‘Devil in the details’: Cautious optimism about massive Wind West project

Another environmental advocacy organization is looking forward to the Nova Scotia government’s offshore wind project, but how it will play out remains the only cautious caveat.

Thomas Arnason McNeil, Ecology Action Centre’s senior energy coordinator, told The Todd Veinotte Show on Tuesday that the idea of harnessing offshore winds and generating electricity for the province and the country is a “phenomenal idea.”

“Nova Scotia needs to get serious when it comes to harnessing just the incredible offshore wind resources that we do have,” he said. “So I think that the premier is absolutely correct in pointing out that Nova Scotia has tremendous wind resources.”

Last week, Premier Tim Houston announced a massive project just after meeting with the first ministers across the country and Prime Minister Mark Carney. In a video posted to social media, he said the province is on the edge of a clean energy “breakthrough.”

According to the premier, Nova Scotia only uses about 2.4 gigawatts of energy at peak demand, meaning the remaining energy could be used elsewhere in the country.

McNeil said that the idea could generate tens of thousands of jobs for the economy and possibly over $1 billion in annual revenue for the province. But, he said, that will depend on connecting Nova Scotia’s grid to the rest of Canada.

“I think that ultimately, the devil is in the details when we’re talking about energy,” McNeil said. “We are going to need to work closely and collaboratively with coastal communities, with folks in the fishing industry, to make sure that we are doing this right.”

If that is done, McNeil is confident that it will be an opportunity for the province.

“I think that we are kind of walking a tight rope here. But at the end of the day, I am fundamentally an optimist,” he said.

The promotional video from Houston did not detail any timelines for the project, nor how much the province is willing to invest or how much it needs the federal government to contribute.

Among the world’s best locations for wind

In October 2023, the Public Policy Forum released a study saying Sable Island Bank, an ocean area about 180 kilometres south of Nova Scotia, is among the world’s best locations for wind energy generation.

“It and several other similarly endowed areas off the coast of Atlantic Canada hold the potential to place the region among the leading global hubs of offshore wind-powered energy development,” says the report from the independent non-profit think tank.

It goes on to say that as the world shifts from a dependence on fossil fuels to forms of energy that do not emit climate-changing greenhouse gases, Atlantic Canada is facing “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity … to recover an economic vitality comparable to the Age of Sail — fittingly built again on the power of wind at sea.”

The report says the installation of 15 gigawatts of offshore wind generation would create about 30,000 direct jobs annually.

Despite the hype, the industry must also earn acceptance from Nova Scotia’s fishing industry, which in 2023 contributed $2.5 billion to the province’s economy and employed 19,000 people.

With files from Michael MacDonald, The Canadian Press.