Left without a scooby? Industry needs certainty, windfall tax or not
Sanjoy Sen sets out the case for certainty in the North Sea taxation regime in the wake of last month's windfall tax announcement.
Opinion
Mental health column: Communicate with clarity
Success is where people love to work, and where we work and what success looks like, is different for all of us. So how, as leaders, do we support our people’s mental health in a hybrid and hyper-connected world?
Windfall tax: Politicians should ‘rise above the calls of the election timetable’
The UK Government’s decision to impose a windfall tax on industry is disappointing and presents challenges to a sector that is focussed on meeting the UK’s energy needs for decades to come.
The Green Freeports race is on
The race is warming up to determine the locations for Scotland’s two Green Freeports.
Hydrogen opportunity could evaporate
During a recent visit to the USA the First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon gave a speech at the Brooking Institute in which she expressed extensive support for the proposition that hydrogen will be an essential part of the move away from fossil fuels.
The next year will see a lot of winners, but for some businesses, there will be one headwind too many
The first half of 2022 has been incredibly turbulent for Europe’s energy sector. And though many economies have shown a robust recovery in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, several other factors are now posing equally challenging risks.
Lack of renewables incentive is critical failure in government’s windfall tax scheme
Yesterday's announcement by Sunak was far from destructive for the North Sea oil & gas industry given the generous projects investment tax relief, but it fails, as it turns out, in at least one critical way.
Deirdre Michie: Supporting consumers is essential – damaging the UK energy industry is no way to do it
The Chancellor’s Energy Profits Levy, announced yesterday, is a disappointing and worrying development for industry. The shockwaves will undoubtedly be felt in offshore energy jobs and communities for years to come.
The benefits of a circular economy
The benefit of a circular approach as we address the climate challenge, with more focus on re-use and recycling, has been emphasised for me in recent days.
Ofgem protects energy market at expense of consumer affordability
The energy regulator Ofgem has published a decision document on the Market Stabilisation Charge (MSC) and opened a fresh consultation on changes to the frequency of energy price cap adjustments. These changes, while identified by the regulator as crucial to protect the market, risk having an adverse impact on consumers - something Ofgem concede in their own documentation.
We need urgent action now if the UK is to seize its golden opportunity to lead the world in carbon capture
The government is rightly pressing the urgency of the country’s energy security challenge. It is imperative we also use this as an opportunity to make large and purposeful strides towards our net zero obligations. In his recent letter to the oil and gas industry - 'Accelerating investment to protect Britain’s energy security' - Kwasi Kwarteng calls for the industry to “double down on investments in the clean energy transition”. Key to this is the acceleration of our home grown decarbonisation industry.
As the cost of renewables has fallen rapidly, gas is no longer a viable bridging tool
In the last few months, gas’ role in the energy mix has been put under a microscope.
IR35 and legal consultants – what you need to know
The oil & gas industry was arguably worst hit by the IR35 changes, due to heavily relying on consultants, particularly lawyers. Understandably, some businesses are still unsure of how to manage IR35’s stipulations so they can access instant legal expertise, and ease pressure on in-house legal teams. But there is a way forward, which can minimise the impact IR35 has on businesses. Using freelance providers can ease a huge admin burden, but it’s important business understand their obligations too.
Mental Health Awareness Week – Loneliness
The feeling of loneliness likely affects us all at some point in time which can have a huge impact both mentally and physically.
Cost of living and climate change crisis calls for more action
It will come as no surprise to readers when I say we are in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis.
Chapter 2: What is systems thinking and why is it important?
Rather than seeking to simplify complex issues and problems by breaking them down into their component parts, systems thinking focuses more on the development of a holistic understanding as well as the relationships and interactions between elements within a system.
Efficient? The majority of our homes are energy hopeless
Last month the UK Government published its British Energy Security Strategy.
Strengthening resilience as we seek a balanced transition for our energy industry
The global response to the tragic invasion of Ukraine has underlined the importance of energy security and the need for responsible, clean and reliable sources of energy for our country: a balanced transition is key as we look to secure a bright future for our industry and its workforce.
Legal implications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine for the oil and gas sector
Before any discussion of how the invasion of Ukraine by Russia is impacting our sector, we must first acknowledge the devastating effects on the people of Ukraine of the indiscriminate shelling of civilian targets, the war crimes being perpetrated by Russian troops and the massive displacement of the population both within and beyond Ukraine, which is something most of us have never seen in Europe in our lifetimes, as well as the enormous courage and resilience of the Ukrainian nation.
North America: enterprising, dynamic and opportunistic
My eldest son is an aerospace engineer and lives and works in Seattle on the US West coast. He’s built a career in an industry which nowadays offers few opportunities in Scotland nor many in other parts of the UK.
An obscure (and underestimated) oil city at the heart of the old Soviet industry…
A ministerial visit that’s long stuck in my mind was to a city called Khanty-Mansiysk far to the north in Siberia. You haven’t heard of it? Well, join a very large club to which I belonged before going there.
ScotWind: From mega bucks to mega watts
Only six months ago, the spotlight of the world was firmly on COP26 in Glasgow as the defining moment for the world to keep ‘1.5 alive’. For a brief period, the world was united around a common goal to protect the planet from the worst impact of climate change.
Unknown unknowns are halting the energy transition
The current energy sector is certainly a hazardous one, contributing to much of the CO2 emissions that are affecting the planet. That is why the global energy sector – including industry and mobility using energy – must transition to clean energy in order to keep the planet a liveable place.
Chapter 1: The role of engineering
Engineering as we know it had its origins in the Age of Enlightenment that dominated the world of ideas in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries when science played an important role as pragmatism, logic and rational thinking replaced the authority of tradition and religion.
Challenging policy on climate change grounds
In a recent judicial review decision, two judges in an English court considered an application by Friends of the Earth (FoE) to quash UK Export Finance’s (UKEF) decision to provide export finance to the Mozambique LNG Project.