The UK government has decided to introduce new Transitional Energy Certificates, allowing the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) to "enable limited oil and gas production on or near to existing fields - so long as this additional production does not require new exploration and is already part of or links back to existing fields and infrastructure" (DESNZ statement, 26/11/2025). Developers will not be permitted to explore for oil and gas at these new sites.
According to the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), the UK oil and gas regulator, UK oil and gas output has declined from around 4.4 mboe/d in 2000 to roughly 1 mboe/d currently, with projections indicating a fall below 150 kboe/d by 2050.
Many producers, facing declining mature fields, have been reconsidering their UK operations, choosing to sell, merge, or scale back activities.
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