Revised OGA Strategy Comes into Force

A revised Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) strategy, which was laid before the UK Parliament on December 16, 2020, has now come into force, the OGA has announced.

The revised strategy reflects the ongoing energy transition and features a range of net zero obligations on the UK oil and gas industry, including stepping up efforts to reduce production emissions, support carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects, and unlock clean hydrogen production, the OGA noted.

The revised plan calls on the industry to work collaboratively with the supply chain and actively support CCS projects, the OGA said, adding that it will monitor closely and ensure that carbon costs are considered in regulatory decisions. The OGA stated that it is now actively implementing the revised strategy into its work and that guidance documents are being updated to help industry understand how operations may need to alter in order to achieve the new requirements.

“Oil and gas currently provide around 75 percent of UK energy consumption and government forecasts show they will remain part of the energy mix for the foreseeable future, as we transition to net zero,” the OGA said in an organization statement.

“The OGA believes that the industry has the skills, infrastructure and capital necessary to help ensure that the net zero target is achieved,” the OGA added in the statement.

Commenting on the new strategy, Michael Burns, an energy partner at law firm Ashurst, said, “the coming into force of the revised strategy is a significant change in direction for the industry”. 

“It comes at a difficult time and therefore it is to be hoped that the government will work closely with the industry, through initiatives such as the North Sea Transition Deal, to steer it through this period of transition and economic upheaval,” he added.

According to its website, the OGA’s role is to maximize the economic recovery of the UK’s oil and gas resources, while also supporting the move to net zero carbon by 2050. The organization, which is headquartered in Aberdeen, is largely funded by an industry levy introduced on October 1, 2015, its website highlights.

For more information on the OGA’s revised strategy, and how this will impact on the UK’s oil and gas industry, click here. To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com