The North Sea Transitional Authority (NSTA, formerly known as the UK Oil and Gas Authority) recently announced that it has approved the development plan for the Rosbank oilfield located in the Shetland Islands of Scotland.
Equinor (Norwegian National Oil Company) owns 80% of the project, while Isaka Energy Company in the UK owns 20% of the project. The project has a recoverable reserve of approximately 300 million barrels of oil equivalent.
Equinor's research report states that the total investment throughout the entire lifecycle of the Rosbank oilfield is £ 8.1 billion. During the peak period of project construction, 1600 job positions will be created and 450 employees will be employed during the operation of the oilfield. The project is expected to be put into operation from 2026 to 2027.
The project has been reviewed by regulatory authorities. In addition, when the UK North Sea Transitional Authority decided to approve the project, it was required to inject low-carbon electricity into the development of new oil fields, mainly considering that this could bring tangible carbon reduction effects.
On July 31st, the British government announced the policy of issuing a new North Sea oil and gas development license. It is reported that the oil and gas industry will generate an annual economic impact of £ 17 billion, providing approximately 200000 jobs and generating £ 50 billion in taxes over the next five years.