In 2 Years, UK Approves N. Sea Permits Releasing GHG Equivalent To 14 Million Cars' Annual Output

New oil and gas licences for the North Sea that the UK government has approved in the past two years will produce as much carbon dioxide as the annual emissions of nearly 14m cars, or the entire yearly emissions of Denmark, analysis has shown. This amount – about 28m tonnes of carbon dioxide over the lifetimes of the fields – will be increased more than eightfold, if potential licences under consideration are also granted, according to data from public sources analysed by Greenpeace.

Three large oil and gasfields have been approved since the International Energy Agency warned in May 2021 that no new developments of fossil fuels could be constructed if the world was to limit global temperature increases to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. The IEA report was conducted at the behest of the UK government, which was preparing to host the Cop26 climate summit.

Since then, the government has put in place a “climate checkpoint”, assessing potential new licences before drilling can take place. But the checks focus on the greenhouse gas emissions associated with exploring and operating new fields, rather than taking into account the emissions – known in climate jargon as “scope 3” emissions – that are generated from burning the fossil fuels produced from the fields.

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The three largest approved since the IEA report are Jackdaw, Abigail and Talbot, the emissions from which are the equivalent of seven coal-fired power stations, according to Greenpeace. If Rosebank and Cambo, two other large fields under review, are approved the total will rise to about 240m tonnes of CO2, equivalent to running 64 coal-fired power plants for a year, or the annual emissions of Spain. Evans said: “Rishi Sunak’s government seems to have stopped listening to the experts on climate. Instead, they are bending over backwards to promote the interests of the fossil fuel industry, at the expense of bill-payers and the climate.”

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/jul/24/new-north-sea-oil-and-gas-licences-emissions-greenpeace-government-uk