Unreported methane emissions have been detected in the North Sea, suggesting the oil and gas sector could be responsible for more pollution than previously thought.
Oil tankers are emitting millions of tonnes of methane, a greenhouse gas far more potent than carbon dioxide, according to research by the National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS).
Traditionally, oil was transported from the North Sea to land using pipelines, but as drilling moved to more remote locations, tankers have increasingly been used instead.
It comes as Reform UK and the Conservatives renew their calls for more drilling in the North Sea due to the spike in oil prices caused by the war in Iran.
There have been reports of tensions in the cabinet between Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband over the approval of a controversial new oil field off the coast of Shetland.
Supporters of the move argue that drilling for fossil fuels will improve energy security in an era of uncertainty; however, the new research shows that oil fields may be responsible for more emissions than the Government is accounting for.
Millions of tonnes of methane emissions
Methane is a greenhouse gas far more potent than carbon dioxide but lasts in the atmosphere for much shorter time.
For this reason, cutting methane is often described as an “emergency brake” to slow climate change and the UK has a legally binding target to reduce methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030.
The oil and gas sector has significantly reduced its methane emissions since the 1990s, but is still responsible for around 8 per cent of the UK’s total emissions.
However, NCAS research has identified a pollution source that it believes regulators are not fully capturing. Scientists have recorded, for the first time, methane emissions from shuttle tankers used to transport oil to shore from drilling sites.
However, unlike Norway, the UK has not developed clear regulations for recording and reporting the emissions from these tankers, the NCAS said.
Using a research aircraft and methane-sensing drone, the team at NCAS identified spikes in methane when tankers were connecting and loading oil at one floating storage site in the North Sea.
Researchers identified spikes in methane that were not included in official data (Photo: NCAS)They estimated that one Floating Production Storage and Offloading site could be responsible for 17 to 70 additional tonnes of methane emissions per year.
There are currently 16 of these floating storage sites in the North Sea, so more than 1,000 tonnes of methane emissions could be unaccounted for in the UK alone.
This could mean anywhere between 5 and 47 per cent of additional methane from these floating sites.
It adds to a growing body of evidence that methane emissions in the North Sea are going underreported, with other sources of pollution including leakage from abandoned wells or gas flaring.
A spokesperson for the Department for Energy, Security and Net Zero said it was “incorrect” that the methane emissions from tankers were going unrecorded, adding that the “UK’s National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory includes these emissions in its reporting using a consistent methodology”.
However, lead researcher of the report, Dr Ruth Purvis, said the UK relied on “self-reporting” and there was a “grey area” over whether and how these emissions are reported. The research identified spikes in methane that were higher than the figures included in official data.
“If we are putting methane emissions into the atmosphere, we need to make sure that we understand them and they are regulated so we can account for them,” said Dr Purvis.
“If we’ve got unaccounted emissions, that’s really important for climate change going forward, not just in the UK, but globally.”
Demands for more drilling
The research adds to the debate over whether the Government should allow for more drilling in the North Sea.
Labour’s manifesto pledged that the party would not issue new oil and gas exploration licences in the North Sea; however, the Government has been weighing up whether to approve several existing oil and gas fields that already have licences.
This includes the Jackdaw gas field and the Rosebank oil field, the latter of which would utilise oil tankers.
Reeves is believed to be in favour of granting the new licences, as is Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar.
However, Miliband is less supportive, particularly of Rosebank, having previously said in opposition that approving the project would be an act of “climate vandalism”.
Doug Parr, chief scientist at Greenpeace, said: “New drilling in the North Sea will only unleash millions of tonnes of CO₂ and methane, driving up the real costs we all face through more extreme weather.”
Many experts argue that new drilling in the North Sea will not drive down energy bills, as any new oil and gas would still be traded on the international market and thus exposed to global price fluctuations.
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