The UK could supply half of its oil and gas needs without imports if the government showed more support for the sector, an industry report claims. Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) said changes to the windfall tax on energy firms and approval of the controversial Rosebank and Jackdaw fields could unlock 111 projects, attracting investment worth £50bn. North Sea output has been falling and projections suggest that the UK's domestic supplies will meet only about a third of demand until 2050.
Environmental group Uplift branded the report a "fantasy" and said that the Prime Minister should not listen to "self-interested demands" of oil companies. The OEUK report sets out the industry's case for supporting domestic production of oil and gas and displacing imports, which have increased. It calls for the current Energy Profits Levy (EPL), a windfall tax on oil and gas producers which is due to be replaced in 2030, to be scrapped by next January.
The replacement Oil and Gas Revenue Levy would be triggered only when prices spike. The sector has long said the EPL has significantly stifled investment because it remains in place even when wholesale oil and gas prices fall. Last year, for the first time since the North Sea began producing oil and gas, not a single exploration well was drilled.
OEUK said the oil and gas industry supported 180,000 jobs in 2024 across the UK. The report said that "fiscal reform and a pragmatic approach to licensing could unlock investment and improve long-term energy security". It said that boosting domestic energy production was vital for "protecting households, businesses and the wider economy from global shocks".
Policy Director Enrique Cornejo added: "Britain is at a critical juncture. Our industry is ready to invest and deliver more homegrown oil and gas, but the window for action is narrowing. "Without urgent policy decisions, the UK risks increasing its dependence on imports, losing high-value jobs." The second demand from the industry is a signal of long term support for domestic oil and gas production.
In essence, that means supporting the controversial Rosebank and Jackdaw developments which are currently being considered for permitting by the industry regulator. Both projects had already been given the go-ahead under the previous Conservative government but were successfully challenged in the Scottish courts on environmental grounds. It has meant all other potential projects have essentially been put on hold under the decisions are taken.
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