The UK’s carbon capture and storage (CCS) industry has taken a major step forward with the announcement of government agreement for ENI’s Liverpool Bay project. This welcome development comes in a critical period of ongoing government consultations that will shape the future of the North Sea. The UK has world-leading potential for carbon capture and storage, but achieving our ambitions in this area is directly linked to the future of the domestic oil and gas sector. Supportive government policy that prioritises domestic oil and gas production over imports is vital not just to UK energy security, but also to maintain the skilled workforce and supply chain companies needed for carbon capture and storage in the future. The Liverpool Bay milestone involves the carbon transportation and storage system of the Track-1 HyNet industrial cluster, designed to remove emissions from industries across the north-east of England and North Wales. It also includes three carbon storage permits granted by the North Sea Transition Authority and will bring an estimated 2,000 new jobs. Carbon will be stored in depleted oil and gas reservoirs, with existing infrastructure, including 150km of onshore and offshore pipelines being repurposed. HyNet brings the UK closer to the exciting prospect of developing a world-leading CCS industry. © Supplied by HyNetVisual design of the planned Liverpool Bay by HyNet. The government has pledged £21.7 billion to be spent over the next 25 years across Track-1 clusters, which include HyNet and the East Coast Cluster on Teesside. Reducing emissions from these industrial heartlands will kickstart new growth in manufacturing communities. More than £6bn in contracts will flow to the supply chain across both projects. These clusters will capture carbon from hard-to-abate sectors such as cement manufacture, lime for industrial processes, and energy from waste. The full pipeline of CCS projects must be

It is possibly the strangest claim I’ve ever seen made about the UK energy industry, that the rollout of wind and solar power over the last decade has made the electricity supply “more British” as hydrocarbon production/imports continued their long-running decline. As recently reported, last year just under half of Britain’s electricity supply was powered by foreign energy imports, down from 65% in 2014. This was said by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), or rather a team at CBI Economic hired to carry out the research and deliver the clunkily-named report: ‘The Future is Green – the economic opportunities brought by the UK’s net zero economy’. When it dropped into my mailbox, I quickly spotted the “more British” claim in the press release that came with it. Simon Cran-McGreehin, ECIU’s head of analysis, literally said that “UK electricity is becoming more British and this is the net zero emissions target in action, decreasing our demand for foreign gas by boosting home-grown renewables. “Gas output from the North Sea has been falling for decades, but British renewables like offshore wind are stepping in to help generate more British electricity.” So I did a quick search of the report itself. No sign of the words ‘more British’ there, however. The claim is fatuous! How can it be “more British” when virtually the entire low-carbon energy industry growing up in the UK has been invested in, built by and operated by foreign companies? Like the water industry and the railways, hardly any part of the green electricity revolution can be honestly described as British. Much onshore power generation, once state-owned, is in foreign hands too. And for the ECIU analyst to table such a claim is, I’m disappointed to have to say, beggars belief. Ownership of UK power generation is in

Leading logistics management solution provider Kabal has taken proactive steps to ease the transition to new UK Offshore supply chain regulations.   About partnership content Some Energy Voice online content is funded by outside parties. The revenue from this helps to sustain our independent news gathering. You will always know if you are reading paid-for material as it will be clearly labelled as “Partnership” on the site and on social media channels, This can take two different forms. “Presented by”This means the content has been paid for and produced by the named advertiser. “In partnership with”This means the content has been paid for and approved by the named advertiser but written and edited by our own commercial content team. The introduction of the regulations created operational concerns for operators and suppliers alike. Compliance, resource allocation and employee stress were pressing issues for businesses operating in the North Sea and beyond. In this interview, Esben Slettebø, sales manager at Kabal, explains how the company has collaborated with major UK operators to enhance its solution by integrating new requirements into Kabal’s customs features. Industry-driven solutions for a changing landscape “We’ve been working with the majority of operators in the Aberdeen area to develop a standardized solution within our existing system,” said Esben. “By working together with industry leaders, we identified the main challenges and adapted our software platform to meet the new customs regulations and compliance requirements.” For over a decade, Kabal has supported major UK offshore operators, including Shell, BP, TotalEnergies, Harbour, Ithaca and Equinor. The company’s deep-rooted industry relationships positioned it to take the lead in addressing these regulatory changes, ensuring that operators and suppliers remain compliant while maintaining efficiency. Esben Slettebø, sales manager at Kabal. Seamless integration of new requirements “The vast amounts of equipment moving offshore demands more

