On January 19th 2022, the UK approved the Abigail oil field. Abigail is the first oil field that the UK has approved since hosting the UN climate talks less than three months ago. The field has been approved despite warnings from the International Energy Agency and the UN that there can be no new oil and gas developments if we’re to stay within critical climate thresholds.
Abigail is a small field, continuing around 5.5 million barrels of oil - about 1/30 the size of Cambo. The field lies 233km east of Peterhead in the North Sea off the East coast of Scotland. It is owned by Ithaca Energy, which is part of the Israeli firm, Delek Group. You can see coverage of the field in The National, The Guardian, The Scotsman, The Independent, STV News, BusinessGreen, Evening Standard, The Times and the City AM
Abigail will cost millions to build and will only produce enough gas to meet UK demand for roughly a day and a half. Moving forward with the field will not provide reliable energy for the UK or help lower our energy bills. It’s a dangerous waste of money and resources. The best way to deal with the climate crisis & gas price crisis is homegrown renewables, not more oil and gas.
Please help us raise the alarm over Abigail. Here's what you can do:
For more background on the approval of the Abigail field and our partners' reactions to it, see the press release below.
- Stop Cambo
The Abigail oil and gas field off the East coast of Scotland has been given the green light by government, despite warnings from the International Energy Agency, UN and others that there can be no new oil and gas developments if we’re to maintain a liveable climate.(1)
The approval comes as the government consults on plans to licence more UK oil and gas fields, with a new test – a “climate compatibility checkpoint” – to ensure that new licences are in line with the UK’s climate objectives.(2)
Abigail, which is owned by Ithaca Energy, was quietly given consent on 19 January by the regulator, the Oil and Gas Authority, acting on behalf of the Business Secretary, Kwasi Kwarteng. It contains 5.5 million barrels of oil equivalent, split roughly equally between oil and gas. Abigail’s oil will likely be exported, as is the case with 80% of oil extracted from the North Sea. The field contains only enough gas to meet UK demand for roughly a day and a half (34 hours).(3)
Tessa Khan, director of Uplift said: “Why is the government sanctioning an oil and gas development that will see little to no benefit for UK energy customers or taxpayers, which only worsens the climate crisis, and where the only winners are the oil firm behind the project. If we carry on down this path, we’ll be dependent on a very expensive, highly polluting energy source for decades longer than is necessary.
“A serious response from the government to both unaffordable energy bills and the climate crisis, would see all this investment steered into cheaper UK renewables. The government needs to stop rolling over for the oil and gas industry, stop dishing out licences, and get on with making sure people have access to affordable, UK renewable energy.”
Caroline Rance, climate and energy campaigner, Friends of the Earth Scotland: “Once again we see the UK Government saying one thing and doing another, having reaffirmed their commitment to ‘keeping 1.5ºC alive’ at COP26 and just weeks later approving new oil and gas fields.
“Meantime, it is pressing ahead with a farcical plan which would allow continued oil and gas production for years to come. The government's so-called climate test is designed to set the bar so low that the oil industry gets to lock us into their climate-wrecking business as usual for decades to come.
“The simple fact is that there is no such thing as a climate compatible oil and gas development. Climate science is crystal clear that burning fossil fuels is the key driver of the climate crisis and that there can be no new oil and gas fields anywhere in the world if we’re to limit warming to the 1.5ºC limit.
“The UK Government should immediately stop granting permission for new oil and gas projects, and instead begin a managed phase out of existing fields while ensuring a just transition for affected workers and communities. Every new field harms the ability of workers to transition by continuing to channel public money and support into fossil fuels instead of into increasing renewables, creating new jobs and supporting workers to retrain. “
Philip Evans, oil and gas transition campaigner for Greenpeace UK, said: “Approving a new oil and gas field sends all the wrong signals to the public, the industry and to the world about the need to get off fossil fuels as fast as possible. The government has acknowledged that it won’t make energy bills cheaper, and that we need more renewables and energy efficiency to tackle the energy crisis and the climate crisis.
“First they sign off on this new permit, and next they’re planning a laughable new ‘climate checkpoint’ to test whether new oil and gas licences are eco-friendly, despite international energy experts and the UN secretary general saying we need to stop exploring for more right now. New oil and gas is not compatible with keeping climate change within internationally agreed targets. Full stop. And no amount of ‘climate compatibility checks’ will change that.
“Instead we need a new North Sea industry of clean and affordable renewable energy that brings down bills, and provides real job opportunities for the workers and communities most affected as the fossil age draws to a close.”
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