The Scottish government has been urged to ditch its “reckless” policy of being against oil and gas production in its upcoming energy strategy amid fears a crucial North Sea pipeline network is facing possible closure a decade earlier than planned.

In parliament, North East MSP Liam Kerr warned that the Scottish Government’s hostility towards the industry could sound the early death knell for the Forties Pipeline System following the closure of the Grangemouth oil refinery.

It comes as Ineos chief executive Andrew Gardner warned the Forties Pipeline System, which connects 80 offshore gas and...

Britain’s natural gas output is declining faster than expected and leading to greater reliance on imports, according to an industry group seeking government relief to spur investment.

Production fell about 13 percent this year through August on an annual basis, and a similar rate is possible for all of 2024, said Ross Dornan, market intelligence manager at Offshore Energies UK. That compares with a 10 percent decline forecast earlier this year for the UK’s aging North Sea basin.

“We should be a little bit worried about...

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Oil and gas companies face the threat of being named and shamed in the UK for failing to meet decommissioning deadlines for empty wells, Britain’s North Sea regulator has warned.

The North Sea Transition Authority has opened a consultation over plans to impose more transparency on an industry that has fallen behind targets for “plugging and abandonment” as reserves run dry.

“Not only do missed deadlines knacker the credibility of...

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The  election of the Labour government has brought renewed momentum to the UK’s efforts to meet its ambitious net zero targets.

The government’s commitment to increasing investment in the renewal energy infrastructure was evident in early September in the latest (sixth) renewables auction (“the Contracts of Difference Scheme”), which saw £1.5 billion committed to 131 new green energy projects (on and offshore wind, solar and floating offshore wind and tidal energy), a 50% boost from the previous budget and designed to power the equivalent of 11 million British homes.

Great British Energy, a publicly owned energy company recently set up by the UK government will work in partnership with The Crown Estate, to leverage private investment expected to be in the region of...

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Last month, a rededication ceremony and remembrance service marking the 25th anniversary of the Piper Alpha disaster was held in the newly restored memorial garden in Aberdeen's Hazlehead Park.

Relatives of the victims, survivors, senior figures from the oil and gas industry, politicians and representatives from the Pound for Piper Memorial Trust gathered around the now iconic memorial sculpture.

Depicting three offshore workers, it stands as a poignant and permanent reminder that the lessons learned from the tragedy - fundamental lessons that continue to inform and underpin safety best practice on the...

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French energy giant TotalEnergies has announced plans to increase its oil and gas production until 2030, as it seeks to reassure investors about its fundamentals.

CEO Patrick Pouyanne has a raft of ambitious projects aimed at propelling growth through the decade, not least a $10 billion offshore investment in Suriname that received a green light Tuesday.

The company on Wednesday attempted to buoy investors at its annual strategy and...

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With recent geopolitical events highlighting the vulnerabilities of global energy supply chains, Africa is attracting increasing attention as a reliable and promising source of oil and gas.

As the world seeks to diversify its energy portfolios and ensure security of supply, investors are recognising the immense potential of Africa's underexplored hydrocarbon reserves. This comes as other regions face ongoing challenges, leading to a renewed focus on stable, promising alternatives.

Africa, long an overlooked energy region, has been attracting interest from global energy investors recently, thanks to its underdeveloped oil and gas resources, business-friendly governments and...

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Italy’s energy giant Eni has fused its upstream assets in the UK, excluding East Irish Sea ones and carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) activities, with Delek’s Ithaca Energy, a North Sea oil and gas operator and producer. The combination enables the duo to expand their footprint on the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS), setting up the UK’s second-largest oil and gas independent operator with the potential to eclipse Harbour Energy as the top producer on the UKCS.

Eni confirmed an official agreement for the business combination with Ithaca almost a month after the pair entered into an exclusivity agreement regarding the potential upstream merger. The two players were expected to combine the Italian oil major’s UK upstream business with the existing Ithaca business, enabling the enlarged entity to contain stakes in six of the...

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New Wood Mackenzie analysis defines the critical challenges to developing a more predictable tax policy that works for industry and government

LONDON, 03 October 2024 – After a history of ad hoc changes, the UK government must implement a more predictable tax regime that provides greater long-term stability to the North Sea oil and gas sector, as soon as possible, according to new analysis by Wood Mackenzie.

The UK government has acknowledged that oil and gas production in the North Sea will be required for “decades to come”. But recent and proposed modifications to...

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