Black Gold: £3.1bn North Sea oil drilling given green light
British energy unlocked as £3.1bn North Sea drilling projects given green light
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A new oil and gas field development is projected to unlock Britain’s energy as both private investors and Rishi Sunak’s Government have given the green light to the project.
The Rosebank development was approved this morning by the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) having passed environmental hurdles set by regulators.
Rosebank could produce as much as 69,000 barrels of oil and 44 million cubic feet of gas per day, according to its owners.
WATCH NOW: Rosebank oil field to provide energy security
“We are investing in our world-leading renewable energy but, as the independent Climate Change Committee recognise, we will need oil and gas as part of that mix on the path to net zero and so it makes sense to use our own supplies from North Sea fields such as Rosebank,” Energy Security Secretary Claire Coutinho said.
“The jobs and billions of pounds this is worth to our economy will enable us to have greater energy independence, making us more secure against tyrants like (Vladimir) Putin.
“We will continue to back the UK’s oil and gas industry to underpin our energy security, grow our economy and help us deliver the transition to cheaper, cleaner energy.”
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Rosebank oil field has been granted development and production consent by the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA)
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The Government has said Rosebank will create hundreds of jobs and contribute billions to the economy.
The some 69,000 barrels produced a day are forecast to provide around 8 per cent of the UK’s daily output between 2026 and 2030.
Rosebank is set to begin production in 2026-2027 and is predicted to supply around 450 direct jobs.
The UK Government said Rosebank has been subject to extensive scrutiny by the regulators, including undergoing a detailed environmental impact assessment process and a period of public consultation before approval was granted.
'We will continue to back the UK’s oil and gas industry to underpin our energy security, grow our economy and help us deliver the transition to cheaper, cleaner energy,' the Energy Secretary said.
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It said that all new projects, including Rosebank, will be in line with the natural decline of the North Sea basin.
However, Environmental critics branded the project “reckless” and “terrible for our energy security”.
“Giving the green light to this huge new oil field is morally obscene, Green Party MP Caroline Lucas said.
“This Government must be held accountable for its complicity in this climate crime.
“Amidst a summer of raging wildfires and the hottest July on record, this Government approves the biggest undeveloped oil and gas field in the North Sea – set to produce more than the combined CO2 emissions of all 28 low-income countries in the world.
“Energy security and cheaper bills aren’t delivered by allowing highly-subsidised, foreign-owned fossil fuel giants to extract more oil and gas from these islands and sell it overseas to the highest bidder.”