Controversy Surrounding British Government’s Approval of Drilling in North Sea Oil Field

AFPPhoto for illustration: a drilling platform in the Clair Ridge oil field in the North Sea

NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 18:39

The British government has given permission to drill in a new oil and gas field in the North Sea. The government is thus ignoring warnings from scientists and the United Nations. They say countries should stop exploiting new sources of fossil fuels.

Norwegian energy company Equinor and peer Ithaca plan to invest around 4.4 billion euros in the Rosebank field, north of Scotland. The companies want to start drilling from 2026 and expect to be able to fill a total of 300 million barrels with oil.

Energy security

The British government says the new project is necessary for the United Kingdom’s energy security. After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it became clear that large parts of Europe are dependent on Russia for their gas.

At the end of July, Sunak announced that he would increase domestic production of oil and gas and last week he said that his cabinet would adjust the British climate targets downwards. He believes that some changes are happening too quickly. Like the Netherlands, the United Kingdom has the ambition to generate fossil-free energy by 2050. Yet Sunak expects to obtain a quarter of all energy from oil and gas by then.

According to Energy Minister Claire Coutinho, drilling in the Rosebank field will emit less CO2 than previous gas and oil drilling because it is done electrically. However, this will only be possible from 2030 onwards. “We will continue to support the UK oil and gas industry to ensure our energy security, grow our economy and help us achieve the transition to cheaper, cleaner energy,” Coutinho said.

‘Morally obscene’

Caroline Lucas, the only Greens member of the British House of Commons, called the decision “morally obscene”. According to her, the project will not lead to increased energy security and will not reduce energy costs for Britons, because most of the oil will be shipped abroad.

“As long as highly subsidized foreign energy giants sell oil and gas from these islands abroad to the highest bidder, there will be no energy security and lower costs,” Lucas said.

The British department of Greenpeace also has nothing good to say about the project. This decision is nothing but a blank check for fossil fuel companies to destroy the climate,” said campaign leader Philip Evans.

2023-09-27 16:39:26
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