For sale or lease: one massive Newfoundland fabrication yard with a megaproject history

CBC News

· Posted: Apr 24, 2025 4:30 AM EDT | Last Updated: 28 minutes ago

Two companies with heavy roots successful Newfoundland and Labrador are competing for the close to either bargain oregon lease the government-owned Bull Arm fabrication tract successful Trinity Bay.

Energy Minister Andrew Parsons says authorities negotiators are determined to make maximum worth for the state from a imaginable deal. Otherwise, helium says, "we volition locomotion away" from negotiations with DF Barnes Services Limited and NARL Marketing LP.

"Best lawsuit scenario: we find thing that works for the companies and makes consciousness for the state and sees much enactment happening retired there. Worst lawsuit scenario: we proceed to clasp it arsenic a nationalist asset," said Parsons.

DF Barnes and NARL Marketing emerged arsenic the apical 2 proponents pursuing a petition for proposals, and present the companies are making their pitches to either bargain oregon lease the 25-square kilometre site, which includes 10 kilometres of paved roadway, 20,600 quadrate metres of enclosed fabrication facilities, and marine infrastructure.

The provincial authorities describes Bull Arm arsenic Atlantic Canada's largest fabrication site, and it has a affluent past erstwhile it comes to the improvement of the province's offshore lipid industry, opening with operation of the Hibernia lipid task successful the aboriginal 1990s.

It besides served arsenic a important fabrication and operation tract for different lipid projects specified arsenic Hebron, Terra Nova and White Rose.

At assorted times, the workforce has swelled to respective 1000 radical during highest operation activities, with the state being paid millions annually successful lease payments by lipid companies specified arsenic ExxonMobil Canada.

But the tract has been underutilized successful caller years, and manufacture players person been showing involvement successful acquiring the facility.

Parsons says negotiations with the 2 proponents are successful the aboriginal stages, and helium could not springiness a timeline connected erstwhile a woody mightiness beryllium reached.

But with Premier Andrew Furey acceptable to depart politics, a contention underway to prime his successor, and a provincial predetermination expected sometime this year, a swift determination connected the destiny of Bull Arm is unlikely.

Parsons would not speculate connected a preferred outcome, but says a woody could see a currency sale, oregon an statement that guarantees occupation instauration and economical development.

"If idiosyncratic tin unafraid that, that's thing we would look at," helium said.

Parsons says Bull Arm is simply a world-class tract with large imaginable successful the lipid and state and renewable vigor industries. But with the national authorities placing an expanding accent connected Arctic security, helium says Bull Arm is besides well-positioned for activities specified arsenic ship-building and vas repair.

"We truly are that gateway to the north," said Parsons.

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