Their profit – our loss is clear as the Norwegian state owner of the Rosebank oilfield off Shetlands has announced that it made £24 billion in global profits last year and plans to cut billions from its spending on green energy. At the end of January a Scottish court ruled that the earlier consent for Rosebank was granted unlawfully and the state oil company must seek fresh approval from the UK government before production can begin.
Equinor told investors it would cut spending on renewable energy and other low-carbon technologies from a planned $10bn (£8bn) to $5bn over the next two years. The green budget cuts will slow the growth of its low-carbon energy business, which includes some of the UK’s largest offshore windfarms, to 10-12 gigawatts (GW). Its previous target was 12-16GW, as reported by the Guardian.
Tessa Khan of Uplift, its founder and executive director, said Equinor is an “obscenely profitable company that has dined out on the energy crisis, while millions of ordinary people in this country have struggled with unaffordable energy bills.” She added there is “next to no case” for developing Rosebank, which the Scottish courts ruled unlawful last week. “Its reserves won’t power British cars or industries — but will further line the pockets of the Norwegian government’s massive oil fund,” she said. “The vast majority of Rosebank’s oil will be sold on the international market for export, doing nothing to lower energy bills or increase energy security in the UK. And yet the UK public will pick up most of the costs of developing the field thanks to generous tax breaks”. “We need to call time on Equinor’s profiteering.”
According to the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, Equinor has made £141bn since the start of the energy crisis in 2020. Meanwhile it is reported that BP is expected to confirm this month that it has dropped a target to cut its oil output in the next five years, and revise its green energy targets, in an attempt to revive its weakening share price.
Not to be left out, French oil company TotalEnergies said it would trim low-carbon energy spending by 10% to $4.5bn after its net profit slumped by 26% in the 2024 financial year to $15.8bn. It was still the company’s third-highest results on record, according to its chief executive, Patrick Pouyanné.
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