Burnham set to approve North Sea gas field in win for Trump

A major North Sea gas project that could supply energy for around a million UK homes could win approval as soon as September, The i Paper has learned. The controversial Shell-operated Jackdaw gas field could be given the green light within weeks. Donald Trump claimed on Wednesday that Andy Burnham had personally promised him he would expand drilling in the North Sea. Speaking from the White House, the US President said Burnham made the pledge during a phone call on his first day in office. “The new gentleman, when I spoke to him, he said he’s going to open up the North Sea,” Trump said. “Let’s see if that’s true”. Shorts Burnham told reporters during a visit to Barrow-in-Furness on Thursday that he had vowed to Trump to take a “pragmatic approach” to the North Sea because “there is a resource there” that “we can’t ignore” while people are struggling. Jackdaw – located around 150 miles off Aberdeen – could begin production within months, supplying gas by winter once the regulatory hurdles are cleared as most infrastructure is already in place. Although privately funded, the UK controls a large section of the North Sea, giving it a legal right to approve and tax oil and gas production. As The i Paper exclusively revealed in June, Ed Miliband, the former energy secretary, is understood to have laid the ground for the decision as part of his campaign to become Burnham’s Chancellor. The new Energy Secretary, Miatta Fahnbulleh, has since told allies she will take a “pragmatic approach” to the project and sources familiar with the discussions now expect an announcement as soon as September. Decisions on Rosebank, the UK’s largest undeveloped oil field located west of Shetland, in Scotland, and Cambo, a nearby undeveloped oil and gas field, are expected to follow in close succession as both projects move through renewed environmental and regulatory reviews. The outcomes will provide a key indication of the Government’s approach to future North Sea oil and gas development A Government source said Burnham and other ministers were being careful about what they said publicly about the future of the North Sea because of the ongoing process about whether to sign off Jackdaw and Rosebank, which is supposed to be a “quasi-judicial” decision. “You’re not going to prejudge the position,” they said. The source added that there was more the Government could do in terms of “tie-backs” – production in unlicensed areas which are close by and connected to infrastructure in already licensed areas. They said that the Government had to protect employment in the north-east of Scotland while jobs in green industries like floating offshore wind are scaled up. “Where we have got to get this right is on the jobs side,” they added. Jackdaw was originally approved in 2022 under the Conservative government, but the Court of Session quashed that consent last year after ruling the climate impact of burning the extracted gas had not been properly assessed. Developer Adura – a joint venture between Shell and Equinor – submitted a revised environmental assessment, with the consultation window closing on 10 August. Adura’s chief executive, Neil McCulloch, has said the field is finished and could supply 6 per cent of the UK’s gas needs from 1 October, but only if ministers sign off in time. Energy firms and unions, including the GMB, have urged ministers to approve the project, arguing it could support thousands of jobs and strengthen UK energy independence. The project is forecast to yield hundreds of millions to several billion pounds in UK tax revenue over its lifetime, depending on gas prices and production levels. Environmental groups, however, say the long-term impact on energy bills will be negligible and argue that investment should instead focus on renewables, insulation and heat pump roll-out. Labour’s 2024 manifesto ruled out granting new North Sea oil and gas licences, but Rosebank and Jackdaw are being treated as separate cases because they already hold existing licences rather than requiring approval through a new licensing round. The Government’s position is that these projects are progressing through established regulatory and legal processes, rather than representing new licences being issued. Trump has needled successive prime ministers over the issue and repeatedly urged Sir Keir Starmer to approve North Sea drilling, saying on Wednesday: “I could not get Starmer to use it. It was incredible.” He also renewed his attacks on wind power, telling GB News Burnham had “windmills all over the place” and that “any time you see windmills, you see a failing country”.