Norway plans to revive three mothballed North Sea gas fields as demand in Europe soars.
As the UK stalls on developing its side of the basin, with new licences banned and work on two fields frozen because of climate challenges, the Norwegian fields will be opened for the first time in 30 years.
They are believed to contain enough fuel to heat millions of homes and the country says it is vital for European energy security.
The gas will be sent by pipeline to Germany with light oil sent to the UK.
The Norwegian government has also said that it is keen to further exploit its resources in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea.
It plans to access 70 blocks identified on the seabed.
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said: “Norway’s oil and gas industry is vital to Norway and to Europe.”
Energy minister Terje Aasland said: “Norwegian production of oil and gas is an important contribution to energy security in Europe.
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has made Norway’s decision necessary, the country’s energy minister says
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“Developing new gas fields allows Norway to maintain high supply levels over the long term. This has become all the more crucial since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East.”
The three fields are run by ConocoPhillips. The company’s European president, Steinar Våge, said: “By utilising existing infrastructure, we can produce substantial resources at low cost, and strengthen gas exports to Europe.”
The UK spent £20b buying oil and gas from Norway last year. Meanwhile, its domestic output continues to fall.
Offshore operators have complained that it is becoming difficult to work under the current political regime. Drilling at both Rosebank, Britain’s largest untapped oil field, and Jackdaw, a gas field, has been halted after a legal challenge on climate grounds.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband is not willing to commence new projects in the North Sea
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PAThe decision on whether work can restart rests with energy secretary, Ed Miliband.
The Norwegian fields were closed in 1998. However, thanks to new technology, they have become accessible.
They are set to reopen in 2028 and are predicted to be in operation for 20 years. Energy experts suggested that the UK’s offshore industry was being held back by policy.
A spokesman for Offshore Energies UK told the Telegraph: “The discrepancy in success in the two different regions of the North Sea is not dictated by geology. “It is entirely determined by how respective governments treat oil and gas resources through policy, regulation and taxation.”
Shadow energy minister Claire Coutinho said: “Norway just announced 70 new blocks of oil and gas exploration, including in the North Sea. “Meanwhile, just over the border on the British side of the North Sea, our Energy Secretary tells us we’ve got nothing left so he has to ban new licences.
“Same basin. Same geology. The difference is political will.”
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has said that more North Sea exploration will not lower bills because the price of gas is set on the international market.
It says that the best path to energy security is through renewables, and moving away from the volatile fossil fuel market.