Nova Scotia Health Employees' Pension Plan

Nova Scotia Health Employees' Pension Plan

The Nova Scotia Health Employees' Pension Plan was established on January 1, 1961 as a jointly sponsored defined benefit plan. Sponsors include Health Association Nova Scotia along with unions NSGEU, NSNU, CUPE, and Unifor. Stefan Cowell serves as Chief Executive Officer and Jennifer Urquhart as Chief Pension Officer. The plan allocates 4.27 percent of assets to private equity with a target of 10 percent. It maintains dedicated limited partnerships for infrastructure, real estate, and private equity. Confirmed infrastructure commitments include Brookfield Infrastructure Fund IV, Stonepeak Infrastructure Fund III, Global Infrastructure Partners V, KKR Global Infrastructure Investors IV, and Blackstone Infrastructure Partners. Real estate holdings include NSHEPP Real Estate Limited Partnership focused on Canadian multi-unit residential and mall redevelopment plus a minority stake in Montez Corporation. Geographic exposure spans Canada and global markets. Assets total an estimated $8.178 billion. The plan maintains memberships in Pension Investment Association of Canada, Association of Canadian Pension Management, Canadian Coalition for Good Governance, and Canadian Association of Alternative Strategies & Assets. Service providers include Eckler Ltd for actuarial and investment consulting, CIBC Mellon as custodian, KPMG LLP as auditor, and Stewart McKelvey as legal counsel. November 2024: Spoke at CAASA Annual Conference on alternative investments and pension fund strategy. The plan operates under a jointly sponsored structure with multiple union and association sponsors that share governance responsibilities for contribution and benefit decisions.