The U.K. continues its pointless and self-destructive pursuit of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. These policies will make no difference to the climate, but both Labour and Conservative governments have justified them, in part, on the grounds that the rest of the world would be impressed by the example that Britain is setting.
The United Kingdom is not afraid to lead the charge towards global net zero at COP26, because history has never been made by those who sit at the back of the class hoping not to be called on. Indeed, as we set an example to the world by showing that reaching Net Zero is entirely possible, so the likes of China and Russia are following our lead with their own net zero targets, as prices tumble and green tech becomes the global norm.
[I]n the new United Kingdom government, you have a partner that wants to show global leadership on these critical issues around the climate crisis… a government in the UK that is determined to lead by example, and then use that to show international leadership too.
Part of that “global leadership” has involved squeezing Britain’s North Sea oil and gas sector. Miliband has been reiterating the Labour government’s prohibition on exploration for new fields in the North Sea and penal taxes continue to be levied on any production.
Surely neighboring Norway is impressed by this fine example of selflessly coming to the rescue of our “boiling” planet?
Well, no.
Norway is reopening three gas fields that it shut down last century as demand from Europe for alternatives to Russian and Middle Eastern supply increases. The rich Scandinavian country’s centre-left government announced on Tuesday that the three North Sea fields — Albuskjell, Vest Ekofisk and Tommeliten Gamma — would restart production in 2028, four decades after they last pumped out any gas.
I’m old enough to remember when climate activists, regulators, and ESG rent-seekers used to warn about the dangers to financial health posed by “stranded assets.”
Wait, there’s more (via the Daily Telegraph):
Earlier this week, [Norway] opened a major new gas field that will boost Europe’s energy security for years to come – including in the UK.
The Eirin field will feed directly into the Langeled pipeline that terminates in Easington, East Yorkshire, providing much-needed supplies to the Midlands, London and the South East.
Oh yes (via the FT):
Norway’s biggest three political parties are all firmly in favour of drilling for more oil and gas, and the minority Labour government also announced on Tuesday that it was offering 70 new blocks for exploration later this year. More than half of the blocks lie in the Barents Sea, inside the Arctic Circle.
The U.K. is now a huge buyer of Norwegian North Sea gas. Is that supposed to be cleaner than anything that might be produced under the British sector of the same sea? It’s often said that Britain’s North Sea reserves are running down, which is true, but the argument that it is therefore not worth looking for any more owes more to climatism than logic. If nothing else is found, well, that’s just a matter for the company that tried its luck. On the other hand, if something worthwhile is there, not exploiting it could only be put down to climate policy, and that may be a discussion that Miliband does not want to have.
Meanwhile, there are concerns, reports the Daily Telegraph’s Jonathan Leake, that the U.K. has become too dependent on Norway for its gas. Britain and Norway have been allies for a long time, but:
The Rosebank oil field off Shetland and Jackdaw gas field in the North Sea are jointly owned by Norwegian state energy giant Equinor and UK-based Shell.
Equinor has invested billions in Rosebank, including refitting a massive ship to extract its oil.
“Equinor has paid more than $2bn (£1.5bn) for development, and if Ed Miliband blocks it, it could trigger a diplomatic incident,” says [Ashley Kielty, an energy analyst at investment bank Panmure Liberum] . “If this happens, I would expect that supply to the UK is curtailed.”
Oh.
In local elections this week the populist-right Reform UK trounced Labour. Turn to the party’s website to discover its attitude to net zero:
Scrap Net Zero to Cut Energy Bills
Oh.