LNG

The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) is awarding 27 new oil and gas licences aimed at strengthening domestic energy security as a necessary back-up for renewables and to help reduce the mounting import bill for pipeline natural gas, LNG and oil.

A total of 27 licences have been offered in quicker-to-production areas with more to follow subject to additional environmental checks.

According to Offshore Energy UK (OEUK), the trade body for the sector, around 220,000 jobs are supported by the current offshore industry fields.

UK energy data

OEUK has also provided valuable data on the state of the North Sea oil and gas industry and to fill the gap in educated-understanding among sections of the public about the necessity of hydrocarbon energy and its benefits.

Licensing is the first step taken by energy production companies with the regulator to find and produce domestic supplies.

However, each licence does not represent a new oil field. It’s simply that energy companies require licences for a range of activity in so-called “blocks” which are carefully mapped sections of the seabed in UK waters.

These start from seismic and initial exploratory work through to production, either near existing infrastructure in previously known fields or in new fields.

“Licencing is a normal part of most energy production regimes and is used in the UK to manage the development of oil and gas, wind and most recently, carbon capture projects,” said OEUK.

“It is part of a bigger process which companies must undertake to explore, analyse, produce and then eventually decommission energy production,” the group added.

Around 75 percent of the UK’s current energy needs are provided by oil and gas.

The UK is a net importer of oil and natural gas, meaning it consumes more than it produces domestically.

Field numbers

“There are currently 284 active oil and gas fields in the North Sea and by 2030 around 180 of those will have ceased production due to natural decline,” OEUK explained.

The industry, thus, needs the churn of new licences to ensure no cliff-edge is reached in domestic production.

“We all recognise that our energy system must change and our industry includes companies that are expanding into renewables while using their expertise to pioneer ever cleaner energy production,” said OEUK Chief Executive David Whitehouse.

“The reality of the energy transition is that we need both oil and gas and renewables in an integrated system to protect the UK’s energy needs over the coming years,” Whitehouse added.

“Last year filling the fuel import gap cost the UK £117 billion ($142Bln). That’s a lot of money spent supporting the economic growth of other producing countries. With careful management and collaboration, the UK can become the gold standard of energy transitions. We can drive economic growth, reach our climate goals and avoid a future where we increasingly import our energy and export our jobs,” he explained.