Adura has welcomed the conclusion of the public consultation period on the Rosebank oil and gas field, a significant regulatory milestone before a formal decision on the project.
The end of the consultation by the Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning (OPRED) follows the completion of a similar process for the Jackdaw gas field last week.
OPRED will now consider the consultation responses on Rosebank before a ministerial decision on whether to approve the project.
Together, Rosebank and Jackdaw represent a combined anticipated investment of £10.8 billion ($14.6 billion), more than three-quarters of it spent in the UK.
Rosebank is projected to produce around 69,000 barrels of oil per day at its peak, equivalent to roughly 10% of anticipated UK Continental Shelf oil output. With total UK oil production forecast to fall in coming years, Rosebank is large enough to slow that decline.
And together, Rosebank and Jackdaw have the potential to make up 10% of domestic natural gas production.
The Rosebank field is located approximately 130km north-west of Shetland and will be developed in two phases, with subsea wells tied back to a redeployed FPSO.
Neil McCulloch, Chief Executive of Adura, said: “Rosebank is the largest undeveloped oil field in the UK North Sea, and today’s consultation close is a major step before a decision on a project that can deliver real economic benefits for the country.”
Across Adura’s portfolio, including Jackdaw, Rosebank and future developments, average production emissions intensity could be as little as half the North Sea average. Rosebank is expected to have a production emissions intensity of approximately 12kgCO₂e per barrel of oil equivalent, around 20kgCO₂e below the global average for crude production.