Back in June of 2024, a decision from the UK Supreme Court held that oil and gas developers must include scope 3 emissions in their Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA). Now Shell is feeling the consequences of the ruling as the UK courts pulled approval for Shell gas developments in the North Sea. ESG Today covers the situation in a recent article:
“The suspension of production from the projects could have a significant impact on oil and gas production in the North Sea. Under development by Shell, Jackdaw, located approximately 250 km east of Aberdeen, Scotland, was expected to begin production next year, with Shell estimating that the field would provide enough fuel to heat 1.4 million UK homes. Rosebank, under development by Equinor UK is estimated to hold over 300 million barrels of oil equivalent recoverable resources, accounting for 7% of UK oil production from first oil through 2030.”
Shell is allowed to keep developing projects while the government reconsiders environmental impacts, taking into account scope 3 emissions. However, Shell may not begin production from the sites until renewed approval is given, slowing down the return on what is over a £2.2 billion investment. This case underlines the importance of knowing and conforming to environmental laws in every jurisdiction where your company operates.
Our members can learn more about scope 3 emissions here.
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Image Credit: Alexandr Blinov – stock.adobe.com
