Norway’s state oil firm lobbying to open Rosebank oilfield halves green investments
Norway’s state oil firm lobbying to open Rosebank oilfield halves green investments
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Equinor becomes latest fossil fuel firm to backtrack on clean energy pledges with move to halve budget to $5bn. The Norwegian oil company fighting to open a giant new oilfield off Shetland has cut billions of pounds from its green spending plans in favour of producing more fossil fuels. Equinor set out plans on Wednesday to halve its investments in low-carbon energy while producing more oil and gas, becoming the latest in a line of fossil fuel firms to backtrack on its green promises.
Norway’s state oil company told investors it would cut spending on renewable energy, and other low-carbon energy technologies, from a planned $10bn to $5bn over the next two years. The green budget cuts will slow the growth of its low-carbon energy business, which includes some of the UK’s largest offshore windfarms, to 10-12 gigawatts (GW) from its previous target of 12GW-16GW. It also plans to produce 2.2m barrels of oil equivalent a day by 2030, which is 10% higher than its previous plans. The company hopes to fuel this growth with barrels from Britain’s biggest untapped oilfield at Rosebank in the North Sea – despite a landmark court ruling that the government’s decision to approve the project was unlawful.
The Rosebank project has spurred debate over whether or not the Labour government can successfully pursue its green agenda while delivering economic growth. Equinor has said it is working with the UK government and regulators to move the project forward under a new consent process. The Oslo-based company revealed plans to water down its green investments after Shell and BP signalled to investors that they would backtrack on their green spending plans to exploit volatility in the global oil and gas markets.
BP is widely expected to confirm that it has dropped a target to cut its oil output in the next five years, and revise its green energy targets, at its investor day later this month, in an attempt to revive its lagging share price by creating a “simpler, more focused, and higher-value company”. Sign up to Business Today. Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning.
