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Patrick Brannon is still bullish on the economic potential for Nova Scotia from offshore wind power, in spite of American backtracking that will delay things. 

Brannon, senior researcher for the Atlantic Economic Council, authored its latest report in its net-zero series that concluded that “wind development, particularly offshore wind, presents the biggest economic opportunity for the Atlantic region out of all existing clean technologies.” 

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But in the wake of the Trump administration kneecapping the burgeoning U.S. offshore wind industry last week by issuing a stop-work order to Norwegian company Equinor, which had invested $2 billion in a wind project off the coast of New York, things look different. 

In this region, that means ports that had hoped to serve as marshalling yards for wind turbine components travelling from Norway to the U.S. are, at least for now, out of luck. 

“The port of Argentia in Newfoundland, Sydney, Halifax are all looking at being marshalling yards for some of these projects, so certainly some port revenues would be impacted, and I think Argentia had already signed some contracts for some of these projects,” Brannon said.

“In the long run, these ports are looking at if there are opportunities off Nova Scotia or Newfoundland and Labrador where they can play a role for the turbine blades, the towers, the lay-down areas as they prepare these projects.” 

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Though more expensive to build than onshore wind farms, offshore offers steadier winds and more work for local suppliers. The unexpected development in the U.S. could also mean a reduction in job creation in Atlantic Canada. 

“The U.S. projects were further ahead, and it was an opportunity to start being marshalling yards for these projects, and eventually that would roll into the projects that are planned for off Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador in the future. From the ports’ perspective, it’s a disappointing development that the revenue stream may be on hold for a while,” said Brannon.

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“Cost issues have presented challenges for a lot of companies developing these projects. The supply chain issues that were created after the pandemic really drove up the prices of these components and that was impacting their feasibility. That said, Nova Scotia is going ahead with potentially five gigawatts of offshore wind; there will be more details on that later this year. The big issue with offshore wind is it’s so much more reliable than onshore wind.” 

Equinor’s Empire Wind project, halted by U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, was approved by the Biden administration in 2023 and construction began last year. It was expected to generate enough electricity to power 700,000 New York homes a year, beginning in 2027. 

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Coincidentally, Nova Scotia’s premier is speaking this week at an offshore wind and ocean renewables conference in Virginia. 

“Nova Scotia is open for business, and there are countless opportunities for us to be more self-reliant and grow our economy in key areas like wind energy,” said Tim Houston in a news release.

“We’re blessed with incredible onshore and offshore wind speeds that we can use to our advantage with partners who invest in our wind sector.” 

The province says it will offer licences for five gigawatts of offshore wind energy by 2030, with the first call for bids later this year, describing the continental shelf as having “vast areas of relatively shallow water that are ideal for floating and fixed wind platforms.” 

The government says Nova Scotia’s offshore wind sector is projected to be a $4.6-billion industry within seven years. 

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