The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), which is responsible for the development of the oil and gas sector in the United Kingdom, has launched the 33rd oil and gas exploration licencing round with the objective to potentially develop 898 blocks and part-blocks in the British North Sea, which may lead to over 100 licences being awarded.
The application period will run until 12 January 2023. The first licences should be awarded from the second quarter of 2023. The NSTA identified four priority cluster areas in the Southern North Sea, which have known hydrocarbons, are close to infrastructure and have the potential to be developed quickly, as the UK is trying boost domestic hydrocarbon output as Europe tries to rely less on Russian fuel.
In September 2020, the UK Oil & Gas Authority (OGA) awarded 113 licence areas in the 32nd Offshore Licensing Round over 260 blocks or part-blocks to 65 companies, including Shell, BP, Total, Eni, Chrysaor, EnQuest, Neptune and Equinor. In June 2019, the OGA awarded 37 licence areas over 141 blocks to 30 companies in the 31st Offshore Licensing round, in which Equinor won 5 licenses in the Moray Firth and East Shetland Platform.
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