Nova Scotia clears bidders for first offshore wind auction

DEME Nova Scotia has taken a step closer to launching Canada’s first offshore wind farms after regulators released the names of companies qualified to bid for seabed licences. The Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Energy Regulator released the names of five companies and two groups that passed a pre-qualification process that ran from October 2025 through January this year. Applicants had to demonstrate financial strength, technical capability, and legal and social credentials before being allowed to proceed to the next stage. Those who agreed to be named include DEME Concessions Wind of Belgium, Ming Yang Smart Energy Group of China, Northland Power of Canada, Simply Blue Energy of Ireland, and Jan De Nul of Luxembourg. Two consortia also cleared the process, one involving DP Energy Canada, Enterprize Energy Atlantic, Nova East Wind, and SBM Renewables Holding. The other is a pairing of Hanwha Ocean and Q Energy France. The regulator said some qualified firms could still choose to remain anonymous at this stage. A formal call for bids is expected later this year, with selections subject to review at both the federal and provincial levels. The first auction areas were designated in July 2025. Three of the initial areas, Middle Bank, Sable Island Bank, and Sydney Bight, are expected to suit fixed-bottom turbines, while the deeper French Bank zone may require floating technology. Premier Tim Houston said the pre-qualification shows the scale of interest in the province’s offshore wind sector. “Nova Scotia’s world-class offshore wind resource has captured the attention of international wind energy companies,” he said. “Now [prequalified] they can work on their proposals for Nova Scotia’s first offshore wind call for bids, which will open later this year.” Houston has pitched Wind West as a transformational industrial plan. In June 2025, he said the province intended to expand its licensing target from 5GW to 40GW, well above Nova Scotia’s current peak demand of about 2.4GW. He has also called on the Canadian government to support the project, arguing that the surplus power could supply nearly a third of the country’s electricity needs and attract buyers in Canada and even Massachusetts. Bojan Lepic Bojan is an English language professor turned journalist with years of experience covering the energy industry with a focus on the oil, gas, and LNG industries as well as reporting on the rise of the energy transition. Previously, he had written for Navingo media group titles including Offshore Energy Today and LNG World News. Before joining Splash, Bojan worked as an editor for Rigzone online magazine. Read Next June 29, 2026 Eidesvik lands long-term Aker BP PSV deal June 29, 2026 DOF lands MPSV extension in Australia June 29, 2026 BP wins technical services role on ONGC offshore fields June 29, 2026 Lightning strike sparks fire at offshore platform off Malaysia June 29, 2026 Eldorado finalises $257m acquisition of Vantage Drilling