LONDON — The British government on Wednesday approved the Jackdaw gas field in the North Sea, a project that had been stuck for years in legal and political limbo, Al Jazeera and DW reported.
Energy Minister Miatta Fahnbulleh said the field, about 150 miles east of Aberdeen, Scotland, could start supplying gas to homes and businesses by the end of the month. The government said it would raise British gas production by about 6% at its peak, and DW reported it is expected to run for 11 years.
Fahnbulleh was blunt about what it won’t do. “That was not a consideration in the decision because it won’t mean cheaper bills. This was about energy security,” she told the radio station LBC, according to Al Jazeera.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the field would “protect hundreds of jobs and help keep millions of homes warm this winter.” He added: “We’re committed to moving towards renewable energy and reaching net zero by 2050. But even on our ambitious climate path, we’ll still require oil and gas as part of our energy needs for decades to come.”
Jackdaw was approved under the previous Conservative government, but a Scottish court held it up, ruling that the approval had not considered the emissions from burning the gas. Shell, which runs the field through the Adura joint venture with Norway’s Equinor, welcomed the decision, DW reported.
Alongside the approval, the government set up a new Energy Wealth Fund with an initial £2 billion ($2.7 billion) to put oil and gas revenue into renewable and low-carbon projects.
Green Party leader Zack Polanski called the approval “climate vandalism.” Greenpeace UK said it showed “the toxic grip fossil fuel lobbyists still hold over our energy policy.” Energy prices have been driven up by the Russia-Ukraine war and the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
Sources: Al Jazeera, DW, Reuters
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