Equinor submits Bay du Nord plans to Newfoundland and Labrador energy regulator

A sign for the company Equinor is displayed on Oct. 28, 2020, in Fornebu, Norway. (Hakon Mosvold Larsen/NTB Scanpix via AP, File)

ST. JOHN’S — Norway’s Equinor has submitted a development application for its proposed Bay du Nord oil project to Newfoundland and Labrador’s energy regulator.

The board of the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Energy Regulator will decide if the development is in the public interest.

The application will ultimately land with the federal natural resources minister and the provincial minister of energy for approval.

However, the public will have a chance to weigh in on the offshore development before those decisions are made.

Equinor has not yet decided to proceed with the project and the company is expected to make a possible investment decision next year.

Bay du Nord would be the first deepwater oil project in the country, and it cleared the federal environmental approval process in 2022.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 5, 2026.

Sarah Smellie, The Canadian Press