Cambo’s owners, the oil giant Shell and private-equity backed Siccar Point Energy, want permission to extract 170 million barrels of oil in the first phase alone. The emissions from this would be equivalent to the annual carbon pollution from 18 coal-fired power stations. The companies plan to operate the field until 2050, the same year the UK has committed to be net zero.
In May, the International Energy Agency said that to stay within safe climate limits, there can be no new oil, gas or coal developments. At the exact moment we should be reducing our production of oil and gas, the UK government is planning to expand it.
The UK government is being urged by fossil fuel companies to approve 18 new oil and gas projects over the coming years. Each of these projects goes against warnings by the International Energy Agency and the United Nations that we can have no new fossil fuel projects if we are to stick to the target of limiting global heating to 1.5C and maintain a liveable climate.
We should be winding down production of oil and gas while making sure that workers and impacted communities are not left behind – this is what’s called a ‘just transition’.
We must not allow Boris Johnson to green light the Cambo field or any other new project in the pipeline.