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What Happens When 20% of the World’s Energy Supply Disappears Overnight?
The world is looking for a reliable and stable energy partner. Canada checks every box. Now it’s time to act like it.
May 15, 2026
Here’s a pairing you probably haven’t heard in a while: offshore exploration and Atlantic Canada.
Western Canadian energy projects have been grabbing the attention of the media for the last few years. But, in the face of a dire necessity to develop Canada’s energy potential, Atlantic Canada is stepping up.
The governments of both Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador are looking into new and increased offshore exploration. Offshore drilling has history in Atlantic Canada, but there has been little activity in recent years.
If development goes forward, we’re talking about thousands of new jobs and billions in economic impact. In addition, a new source of oil could supply domestic demand or be sold to energy-hungry Atlantic trading partners.
Premier Tim Houston and the Nova Scotia government are now all-in on energy development, seeing it as central to the province’s economic future. Changes to the federal political landscape as well as geopolitical shifts have prompted a more welcoming attitude to such development.
But government intention alone doesn’t achieve results. What has actually been done?
Firstly, the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Energy Regulator put out a call for bids for parcels of land on the central Scotian Shelf and Slope. This was a critical step in allowing private sector exploration and production companies to develop Nova Scotia’s onshore/offshore sector again.
Secondly, the provincial government employed the help of Dalhousie University back in December 2025 to oversee Nova Scotia’s subsurface energy investment program for new natural gas exploration.
In short, the program will see Dalhousie conduct geological, methane emission, and groundwater and wastewater studies, as well as seismic and exploratory drilling analyses. Exploratory agreements will also be signed with gas producers. The program has received interest from seven companies so far.
Like in Nova Scotia, the Newfoundland and Labrador government is also focusing on re-igniting a prosperous offshore drilling sector.
NFLD Energy Minister Lloyd Parrott wants to bring domestic and international investment into the province’s near-idle offshore natural gas sector. There’s potentially 16 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in the Jeanne d’Arc Basin offshore area. That’s a lot of gas – and a lot of economic potential.
Though NFLD has spent a fraction of what Nova Scotia has on development research thus far, it’s nevertheless an exciting time for NFLD’s oil and gas sector. Up to $90 million is earmarked for the province’s Offshore Exploration Fund over the next three years, so things are looking up.
The tariff situation with the United States hasn’t gone away. What’s more, it’s now accompanied by signs of recession and a global energy crisis.
The stakes have seldom been higher in Canada’s history – we need to develop major projects, strengthen our economy, and diversify our export partners. And we need to do it ASAP.
Government initiatives reflect this sentiment. We’ve seen the Major Projects Office with its Projects of National Importance. At the provincial level, we’ve also seen Alberta gunning for a new pipeline and Ontario charging forward with nuclear power development. For the first time in many years, it feels like government and industry are aligned on what needs to be done.
Assessing the business case for Atlantic offshore oil exploration is another key avenue through which we can strengthen Canada’s economy, especially in the context of what’s going on in the world right now.
The reason you probably haven’t heard about offshore exploration and drilling in the Maritimes in a while is because there simply hasn’t been much activity in recent years.
To simplify a complicated issue, the federal government hasn’t been the most supportive of resource development in the last couple of decades. While this issue wasn’t solely felt in Atlantic Canada – traditional oil and gas development out west has also suffered big-time – it had the effect of flattening a once-lucrative offshore sector.
As NFLD Premier Tony Wakeham bluntly put it, the federal government of years past was “happy to see our oil and gas sector fail.” A similar sentiment is shared by Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, who said “we had an industry that was shut down in Canada for quite some time” in regard to past federal administrations.
Given the history, a new, project-hungry federal government is coming at a crucial time for Atlantic Canada. The stars seem to be aligning for the revival of offshore production.
With billions of dollars of energy potential under the ocean floor waiting to be found, the time is now to take action.
This is an exciting time for Canadian energy. Going forward, keep an eye out for offshore drilling-related news stories and government announcements coming out of Atlantic Canada.
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The world is looking for a reliable and stable energy partner. Canada checks every box. Now it’s time to act like it.
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