New North Sea oil and gas fields will emit 28m tonnes of carbon dioxide

New oil and gas licences for the North Sea that the UK government has approved in the past two years will produce as much carbon dioxide as the annual emissions of nearly 14m cars or the entire yearly emissions of Denmark, analysis has shown.

This amount – about 28m tonnes of carbon dioxide over the lifetimes of the fields – will be increased more than eightfold, if potential licences under consideration are also granted, according to data from public sources analysed by Greenpeace.

Three large oil and gas fields have been approved since the International Energy Agency warned in May 2021 that no new developments of fossil fuels could be constructed if the world was to limit global temperature increases to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. The IEA report was conducted at the behest of the UK government, which was preparing to host the Cop26 climate summit.

Since then, the government has put in place a “climate checkpoint”, assessing potential new licences before drilling can take place. But the checks focus on the greenhouse gas emissions associated with exploring and operating new fields, rather than taking into account the emissions – known in climate jargon as “scope 3” emissions – that are generated from burning the fossil fuels produced from the fields. Greenpeace argues that failing to take these emissions into account in official impact assessments makes a mockery of the UK’s climate goals. In a court case expected to be heard soon, the group will seek to establish that the government’s actions are unlawful.