Tories Announce plan for Maximum North Sea Oil and Gas Extraction
Aberdeen, Scotland – In a important shift in energy and climate policy, Conservative Party chair Kemi Badenoch is set to announce a plan to prioritize “maximising extraction” of oil and gas from the North Sea, aiming to utilize “all our oil and gas” reserves. The pledge, to be delivered in a speech in Aberdeen on Tuesday, marks a departure from previous commitments to net-zero targets and positions the Tories distinctly from Labor’s proposed ban on new exploration licenses.
Badenoch’s plan includes removing requirements for North Sea oil and gas producers to reduce emissions or invest in technologies like carbon storage, which she argues are a “burden” damaging the economy. She stated it is “absurd” the UK is leaving “vital resources untapped” while “neighbours like Norway” continue extraction from the same seabed.
the announcement follows Badenoch’s earlier assertion this year that achieving net zero by 2050 is “impossible.” The 2050 target, enshrined in UK law in 2019 under Theresa May, commits the nation to balancing carbon emissions with removal, aligning with the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.
The Conservative stance contrasts sharply with Labour,whose spokesperson argued that continued fossil fuel exploration “would not take a penny off bills” or improve energy security,and would “onyl accelerate the worsening climate crisis.” Labour has committed to a “fair and orderly transition” away from oil and gas.
Reform UK shares the Conservative’s focus on increased North Sea extraction and has pledged to “abolish the push for net zero” if elected.
While the current government highlights its “biggest ever investment in offshore wind and three first of a kind carbon capture and storage clusters” - facilities designed to prevent CO2 emissions from entering the atmosphere – Badenoch’s plan signals a renewed emphasis on fossil fuel production.
Notably,in 2023,then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak approved 100 new drilling licenses in the North Sea,claiming the move was “entirely consistent” with net zero commitments. The International Energy Agency and the climate Change Committee view carbon capture and storage as crucial for meeting greenhouse gas reduction targets.
