Britain mulls North Sea oil drilling ban

British government ministers are considering a dramatic change of policy for the North Sea oil industry off the coast of Scotland, which could have a major environmental impact as well as affecting political relations between central government and Scottish independence supporters.

Since the discovery of significant resources under the sea in 1970, the oil field has produced a significant amount of the United Kingdom's fossil fuels, as well as being a major source of employment, with around 39 percent of the UK's 270,000 oil industry jobs being in Scotland.

But with policy increasingly turning towards greener energy, and Glasgow hosting the COP26 conference later in the year, the Daily Telegraph reports the government is thinking of stopping the issue of new exploration licenses.

Last September, Offshore magazine reported that Britain's Oil and Gas Authority had offered 113 exploration licenses to 65 companies as part of the country's 32nd Offshore Licensing Round, noting that "there will be no further UK offshore license round in what would have been the 2020/21 period to allow more license relinquishments to take place."

Britain has various options on how to reach its net zero carbon emissions target by 2050, but a total ban on new licenses would be a major turning point for the industry, with significant political consequences.

Brexit has exacerbated long-standing tensions between London and the Scottish Parliament. Scotland voted by 62 percent to 38 to remain part of the European Union, and its fishing industry has been particularly hard-hit by leaving the EU, and the Scottish National Party is increasingly vocal in its calls for a second independence referendum, a suggestion flatly rejected by Westminster.

Projections for the economic strength of any future independent Scotland have included oil industry revenue, so scaling it down would make a huge difference.

If the UK were to ban future exploration, it would follow in the footsteps of the EU's leading oil and gas producer, Denmark, which last year cancelled its latest licensing round and said all North Sea exploration would end by 2050.

However, the Telegraph reports that winding down the North Sea fields may just lead to increased reliance on imported fuel. Last year, more than 30 percent of the country's electricity came from gas-fired power stations, and in 2019 around 45 percent of all energy was supplied by offshore sources.

"Our review into the oil and gas licensing regime seeks to ensure it remains compatible with our target to reach net zero emissions by 2050," said a spokesman for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

"This commitment also forms part of the Energy White Paper published in December. We will agree a transformational North Sea Transition Deal with industry to create jobs, retain skills and deliver new business and trade opportunities to support the sector's transition to a lower-carbon future."