After months of uncertainty in 2024, momentum is starting to build in the North Sea’s energy transition in 2025, according to the head of Aquaterra Energy. Throughout 2024, the UK’s offshore oil and gas sector sounded the alarm over Labour’s plans to increase the windfall tax and cut investment allowances. The sector criticised the decision to increase the Energy Profits Levy (EPL) in last year’s October budget, warning it would “hasten the demise” of the industry and put jobs and energy transition targets at risk. But speaking to Energy Voice, Aquaterra chief executive George Morrison said the UK has seen a “quite positive” start to 2025 with several final investment decisions (FIDs). “Beyond just the North Sea, but generally industrially, we’re seeing an awful lot of FIDs that seem to have been delayed for quite some time actually finally getting made,” Morrison said. “A lot of those FIDs are for North Sea projects, and we’re very glad to see it. “People are starting to move ahead with some of the big projects that are essential to the sector’s future.” Morrison said a key area which is beginning to see movement is carbon capture and storage (CCS). The UK government and Italian operator Eni reached a financial agreement for the Liverpool Bay CCS project, part of the HyNet North West industrial cluster. © Supplied by px GroupSaltend Chemicals Park, one of the sites to benefit from the success of the East Coast Cluster CCUS bid. It came after North Sea operators BP, Equinor and TotalEnergies secured approval in December for their £4 billion Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP) in Teesside. With major CCS projects across the UK starting to take shape, Morrison said “momentum has been building for a long period of time” in the North Sea’s energy transition. “An awful lot

Aberdeen technology company Fennex has won its first King’s Award for Enterprise and plans to use it to “achieve bigger and greater things faster”. The digital firm, which specialises in developing predictive safety software for the offshore energy industry, was one of 197 organisations across the UK to be recognised for excellence in international trade, one of four categories in the annual scheme now headed by HRH King Charles. Fennex co-founder and strategy director Nassima Brown said advance news of the accolade was emotional for the firm which was established in 2016. “First of all, we were shocked, but then it’s the confidence of knowing this is the highest accolade for business recognition in the UK,” said Brown. “The King’s Award emblem is recognized around the world. I really believe that will transform Fennex in so many ways. It will help us to achieve bigger and greater things faster – our hope and ambitions are already there.” © Supplied by FennexFennex celebrates winning its first King’s Award for enterprise She pointed to Fennex’s doubling of its international sales growth, recognised in the awards’ scheme, and expects the firm to double again in size in the next two years. “Since we started in Aberdeen, the business has rapidly developed: our systems now operate in over 20 countries, with 42,000 end-users, and our safety solutions are actively deployed across more than 70 global operated assets,” she said. She added: “In Aberdeen, we want to be a £100 million company in 10 years, or maybe less than that. We want to employ 300 or 400 people across Scotland. Why not? Why can’t we put out ambitions like that. We have demonstrated a track record.” Fennex was founded by “proud ex-oil and gas” professionals Brown and her husband Adrian and now employs 27 people.

Oil dropped after OPEC+ agreed to another large output increase, raising concern that additional supply could lead to a global glut just as the trade war threatens demand. West Texas Intermediate futures fell 2% to settle just above $57 a barrel, a fresh four-year low for the closing price, amid thinner trading due to a UK holiday. OPEC and its allies agreed on Saturday to continue loosening supply constraints as the group’s leaders seek to punish overproducing members and win back market share. The latest hike of more than 400,000 barrels a day starting in June matched a similar increase announced last month, when the group made the shock decision to bring back triple the planned volume for May. The alliance — led by Saudi Arabia and Russia — has been unwinding prolonged output curbs that were meant to support prices but which also cost the group market share. The strategy shift has already collapsed spreads at the front end of the futures curve and forced Wall Street observers to shave price forecasts. “Oil market analysts did not expect the eight OPEC+ countries to accelerate the return of oil volumes for a second consecutive month — especially amid such economic uncertainty,” said Rob Thummel, senior portfolio manager at Tortoise Capital. His firm predicts that global oil markets will be oversupplied by as much as 500,000 barrels a day starting in June, which could push prices to the low $50s. In a move that could put additional pressure on prices, Saudi Arabia signaled further similar-sized output increases could follow, according to delegates. The threat was widely viewed as being aimed at producers like Kazakhstan and Iraq that have pumped beyond their limits. In the background, US President Donald Trump’s tariff war threatens to derail growth, erode investor confidence and undercut energy