Rosebank Oil Field Consultation Closes on £8.7bn Project
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- Rosebank oil field consultation closed Monday, with regulator Opred reconsidering both the £8.7bn project and the Jackdaw gas field after a 2024 Court of Session ruling in Edinburgh found their approvals unlawful for not fully weighing end-use emissions.
- A fresh environmental impact assessment produced by operator Adura concluded Rosebank would generate roughly 250 million tonnes of greenhouse gases over its lifetime — a figure the source notes equals about two-thirds of the UK's total emissions for 2024.
- Adura CEO Neil McCulloch told BBC Radio Scotland Rosebank was of "low significance" globally but "very, very significant" for north-east Scotland jobs, arguing domestic production would generate billions in tax revenues.
- Environmental group Uplift, which brought the successful legal challenge, called on the government to reject both applications, with Isobel Reid arguing burning fossil fuels is "what feeds climate change."
- Rosebank is estimated to contain up to 300 million barrels of oil and would produce approximately 69,000 barrels a day at peak, most of which would be shipped to Europe for refining under current plans.
- PM Andy Burnham said a "pragmatic approach" to domestic oil and gas is needed, telling BBC Five Live: "We won't be able to stop using oil and gas for some time," while emphasizing adaptation to a changing climate.
- The final ruling rests with Opred and requires sign-off from Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh; no timetable is set, though the operator said a quick decision could see Jackdaw producing gas by winter.
Why it matters: Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh's final call will determine whether the UK proceeds with an £8.7bn project whose lifetime emissions equal roughly two-thirds of its 2024 national output. The industry argues domestic output displaces imported oil rather than adding new emissions — a claim the 2024 court found was never properly tested and now sits at the centre of the regulator's reassessment.
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