Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Monday that he hoped the plans would provide the UK with domestically-sourced energy while it transitions to a net zero economy by 2050. He also announced plans to build two new carbon capture and storage sites in the North Sea, to be completed by 2030, which would take the country’s total to four. “Even when we’ve reached net zero in 2050, a quarter of our energy needs will come from oil and gas.
However, the process would still apply a “climate compatibility test” to all prospective licenses, it added. Simon Roddy, senior vice president of Shell UK’s exploration and production business, said in a statement that the announcement of a new carbon capture and storage project in Scotland was “an important step forward” for the industry. “[The project] is a central part of plans to decarbonize North Sea operations, and to store emissions from other parts of Scottish industry,” he said.