Land Issuance

Please note that the land tenure system is currently under review, and as a result, any dates, timelines or processes referenced may be subject to change. This review is being undertaken to identify opportunities to enhance competitiveness in the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Area. Users are encouraged to contact the C-NLOER to verify details before making decisions or taking action based on the information presented here.

Data and Information Hub.

Timeline for Active Rounds

Map of Licencing Rounds Status

Map of Projected Calls for Bids Closing Dates

Active Sectors

Sector	Timing
NL01-NEN	4-Year Cycle
NL01-SN	4-Year Cycle

Active Calls for Nominations

Regions	Closing Date
NL25-CFN02 – Jeanne d’Arc	November 12, 2025

Active Calls for Bids

Regions	Closing Date

Year of Call for Bids Close – Cumulative Parcels (CP)

	Region	2026	2027	2028	2029
	Jeanne d’Arc (Mature)	CP	CP	CP	CP
Northern (Low Activity)	Labrador North
	Labrador South				CP
	North Eastern Newfoundland
	Eastern Newfoundland (High Activity)	CP	CP	CP	CP
Southern (Low Activity)	South Eastern Newfoundland		CP
	Southern Newfoundland
	Western Newfoundland and Labrador

In 2013, the Regulator implemented a Scheduled Land Tenure System designed to provide increased timeframes for calls for bids in more frontier areas of the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Area. The Offshore Area has been divided into eight regions under this system, which have been individually categorized as either low activity, high activity, or mature, based on the level of oil and gas exploration and development activities.

In this system there are three rights issuance timing cycles, corresponding to the activity designations. Low activity – a two- or three-year cycle; high activity – a two-year cycle; and mature – a one-year cycle.

In the Scheduled Land Tenure System, the rights issuance cycle will commence with a call for nominations (Areas of Interest). The Regulator will consider all nominations received and assess the nominations to design a sector, which will be announced early in the process, providing the location of the future call for bids. Subsequent to the Sector Identification, a call for nominations (Parcels) will be made requesting nominations of parcels over the previously identified sector. Parcel nominations will be assessed by the C-NLOER and used in the design of the call for bids.

Parcel nominations for all other regions not yet publically announced into the Scheduled Land Tenure System are welcome and will be assessed by the Regulator as received. These nominations would be considered in the one year, call for bids rights issuance cycle.

The identity of the nominee and information concerning any lands nominated is confidential.

Scheduled Land Tenure Scoping Document

Map – Land Tenure Regions

Update to Scheduled Land Tenure (January 2018)

NOTICE TO POTENTIAL BIDDERS – No. NL20-CFB01 (Eastern Newfoundland) RE: Amendment to Terms and Conditions – Allowable Expenditure Calculations and Credit (August 2020)

Legal Descriptions – Land Tenure Regions

FAQ

Shapefiles

Contact:

Land Tenure:
Shannon Bulger
Land Tenure Coordinator
709-778-4242
sbulger@cnlopb.ca

Licencing:
Corina Mitchell
Legal Administrative Assistant
709-778-4265
cmitchell@cnlopb.ca

Sectors represent the geographic area for which a call for bids will take place in the scheduled land tenure system. Sectors will be identified at the beginning of the scheduled land tenure process, such that industry will have a known call for bids area with a long lead schedule, allowing additional time for exploration assessment. A sector will be posted via a Sector Identification announcement.

Sectors will be configured by the C-NLOER, based upon the Area of Interest nominations received from industry and assessment of lands by the Exploration Department. The C-NLOER has considered the appropriate size of potential sectors, given the goals and process of the scheduled land tenure system. The size of a sector will be approximately 2 million hectares (ha) or 20 000 km2 and therefore will accommodate roughly nine, 800 section exploration licences (ELs) (the maximum EL size offered by the C-NLOER). As such, sectors will be large relative to exploration prospects, existing fields and exploration licences. They will be designed to allow for multiple play and prospect types over an extensive geographical area. Sector boundaries will be considered “flexible” for the purpose of parcel design; such that parcels can extend beyond the edge of a sector to properly contain geological features in the subsurface.

Land Issuance

Land Issuance

Active Sectors

Active Calls for Nominations

Active Calls for Bids

Year of Call for Bids Close – Cumulative Parcels (CP)

Contact:

North Eastern Newfoundland Region: Sector NL01-NEN

Southern Newfoundland Region: Sector NL01-SN

Labrador South Region: Sector NL02-LS

Eastern Newfoundland Region: Sector NL06-EN

Eastern Newfoundland Region: Sector NL05-EN

Eastern Newfoundland Region: Proposed Sector Location for NL05-EN

South Eastern Newfoundland: Sector NL02-SEN

Labrador South Region: Sector NL01-LS

Eastern Newfoundland Region: Sector NL01-EN

South Eastern Newfoundland Region: Sector NL01-SEN

Eastern Newfoundland Region: Sector NL02-EN

Eastern Newfoundland: Sector NL03-EN

Eastern Newfoundland Region: Sector NL04-EN

NL25-CFN02 – Jeanne d’Arc

NL25-CFN01 – Selected Low Activity Regions

NL24-CFN03 – Labrador South Region (over Sector NL-02LS)

NL24-CFN04 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL24-CFN01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL24-CFN02 – Selected Low Activity Regions

NL23-CFN01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region (over Sector NL06-EN)

NL23-CFN02 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL22-CFN02 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL22-CFN01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL21-CFN01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region (Over Sector NL05-EN)

NL21-CFN02 – South Eastern Newfoundland Region (Over Sector NL02-SEN)

NL21-CFN03 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL20-CFN02 – South Eastern Newfoundland Region (Over Sector NL02-SEN)

NL20-CFN03 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL20-CFN01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL19-CFN01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region (Over Sector NL04-EN)

NL19-CFN02 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL18-CFN03 – Jeanne d’Arc Region – Amended

NL18-CFN01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL18-CFN02 – South Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL18-CFN03 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL17-CFN01 – South Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL17-CFN02 – Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL17-CFN03 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL16-CFN01 – North Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL16-CFN02 – Southern Newfoundland Region

NL16-CFN04 – Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL16-CFN03 – Labrador South Region – Sector NL01-LS

NL16-CFN05 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL15-01JDA (Parcels) – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL15-01EN (Parcels) – Sector NL02-EN – Eastern Newfoundland Region

Related News Releases

NL15-01LS Labrador South Region

NL15-01SEN South Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL14-01EN Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL14-01JDA (Parcels) – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL14-01EN (Parcels) – Sector NL01-EN

NL 13-01EN (Eastern Newfoundland Region)

NL 13-01LS (Labrador South Region)

NL25-CFB01 – Eastern Newfoundland

NL25-CFB02 – Labrador South

NL24-CFB01 – Eastern Newfoundland

NL23-CFB01 – Eastern Newfoundland

NL23-CFB02 – South Eastern Newfoundland

NL22-CFB01 – Eastern Newfoundland

NL22-CFB02 – South Eastern Newfoundland

Calls for Bids 2020

NL20-CFB01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region

Calls for Bids 2019

NL19-CFB01 –South Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL19-CFB02 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL18-CFB01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL18-CFB02 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL18-CFB03 – Jeanne d’Arc Region (Production Licence)

NL17-CFB01 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL16-CFB03 – Labrador South Region

NL16-CFB01 – Eastern Newfoundland Region

NL16-CFB02 – Jeanne d’Arc Region

NL 15-01 (Eastern Newfoundland Region)