Natural Resources Ministers Announce Appointment of New Chair to the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board

OTTAWA, July 31, 2015 /CNW/ - The Honourable Greg Rickford, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, and the Honourable Michel Samson, Minister of Energy, Government of Nova Scotia, today announced that Mr. Roderick Keith MacLeod has been appointed as the new Chairperson for the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board (CNSOPB).  Mr. MacLeod was selected through an advertised competitive, joint-Government of Canada and Government of Nova Scotia process supported by the Privy Council Office. Mr. MacLeod will serve on a part-time basis for a term of six years effective August 17, 2015.

Mr. MacLeod is a professional engineer and senior executive who will bring to the CNSOPB more than 30 years of onshore and offshore oil and gas industry experience both in Canada and abroad.  Most recently, he served for seven years as President and Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Sproule, a Calgary-based, globally recognized company that specializes in independent geoscience, reservoir engineering, and reserve assessment and valuation.  Mr. MacLeod has lectured at the University of Calgary and worked on a number of projects related to the Sable Offshore Energy Project in Nova Scotia as well as a number of coalbed methane projects in the province.

The CNSOPB is the independent joint agency of the Governments of Canada and Nova Scotia responsible for the regulation of petroleum activities in the Canada-Nova Scotia offshore area.  The Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implementation Act requires that the Chairperson of the CNSOPB be appointed jointly by both governments. 

Quick Facts

• The CNSOPB manages the petroleum resources in the Canada-Nova Scotia offshore area on behalf of the Governments of Canada and Nova Scotia. The CNSOPB was created in 1990 through the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implementation Act for the purpose of regulating the Nova Scotia offshore oil and gas industry.
• Nova Scotia has two producing projects in the offshore, the Sable Offshore Petroleum Project and Deep Panuke.  In 2014, 156 million cubic feet per day of natural gas from these two offshore installations was exported from the province, the equivalent of 44.7 per cent of daily Nova Scotia production.
• Between January 2000 and March 2015, the federal government collected approximately $2 billion in royalties from projects operating in the offshore area and has transferred an equivalent amount to the province of Nova Scotia.

Quotes

"I am pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Keith MacLeod as Chair of the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board. Mr. MacLeod brings a wealth of experience in the field of offshore oil and gas resource appraisal and development economics and will be an asset to the board as it delivers on its mission of efficient, fair and competent regulation of exploration and production activities enabling safe and responsible development of the petroleum resources in the Canada-Nova Scotia offshore area."

Greg Rickford
Canada's Minister of Natural Resources

"We need experienced leaders at the helm as our offshore grows over the coming years. Keith MacLeod has had a distinguished international career providing independent professional advice to oil and gas companies, governments and financial firms around the world. He has in-depth knowledge of the east coast oil and gas industry and we're thrilled to attract someone of his calibre to this role."

Michel Samson
Minister of Energy, Government of Nova Scotia

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SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

Natural Resource Canada, Alexandra Lemieux, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister, Natural Resources Canada, 613-996-2007 Or Media Relations, Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, 613-992-4447; The general public may contact: Mon.-Fri., 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. EST, Telephone: [phone], TTY: 613-996-4397 (teletype for the hearing-impaired) , E-mail: [email protected]