ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Newfoundland and Labrador is projecting a deficit of $154 million for the current fiscal year.

The figure is a slight improvement from the $160-million deficit forecast when the province tabled its budget in March.

Finance Minister Siobhan Coady said in a budget update today the province is aiming to balance its books by the next fiscal year, which begins in April 2024.

Coady says revenues are up by about $204 million, mostly due to Australian oil company Woodside Energy forfeiting deposits on exploration bids in the province’s offshore.

However, she says the government will have to borrow up to $700 million more than anticipated in March, bringing its total net debt to $17.1 billion.

In the province of about 535,000 people, that works out to nearly $32,000 per person.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 31, 2023.

The Canadian Press