Approximately 6.2 million barrels of oil were extracted from offshore Newfoundland and Labrador in February 2024, representing an increase of 5.8% compared to February 2023. The corresponding value of production increased by 7.5%. Production declined at the Hibernia, White Rose and Hebron projects, compared to the same month last year, but increased at Terra Nova. The Terra Nova floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which interrupted its operations in late 2019 to undergo an overhaul, resumed production in November 2023. In February 2024, its production neared one million barrels of oil, similar to its average monthly production in 2019. Production was suspended at the White Rose oilfield in January 2024 as the SeaRose FPSO vessel sailed to Belfast, Northern Ireland, to undergo a refit as part of the White Rose field’s asset life extension project. Production at the White Rose field is expected to restart in the third quarter of 2024.

Brent crude oil prices averaged US$83.48/barrel in February 2024, up 1.1% from US$82.59/barrel in February 2023. Recent developments in the global oil market reflect supply cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and partner countries (OPEC+) and geopolitical concerns. The ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, including recent Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries, in addition to attacks targeting commercial ships in the Red Sea channel and the risk of a wider conflict in the Middle East, are acting as a floor against lower crude oil prices. During the last twelve months, Brent crude oil has traded roughly between US$75/barrel and US$94/barrel.

Countries of the OPEC+ group reduced their crude oil production by an estimated 1.4 million barrels per day in 2023, according to the Energy Information Agency. Several production cuts that were announced in 2023, such as from Saudi Arabia and Russia, were extended into the first half of 2024. The intent is to support a higher price level by avoiding a global excess supply of crude oil and to prevent increases in global oil inventories.

The estimated value of Newfoundland and Labrador’s crude oil output is in Canadian dollars; the average Canada-US exchange rate in February 2024 stood at 74.1 cents/US dollar, compared to 74.3 cents/US dollar in February 2023.

On a year-to-date basis, approximately 12.0 million barrels of oil were extracted from offshore Newfoundland and Labrador over the January to February 2024 period, down 7.9% compared to the same period last year. The corresponding value decreased 8.5%.

Further information on the province’s oil and gas industry is available in The Economy 2024 (see Oil and Gas section).