Fossil Fuels

(asked on 20th April 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March to Question 161735 on fossil fuels, what estimate he has made of the additional greenhouse gases emitted from the 10 to 20 billion barrels or more of oil equivalent that are (a) discovered and (b) undiscovered; what his policy is on how much of those oil and gas reserves can be extracted while adhering to the UK’s commitments under the Paris climate agreement; and if he will make a statement.


Answered by
Anne-Marie Trevelyan Portrait
Anne-Marie Trevelyan
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This question was answered on 28th April 2021

In 2018, upstream oil and gas activities in the UK generated 19 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e): around four per cent of total UK greenhouse gas emissions.

Through the North Sea Transition Deal, the oil and gas sector has committed to ambitious emissions reductions targets, including halving emissions by 2030, on a trajectory to becoming a net zero basin by 2050. This means an absolute reduction in greenhouse gases to 0.5MtCO2e in that timeframe. In order to help meet this objective, government, the sector and regulators will work together over the next decade and beyond to deliver the investment, innovation and infrastructure required to decarbonise North Sea production.

Emissions from end-use depend on whether petroleum products are combusted or used for other purposes. Emissions generated in the UK are factored into our 2050 net zero target.

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