The decision to greenlight a giant new oilfield off Shetland has been ruled unlawful by the courts, in a major win for climate action that scientists say is urgently needed.
The proposed Rosebank development – the UK’s biggest untapped oilfield – had been given the go-ahead in 2023 under the previous government.
But on Thursday the court of session in Edinburgh sided with campaigners and climate experts in ruling that the original decisions to permit Rosebank and a second, smaller, gas field called Jackdaw were unlawful, as they had not taken into account the carbon emissions created by burning any oil and gas produced.
Tessa Khan, from the campaign group Uplift which has been at the forefront of the campaign to stop Rosebank, said the court ruling was a significant milestone. “This … means that Rosebank cannot go ahead without accounting for its enormous climate harm,” she said.
Philip Evans, from Greenpeace, which with Uplift challenged Rosebank and separately challenged Jackdaw, described the judgment as “a historic win”.
“The age of governments approving new drilling sites by ignoring their climate impacts is over,” he said. “The courts have agreed with what climate campaigners have said all along: Rosebank and Jackdaw are unlawful, and their full climate impacts must now be properly considered.”
Campaigners had argued that there was no economic, energy security or climate rationale for drilling for more oil and gas in the North Sea.
The vast majority of any oil produced is sold on the international markets and so does not add to energy security for British consumers, and repeated statements from the International Energy Agency have said no new oil and gas exploration should take place if the world is to limit global heating to 1.5C above preindustrial temperatures.
Instead, trade unions and climate justice campaigners argue that the government should invest in renewable energy to meet climate goals, safeguard oil workers and their communities, and provide cheap, secure energy.
James Alexander, the chief executive of the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association, backed that call, saying renewable energy was the “UK’s key growth sector of the future”. He said: “That is where we should be focusing our upskilling efforts and attracting the billions available in private investment.”
Thursday’s ruling means the decisions on Jackdaw and Rosebank are set to return to the UK government, which has pledged not to grant any new licences for oil and gas in the dwindling North Sea basin – although technically, that does not include granting “production licences”, which is what both Rosebank and Jackdaw would require.
A spokesperson for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) said the government had already consulted on revised environmental guidance to take into account emissions from burning extracted oil and gas, and is expected to report back in the spring.
They added: “We will respond to this consultation as soon as possible and developers will be able to apply for consents under this revised regime. Our priority is to deliver a fair, orderly and prosperous transition in the North Sea in line with our climate and legal obligations, which drives towards our clean energy future of energy security, lower bills, and good, long-term jobs.”
A spokesperson for Equinor, the majority shareholder in the Rosebank project, said it welcomed the judgment, which allows it to continue preparation work on the Rosebank field although it prohibits any drilling.
They said the project would bring investment and jobs to the UK, adding: “We will continue to work closely with the regulators and DESNZ to progress the Rosebank project.”
A spokesperson for Shell, the company behind the Jackdaw field, also welcomed the decision, saying it allowed its preparatory work to continue “while new consents are sought. Swift action is needed from the government so that we and other North Sea operators can make decisions about vital UK energy infrastructure.”
They added that if Jackdaw went ahead it would provide “enough fuel to heat 1.4m UK homes, at a time when older gas fields are reaching the end of their production and the UK is reliant on imported gas to meet its energy needs.”
But Lauren MacDonald, from the Stop Rosebank campaign, said the oil and gas companies did not have Scotland’s interests at heart.
“Almost all of Rosebank’s oil would be sold overseas, doing nothing to lower our bills or make us more secure, with most of the profits going straight to the state-backed Norwegian firm, Equinor,” she said. “It’s not fair that people here are now suffering the impacts of climate change, which is driven by fossil fuels and which will get worse as long as companies are allowed to open huge new drilling sites.”
