Rosebank go-ahead in the frame as Starmer 'doubles down' on oil and gas support
Keir Starmer has given his biggest hint yet that the controversial Rosebank oil field will get permission for new drilling.
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The Prime Minister said that while a decision was yet to be made he wanted to “double down” on the need for oil and gas in the UK’s energy mix for “many years to come”.
Speaking to Scottish journalists in No10, the Prime Minister was asked about the future of the oil field which sits north west of Shetland.
A new environmental impact assessment has gone into the Oil and Gas Authority, but it will be Ed Miliband at the Department of Energy and Net Zero who will have the final say.
The field’s initial consent was overturned in Scotland’s Court of Session two years ago, after it was ruled that the approval did not take into account the emissions that would be caused by burning the field’s oil.
In their latest impact report the developers Equinor have revealed that nearly 250 million tonnes of emissions would be released from using oil products from the field. By comparison the UK's annual emissions in 2024 were 371 million tonnes.
Equinor says the emissions are "not significant" considering the UK's international climate commitments. But opponents called it an "admission of the vast climate change damage" that the project will cause.
Asked if he was “softening” his view on Rosebank, Sir Keir Starmer said: “There’s a decision that’s needed to be taken on Rosebank as a result of the court case in due course. But as I've said many, many times, oil and gas will be part of the mix for many, many years to come.
"I want to double down on that. But also alongside it, we need to take the opportunity for renewables which is a fantastic opportunity for Scotland. And I think we can do both things.”
However the Prime Minister would not be drawn on the future of the MingYang wind turbine investment. MingYang is China’s fifth-largest wind turbine producer and announced plans last week for a £1.5bn facility at Ardersier near Inverness, which needs UK Government approval to go ahead.
The UK government is still to make a national security decision over whether to allow China to participate in crucial energy supply chains - and fears around China have been intensifying in the wake of an alleged Westminster spy scandal.
The Prime Minister said: “We will obviously look at this when it's appropriate to do so. And obviously we always, in relation to these issues, take into account our national security consideration, but obviously there's no decision on this yet.”