Deputy Minister of Energy Named

Premier John Hamm today named Dan McFadyen as Nova Scotia's deputy minister of energy.

"Over the last 20 years, Dan McFadyen has built an impressive career in energy policy and resource development at the executive level," said the premier. "His background will help ensure that the people of Nova Scotia receive maximum benefits from our province's energy strategy."

Mr. McFadyen currently serves as assistant deputy minister for resource development in Saskatchewan's Department of Industry and Resources. During his 20-year career with the government of Saskatchewan, he spent nine years as assistant deputy minister for resource policy and economics in the province's Department of Energy and Mines. He has experience in negotiating complex royalty and tax regimes with the private sector, in developing pipeline regulation and in dealing with Ottawa on federal- provincial issues.

"Mr. McFadyen knows the energy sector and has a reputation for getting the job done in a professional way," said Energy Minister Gordon Balser. "With his leadership, Nova Scotians will continue to see more jobs and benefits from the energy sector. Nova Scotia now has the plan and the people in place to take energy growth to the next level."

A graduate of the University of Manitoba's faculty of science, Mr. McFadyen is a member of the Ontario and the Saskatchewan associations of professional engineering and the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.

His salary will be $131,600. Relocation expenses will be covered as permitted under Public Service Commission guidelines. Mr. McFadyen came out on top of an extensive national search to fill the deputy minister's position. A recruiting firm considered some 160 applicants and interviewed 38 from across the country.

Last December, Premier Hamm unveiled Seizing the Opportunity, Nova Scotia's first comprehensive energy strategy in nearly a decade. One of the strategy's key recommendations was the establishment of a separate Department of Energy. Last week, the premier named Gordon Balser as minister of energy and established the new Department of Energy, which includes the former Petroleum Directorate and the gas storage and energy utilization responsibilities for the Department of Natural Resources.

Mr. McFadyen's appointment as deputy minister takes effect Aug. 6.