UK court rejects challenge to the issuing of oil exploration licenses

The High Court of London ruled that Britain's decision on Friday to grant more than 20 oil and gas exploration licenses was legal. This ruling dismissed a challenge from campaigners who claimed the government had failed to take into account the effects on climate change.

Oceana UK, a marine conservation organization in the UK, brought a case against 28 licences issued by the previous British government on May 20, 2024. It also claimed that the licenses did not assess the risks to marine life.

The British energy department, which had not defended similar cases following a Supreme Court ruling in 2024, opposed the case. It said that the licences were only for early exploration. Further assessments would then be conducted before any oil or gas was produced.

Oceana's case was heard in court in March and was the latest environmental campaigner to use the law to combat climate change.

CLIMATE CHANGE AFFECT

These licences, issued in the North Sea Transition Authority oil and gas licensing rounds, grant holders the right of search for fossil fuels.

Oceana's attorneys stated in court documents that exploration licenses do not lead to production. However, they did state that the licences provide "a clear path towards extracting oil or gas".

Zoe Leventhal, the lawyer for the company, said that the impact on the larger area should be taken into consideration at the licensing phase when the authorities are able to assess "all sites in all areas at the same moment".

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero in Britain, however, claimed that it was impossible to determine the impact of climate change until the production scale was known.

Judge Tim Mould dismissed Oceana’s challenge, but said that any adverse impact of developments on marine habitats had to be evaluated at every stage.

Hugo Tagholm said that the government should make it clear, as they did in court, that granting consent to production does not mean that existing licences will be honored.

Oceana's lawsuit comes after the British Government dropped its defense in other cases after the Supreme Court ruled that planning authorities must take into account the effects of burning fossil fuels, not just the extraction, when approving project.

The approval of two huge North Sea oil fields was subsequently overturned by the Scottish Court in January. This cast doubt on the future for new fossil fuel projects. (Reporting and editing by Kate Holton, Alison Williams and Michael Holden)

(source: Reuters)