Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will have discussions with (a) ministerial colleagues in the Department for Transport, (b) operators, (c) the offshore oil and gas industry and (d) trade unions on the safety of offshore helicopter transport operations.
Answered by Graham Stuart
My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State meets regularly with her ministerial colleagues and other stakeholders, including the offshore oil and gas trade association, Offshore Energies UK (OEUK), to discuss a wide range of subjects.
Officials also meet regularly with OEUK, who are working closely on offshore safety issues with helicopter operators, oil and gas operators and contractors, offshore trade unions, the pilots’ union BALPA, the relevant regulators (Health and Safety Executive and the Civil Aviation Authority) and trade associations.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent discussions she has had with the Department for Transport on the regulation of helicopter transport services for offshore oil and gas workers.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The regulation of helicopter transport services for offshore oil and gas workers is a matter for other bodies, such as the Civil Aviation Authority. Officials are in regular contact with Offshore Energies UK (OEUK), which engages directly on this issue on behalf of the offshore oil and gas sector with relevant bodies such as the Health and Safety Executive, the Civil Aviation Authority, helicopter operators, oil and gas operators and contractors, offshore trade unions, and the pilots’ union BALPA
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Transport on seafarer jobs supported by the North Sea (a) oil and gas decommissioning and (b) offshore wind sectors; and if she will make an estimate of the number of such jobs supported by those sectors in each year to 2030.
Answered by Graham Stuart
My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State discusses a range of issues with my Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State for Transport, including offshore wind, and oil and gas.
The North Sea Transition Deal will support the transition of existing parts of the oil and gas workforce to ensure that people and skills are transferrable across the wider energy sector.
The Offshore Wind Industry Council estimate in their Skills Intelligence Report, published June 2023, that the offshore wind sector is expected to grow to support over 100,000 jobs by 2030.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the British energy security strategy, published on 7 April 2022, if she will make an estimate of the number of (a) fixed and (b) floating offshore wind turbines that would need to be installed in the UK's exclusive economic zone in each financial year from 2024-25 to 2027-28 inclusive to meet the Government's ambition of generating up to 50 gigawatts of power from offshore wind by 2030.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The UK currently has 14.7GW of operational offshore wind capacity and 7.7GW under construction. The number of turbines that will need to be installed annually to meet the ambition of up to 50GW by 2030 including up to 5GW of floating wind will depend upon the power of the turbines that projects deploy.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will have discussions with (a) the Secretary of State for Transport and (b) industry representatives on the planned availability of heavy-lift vessels for work in the North Sea (i) oil and gas decommissioning and (ii) offshore wind sectors in each year to 2030.
Answered by Graham Stuart
My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State discusses a range of issues with my Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Transport, including offshore wind, and oil and gas.
My Hon Friend the Minister for Nuclear and Renewables (Andrew Bowie) will meet with the Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC) on a regular basis to discuss sector issues such as supply chain strategy and the Industrial Growth Plan.
In addition, I meet regularly with the oil and gas sector, including through the North Sea Transition Forum, which includes industry stakeholders from the supply chain.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how much the oil and gas industry’s annual expenditure on decommissioning was in each financial year between 2013-14 and 2022-23.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) publishes estimates for the upstream oil and gas industry’s annual expenditure on decommissioning by calendar year up to 2022 on its website.
The information can be found here: https://www.nstauthority.co.uk/data-and-insights/insights-and-analysis/income-and-expenditure/
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the impact of Storm Babet on operations in the offshore oil and gas industry.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The UK’s offshore oil and gas industry is well-prepared for extreme weather through its long history of North Sea operations, with regular winter preparedness workshops held between regulators, industry trade bodies, and their members.
Storm Babet had a limited impact on offshore oil and gas industry operations overall. One reported incident involved the Stena Spey semi-submersible, which lost four of its eight anchors. The Government is aware that another offshore installation lost an anchor. Additionally, storm-related disruption to helicopter flights impacted workers for up to four days, although flights have since returned to normal operation.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of the number of offshore oil and gas workers that were affected by the suspension of helicopter transport services as a result of Storm Babet.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Department is unable to estimate the number of offshore oil and gas workers that were affected by the suspension of helicopter flights because of Storm Babet. The Government is aware that some workers were impacted for up to four days, but also understands that flights offshore have since returned to normal operation. There are approximately 9,000 workers offshore at any given time.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of the number of offshore oil and gas workers that were affected by the suspension of helicopter transport services as a result of Storm Babet.
Answered by Graham Stuart
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the impact of Storm Babet on operations in the offshore oil and gas industry.
Answered by Graham Stuart
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.