Well it’s that or get yoinked into being nationalised.
UK oil and gas industry criticises opposition Labour Party plans to raid producers for even more to ease cost-of-living crisis
The UK oil and gas industry has criticised the country’s opposition Labour Party for proposing to extend a windfall tax on North Sea producers to help raise almost £30 billion ($37 billion) to ease soaring energy bills for millions of struggling households.
The Conservative government in May bowed to months of political pressure by imposing a 25% windfall tax — or Energy Profits Levy — on oil and gas producers, coupled with measures to allow firms to get tax savings in exchange for more investment in production, raising about £5 billion in its first 12 months.
The sector’s main trade body, Offshore Energies UK (OEUK), has warned that any new round of windfall taxes would leave the UK “facing decades of energy insecurity”, as well as heaping further costs on consumers.
In a move designed to pile pressure on the government as the UK grapples with the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades and the Conservative party engages in a leadership battle, Labour said this week it would, if elected, cap energy costs for six months from October, paying for this in part by extending the windfall tax, to raise another £8.1 billion.
It said it would also backdate the tax to January and remove the investment allowances.
Labour leader Keir Starmer said that with other measures its planned total package of support would raise £29 billion.
He also argued that the price caps would help bring inflation under control, ultimately helping to improve the UK’s public finances.
Poverty warning
Charities in the UK are warning that millions of people could be forced into poverty if the government does not soften the blow of sky-high energy costs with a new support package.
Starmer told the BBC: “We would make sure these energy price increases do not go ahead in the autumn and so instead of allowing the prices to go up and then trying to rebate people, we’re going to cut the problem at source and stop those price increases.
“We’re going to pay for it by extending the windfall tax on oil and gas companies in the North Sea who’ve made much bigger profits than they expected.
Starmer ruled out temporarily nationalising energy companies which refuse to lower bills — a suggestion made by Labour’s former prime minister, Gordon Brown.
OEUK noted that tax rates on UK North Sea producers have increased from 40% to 65% this year – higher than other industries and the highest rate of tax in the history of the basin.
Risk rating
The trade body warned that imposing more sudden new taxes would “make the UK seem fiscally unstable and a riskier place to invest”, meaning investors would move overseas.
OEUK’s sustainability director Mike Tholen said: “The government has a duty to both protect consumers and to ensure national energy security.
“Labour’s proposals to hit our own producers with further taxes will discourage investment and so risk a rapid decline in UK production.
“That would mean buying more energy from abroad, increasing the UK’s trade deficit and further risking UK energy security.
“It comes at the worst possible time for the UK offshore sector, which is still reeling from the introduction of the windfall tax in May.”
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, the two Conservative Party politicians vying to replace outgoing prime minister Boris Johnson, have so far promised more limited help than Labour’s £29 billion plan.
A spokesman for Johnson, who has resigned but it is yet to formally leave office, said the finance ministry and other departments were making “necessary preparations to ensure a new government will have options to deliver support as quickly as possible, but clearly those decisions will rest with the new prime minister”, Reuters reported.
Russia’s move to cut gas exports to the West following its invasion of Ukraine has driven up bills across Europe, forcing governments in Italy, France and elsewhere to intervene.
France has capped electricity tariff rises at 4%.
The forecasting group Cornwall Insight estimates that average UK annual bills for gas and electricity will jump to £3582 in October and £4266 in January. Earlier this year, the price cap was £1277.
Liz and Sunak are in Scotland on Tuesday as they to pitch for the votes of Scottish Conservative members at hustings events.
Both are against a referendum on Scottish independence and want their policies to apply UK-wide.
OEUK called for both candidates to express “clear support” for the UK’s oil and gas industry.
OEUK external relations director Jenny Stanning said: “The ongoing speculation caused by recent calls to extend the tax is hurting places like Aberdeen which have a vibrant offshore energy industry.
“We are clear that extending the windfall tax would make it even harder to attract investment that is badly needed to meet the UK’s energy needs.”
“From Aberdeen to East Anglia to Southampton and everywhere in between, it’s important that politicians of all parties recognise the critical role this sector is playing and can continue to play in keeping the nation’s lights on, homes warm and industries powered.”
Not if you invest the £billions raised into £millions needed to install grid tie solar on every home and business. It would also only cost a few hundred £million to install and link up local thermal mass sites as energy storage. We can do that with the materials we already have at hand. If the Fins can do it with a smaller budget imagine what we could achieve.
Cig packet maths for the solar… its about £140 for a 350w solar panel right now. 6 of those would handle a good deal of the individuals electric. Inverter is about £500-1000 depending on what the roof will take. Cabling is a few hundred. Workmanship/electrician usually leads to double the cost.
So lets say £4000 for every home. 10 million homes that would be roughly suitable. Thats £40bn for every one, but if you focus on the 10% that are REALLY struggling it comes right down thats £4bn. Its doable.
It gets even better if you just cover base loads. It would cover things like your freezer costs over the year, but more importantly it’d still have a dent in our emissions. Possibly more than Ecars.
Did they… Aye?
What energy security? I hear the government is planning for rolling blackouts in the winter. Really doesn’t sound like we have much energy security.
In other news, Turkeys vote against Christmas.
Thinly veiled threats that should be met with a “fuck off”.
Ok then lets nationalize and take their worries away!!
It would upset their excess profits and nothing else
So will riots and looting on the streets. When we are putting anti theft devices on cheese, the threads are beginning to snap.
>The trade body warned that imposing more sudden new taxes would “make the UK seem fiscally unstable and a riskier place to invest”, meaning investors would move overseas.
Then we should invest in it ourselves and keep all the profits. Where’s the risk? How many companies have gone bust investing in North Sea oil? It’s a licence to print money.
13 comments
Well it’s that or get yoinked into being nationalised.
