The key facts
- Burnham's government approved Jackdaw: up to 6% growth in domestic gas production at peak, service life of up to 11 years, first deliveries by the end of October 2026
- Simultaneously, an Energy Wealth Fund was created with £2 billion to reinvest oil and gas revenues into the climate transition
- The decision on Rosebank — the largest undeveloped oil field — has not yet been made; environmentalists and the Greens condemn the Jackdaw approval
Approval after years of uncertainty
The UK government on Wednesday, 21 October 2026, approved gas production at the Jackdaw field in the North Sea, located approximately 150 miles (240 km) east of Aberdeen. This ended years of legal and political disputes. The project is operated by the Adura joint venture, owned equally by Shell and Norway's Equinor. According to The National, at peak production Jackdaw will deliver gas equivalent to 40,000 barrels of oil per day, while the BBC cites the owners' estimate of about 10 million cubic metres of recoverable gas, covering roughly 1.6% of the UK's projected gas demand for 2026–2036.
Background: the court and the review of approvals
The Conservative government approved Jackdaw in 2022, but environmental activists challenged the decision in court along with the approval for the Rosebank field. In 2025, a Scottish court ruled that the approvals had failed to account for indirect carbon emissions from burning the extracted hydrocarbons, and banned production until new government consent was obtained. Labour promised in the 2024 election not to issue new drilling licences, but, according to officials, the decisions on Jackdaw and Rosebank do not fall under this commitment, as they concern licences issued by the previous government.
The government's arguments
Prime Minister Andy Burnham called the decision 'pragmatic': 'At a time when people are genuinely struggling, it is important to responsibly look for ways to make the most of the energy resources Britain has.' In his words, even on an ambitious climate path, oil and gas will be needed for decades. Energy Secretary Miatta Fahnbulle said gas could reach consumers by the end of the month and stated that the decision is 'compatible with legally binding climate commitments.' The government estimates the project's contribution at £2.9 billion for the economy and the protection of hundreds of jobs (according to AFP — 27 new and about 270 existing; the BBC notes 27 direct jobs on the platform and about 500 supported overall). DW and AFP link the decision to rising energy prices due to the war in Iran and pressure from US President Donald Trump, who welcomed the approval on Truth Social and urged Britain to extract resources 'at full capacity.'
The energy wealth fund and the question of bills
At the same time, the government announced the creation of an Energy Wealth Fund with an initial contribution of £2 billion to reinvest oil and gas revenues into the climate transition. Fahnbulle nevertheless admitted that gas from Jackdaw 'will not lower energy bills this winter': analysts and critics point out that gas prices are set by the pan-European and global market. Professor Carl Maticonus of University College Dublin told BBC Verify: 'Essentially, producing more British energy does not necessarily mean cheaper British energy' — North Sea oil and gas are sold at market prices. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accused the prime minister of 'dithering' and called for lifting the ban on new licences; Burnham replied that the previous government had 'botched' the original decision by ignoring climate commitments.
Criticism and industry reaction
Green co-leader Zack Polanski called the decision 'climate vandalism,' and Scottish Greens co-leader Ross Greer — 'a devastating betrayal of our children's future.' Greenpeace (Amy McCarthy) said the approval shows the 'toxic grip of fossil fuel lobbyists' over energy policy; Oxfam said the government has 'drilled straight through the UK's climate commitments.' The industry and unions welcomed the decision: Shell stressed the importance of predictable regulatory decisions, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said it gives Britain 'a bit of time' for a plan to create jobs during the transition, and Octopus Energy CEO Greg Jackson called the decision 'good energy policy,' since Jackdaw 'will replace 20 shipments of imported gas a year.' Scotland's First Minister John Swinney welcomed the certainty for north-east Scotland but urged that economic benefits be directed towards lowering bills rather than 'into the treasury to plug holes.'
Context and the fate of Rosebank
The decision on Rosebank — the UK's largest known undeveloped oil field west of the Shetland Islands — has not yet been made. Fahnbulle said it would take 'a little longer' and explained the difference to The Guardian: 'One is a gas field for the domestic market, the other is an oil field, mostly for export.' Adura called for Rosebank to be approved as well. According to the consultant Wood Mackenzie, the UK North Sea sector is 90% depleted in commercial reserves. The context of the decision: the UK experienced its hottest summer on record (according to the Met Office, up to 38 degrees in places in June), and a new UN report points to the world moving towards 2.8 degrees of warming — far beyond the Paris Agreement target of 1.5 degrees. Jess Ralston of the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit noted: 'Even if the government approves Jackdaw and Rosebank, the North Sea debates will not become less heated.'
