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The approval of Equinor’s Rosebank field has been revoked by Scottish courts. Uplift UK sued the British government over approving Rosebank. Uplift and Greenpeace UK argued emissions from burning the oil produced at Rosebank needed to be taken into account before a decision was made.
There were celebrations across the UK on the 30th of January, when the Scottish courts published the judgement.
The ruling allows Equinor to keep working on the Rosebank project and the company will be allowed to apply for approval again. The court has said no oil or gas can be extracted unless a new approval is granted.
The UK is in the process of deciding new policies for the oil and gas industry and will be working on this in the coming months. As this is being written, it is unknown what the exact requirements for a new Rosebank application will be. It is assumed Equinor will attempt to use their influence over UK politicians to steer the government towards policy which increases the company’s chances of getting a new approval.
In media statements, Equinor says they will work closely with the government. There has not been any indication Equinor will appeal the judgement. One reading of this is that Equinor is more comfortable trying to influence policy than to fight for Rosebank in court. Now there is a regulatory process to be followed and Equinor are not entitled to consent and cannot assume they will receive approval before the process for re-consideration has started.
Tessa Khan,executive director of Uplift UK gave these statements to media:
“This is a significant win which means that Rosebank cannot go ahead without accounting for its enormous climate harm.
“The continued burning of oil and gas is why we are seeing more extreme weather like Storm Eowyn and flooding that have claimed lives and caused hundreds of millions of pounds in damage and clean up costs, not to mention the devastation it’s causing in other countries. Most people are now joining the dots with endless oil and gas drilling and are worried about the future.
“Rosebank is a bad deal for the UK. Most of its oil will be exported and sold on the international market, doing nothing to lower our energy bills or boost UK energy security. As for jobs in the UK, Rosebank’s drilling ship is currently being built in Dubai, as unions have noted.
"If Equinor and Ithaca Energy try to push Rosebank through despite this ruling, the government must reject it. To do otherwise would undermine its ambitious clean growth plans by sending a signal to investors that the UK isn’t serious about transitioning away from expensive oil and gas.