UK oil and gas industry criticises opposition Labour Party plans to raid producers for even more to ease cost-of-living crisis
The UK oil and gas industry has criticised the country’s opposition Labour Party for proposing to extend a windfall tax on North Sea producers to help raise almost £30 billion ($37 billion) to ease soaring energy bills for millions of struggling households.
The Conservative government in May bowed to months of political pressure by imposing a 25% windfall tax — or Energy Profits Levy — on oil and gas producers, coupled with measures to allow firms to get tax savings in exchange for more investment in production, raising about £5 billion in its first 12 months.
The sector’s main trade body, Offshore Energies UK (OEUK), has warned that any new round of windfall taxes would leave the UK “facing decades of energy insecurity”, as well as heaping further costs on consumers.
In a move designed to pile pressure on the government as the UK grapples with the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades and the Conservative party engages in a leadership battle, Labour said this week it would, if elected, cap energy costs for six months from October, paying for this in part by extending the windfall tax, to raise another £8.1 billion.
It said it would also backdate the tax to January and remove the investment allowances.
Labour leader Keir Starmer said that with other measures its planned total package of support would raise £29 billion.
He also argued that the price caps would help bring inflation under control, ultimately helping to improve the UK’s public finances.
Poverty warning
Charities in the UK are warning that millions of people could be forced into poverty if the government does not soften the blow of sky-high energy costs with a new support package.
Starmer told the BBC: “We would make sure these energy price increases do not go ahead in the autumn and so instead of allowing the prices to go up and then trying to rebate people, we’re going to cut the problem at source and stop those price increases.
“We’re going to pay for it by extending the windfall tax on oil and gas companies in the North Sea who’ve made much bigger profits than they expected.
Starmer ruled out temporarily nationalising energy companies which refuse to lower bills — a suggestion made by Labour’s former prime minister, Gordon Brown.
OEUK noted that tax rates on UK North Sea producers have increased from 40% to 65% this year – higher than other industries and the highest rate of tax in the history of the basin.
Risk rating
The trade body warned that imposing more sudden new taxes would “make the UK seem fiscally unstable and a riskier place to invest”, meaning investors would move overseas.
OEUK’s sustainability director Mike Tholen said: “The government has a duty to both protect consumers and to ensure national energy security.
“Labour’s proposals to hit our own producers with further taxes will discourage investment and so risk a rapid decline in UK production.
“That would mean buying more energy from abroad, increasing the UK’s trade deficit and further risking UK energy security.
“It comes at the worst possible time for the UK offshore sector, which is still reeling from the introduction of the windfall tax in May.”
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, the two Conservative Party politicians vying to replace outgoing prime minister Boris Johnson, have so far promised more limited help than Labour’s £29 billion plan.
A spokesman for Johnson, who has resigned but it is yet to formally leave office, said the finance ministry and other departments were making “necessary preparations to ensure a new government will have options to deliver support as quickly as possible, but clearly those decisions will rest with the new prime minister”, Reuters reported.
Russia’s move to cut gas exports to the West following its invasion of Ukraine has driven up bills across Europe, forcing governments in Italy, France and elsewhere to intervene.
France has capped electricity tariff rises at 4%.
The forecasting group Cornwall Insight estimates that average UK annual bills for gas and electricity will jump to £3582 in October and £4266 in January. Earlier this year, the price cap was £1277.
Liz and Sunak are in Scotland on Tuesday as they to pitch for the votes of Scottish Conservative members at hustings events.
Both are against a referendum on Scottish independence and want their policies to apply UK-wide.
OEUK called for both candidates to express “clear support” for the UK’s oil and gas industry.
OEUK external relations director Jenny Stanning said: “The ongoing speculation caused by recent calls to extend the tax is hurting places like Aberdeen which have a vibrant offshore energy industry.
“We are clear that extending the windfall tax would make it even harder to attract investment that is badly needed to meet the UK’s energy needs.”
“From Aberdeen to East Anglia to Southampton and everywhere in between, it’s important that politicians of all parties recognise the critical role this sector is playing and can continue to play in keeping the nation’s lights on, homes warm and industries powered.”
Not if you invest the £billions raised into £millions needed to install grid tie solar on every home and business. It would also only cost a few hundred £million to install and link up local thermal mass sites as energy storage. We can do that with the materials we already have at hand. If the Fins can do it with a smaller budget imagine what we could achieve.
Cig packet maths for the solar… its about £140 for a 350w solar panel right now. 6 of those would handle a good deal of the individuals electric. Inverter is about £500-1000 depending on what the roof will take. Cabling is a few hundred. Workmanship/electrician usually leads to double the cost.
So lets say £4000 for every home. 10 million homes that would be roughly suitable. Thats £40bn for every one, but if you focus on the 10% that are REALLY struggling it comes right down thats £4bn. Its doable.
It gets even better if you just cover base loads. It would cover things like your freezer costs over the year, but more importantly it’d still have a dent in our emissions. Possibly more than Ecars.
Did they… Aye?
What energy security? I hear the government is planning for rolling blackouts in the winter. Really doesn’t sound like we have much energy security.
In other news, Turkeys vote against Christmas.
Thinly veiled threats that should be met with a “fuck off”.
Ok then lets nationalize and take their worries away!!
It would upset their excess profits and nothing else
So will riots and looting on the streets. When we are putting anti theft devices on cheese, the threads are beginning to snap.
>The trade body warned that imposing more sudden new taxes would “make the UK seem fiscally unstable and a riskier place to invest”, meaning investors would move overseas.
Then we should invest in it ourselves and keep all the profits. Where’s the risk? How many companies have gone bust investing in North Sea oil? It’s a licence to print money.
Nationalisation with no compensation please.
Bring back the North Sea empire