Oil and gas extraction in the North Sea is at its lowest level in 50 years

Oil and gas production in the North Sea is at its lowest level since the mid-1970s, with the future of the region at stake.

According to estimates from the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), energy companies will have extracted about 1.26 million barrels of oil equivalent per day by 2023 – the industry's preferred benchmark.

This is a far cry from the peak of 4.5 million barrels per day in 1999.

The future of energy production in the North Sea has been thrown into doubt after the Labor Party said it would stop granting new drilling permits to oil and gas companies if it wins the next election.

In contrast, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has promised that the Conservatives would award new permits every year. He emphasizes that the North Sea is crucial for the country's energy security.

The North Sea is known as a mature basin and much of the oil and gas has already been extracted, so new drilling is crucial if production is to continue.

Separate figures show investment in the region rose slightly in 2023 after projects including a major field called Rosebank were given the green light.

But Harbor Energy – the largest producer in the North Sea – and other companies have said the introduction of a windfall tax last year makes it a less attractive place to invest overall.

Harbor has said it will place more emphasis on its work abroad.

The government imposed an additional tax on energy companies after their profits soared in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Oil and gas prices have since fallen to pre-war levels.

NSTA chief executive Stuart Payne said: 'The North Sea has everything you could ever want in energy and is the jewel in the crown of the UK energy system. The estimated expenditure between 2022 and 2030 is approximately £200 billion.”

However, campaigners said production figures prove the North Sea is declining as an energy source.

Tessa Khan, executive director of Uplift, said it was “pure fantasy” to think more drilling in the North Sea will increase energy security.

“There is no question – and a matter of geology – that the North Sea Basin is in decline,” she said.

'As the data makes abundantly clear, there is simply not enough gas left to make any kind of dent in UK demand.'

The government is also encouraging the establishment of green industries, such as carbon capture, in the North Sea. This involves pumping emissions into the caverns left behind by previous oil and gas extraction to remove them from the atmosphere.