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Marine Renewable-energy Permits and Licences
A licensing and permitting regime was established following the proclamation of the Marine Renewable-energy Act.
Licenced projects must be located within a marine renewable-electricity area (MREA) and may only be awarded following a call for applications. The holders of feed-in tariff approvals issued under the Renewable Electricity Regulations prior to the coming into force of the Marine Renewable-energy Act, may be issued a licence in accordance with Section 30 of the Marine Renewable-energy Act.
Licences issued under the Marine Renewable-energy Act are available below.
Sustainable Marine Energy Canada Ltd.
FORCE Berth ‘D’ Procurement
An independent and competitive process is underway to attract a new tidal project to fill the vacant berth at the Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy (FORCE). The following companies have responded to the call for applications:
- HydroQuest
- Orbital Marine Power Limited
- Tugliq Energy Corporation
The independent procurement administrator is in the process of evaluating the proposals.
Permit Program
Marine Renewable-energy permits let project developers test or demonstrate new ways of generating marine renewable energy. Applicants may apply for unconnected permits to test non-grid connected devices or demonstration permits to deploy and connect devices to the electrical grid in the Province.
Each demonstration project will be allowed up to 5 megawatts of new generating capacity, with a total of 10 megawatts available under the program.
All applications will undergo an environmental, technical and financial review. In addition, the Department of Environment will conduct a full environmental assessment on any device with a generating capacity of 2 megawatts or more.
How to apply
To make the application process more efficient, you should contact the Department of Energy and Mines in the early stages of planning your project.
Projects under review
The project summaries of applications under review will be posted to this page for a 30-day public comment period. Any public comments received may be shared with any government department or agency that exercises regulatory authority over any aspect of the activities to be carried on under the proposed project. Please send your comments to marinerenewables@novascotia.ca
Permits Issued
- Nova Innovation (PDF)
- Jupiter Hydro Inc. (PDF)
- Black Rock Tidal Power Inc. (September 14, 2018)
- FORCE (PDF)
- Big Moon Canada (PDF) (April 5, 2018)
- amended unconnected permit for BigMoon Canada Corporation (June 5, 2019)
Contact us
If you have any questions about the program or the application process, email marinerenewables@novascotia.ca or call 902 424-7090.