panel will be established to make the selection. Each of the provincial and federal governments appoints one person to the panel and, subsequently, these two members will jointly appoint the panel chair within 30 days. Should the two panel members not agree on the panel chair, the panel chair will be appointed by the Chief Justice of Newfoundland and Labrador within 30 days. Once the three-member panel has been established, the panel has 60 days to select the chair and CEO of the CNLOPB. The decision of the panel is final and binding on both the provincial and federal governments.

Media contact: Carmel Turpin, Natural Resources, (709) 729-5282 , 685-4624

2005 08 25                      2:30 p.m.