Oil and gas regulator rejects reports of govt meddling in North Sea drilling applications

The NSTA has flatly rejected claims that the government has intervened in the drilling licensing process

The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), the UK’s regulator for oil, gas, hydrogen and carbon storage, has denied it has been told by the government to reject new licence applications to drill in the North Sea and described reports stating otherwise as “a complete fabrication”. 

Responding to an article in The Daily Telegraph, the NSTA said it was not true that the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Ed Miliband, had moved to ban any new licences.  

According to the broadsheet, by intervening in what is supposed to be an independent process, Miliband has risked legal action from companies who have possibly “wasted millions of pounds” on preparing their bids. 

It also reported that Miliband is planning to review and overhaul the NSTA’s role and structure in the application process. 

In response, Tim Eggar, chair of the NSTA, said he was “amazed” at the “highly inaccurate article” and insisted that Miliband has “not told us not to approve a round of new drilling.”

“The North Sea Transition Authority is an independent regulator with robust well-established processes in place,” Eggar said. 

In total, 76 oil and gas companies submitted bids to drill for oil and gas in 115 areas of the North Sea, Irish and East Atlantic in Autumn 2023 as part of the 33rd offshore licensing round.

There are currently applications to drill in 35 new areas that have yet to be approved or rejected, and Eggar said the NSTA “will reach decisions on these in due course.”

Is Labour fulfilling its promise? 

North Sea oil became a contentious issue during the general election campaign, which was dominated by energy and saw almost all the main parties put forward differing strategies for getting bills down.

In its manifesto, Labour explicitly said it would “not issue new licences to explore new fields” because North Sea oil “does not take a penny off bills” and would “only accelerate the climate crisis”, as well as not make the UK energy secure. 

However, it did not specify if it would halt already submitted applications or wait until the present round had concluded, but it did promise to not revoke existing licences and work with the industry towards “a phased and responsible transition in the North Sea”. 

Labour stated before the election that it wanted the UK to become a world leader in renewable energy and technology by 2030 and entirely energy independent by launching a new national energy company and encouraging solar and wind energy projects. 

However, it has faced criticism from environmental groups, including Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth, for not being ambitious enough in its plans to get rid of fossil fuels from the UK. 

When contacted by The Eco Experts, Greenpeace declined to comment until there was more certainty on the government’s North Sea oil policy. 

However, Tessa Khan, executive director of Uplift, a company that campaigns against fossil fuels, was quoted in The Guardian saying it would be “shocking” if the government didn’t fulfil its manifesto promise to phase out fossil fuels.