Adura links North Sea expansion plans to UK government decisions

Adura, the joint venture between Equinor and Shell, has stated that its potential investments in North Sea assets are contingent upon clear signals from the UK government. The decision process is particularly dependent on regulatory outcomes for the Rosebank and Jackdaw projects. Philippe Mathieu, Equinor’s executive vice president for exploration and production international, explained that the company is evaluating developments that would not have been prioritised by either partner individually due to their specific scale and nature.

Speaking at the ONS conference in Stavanger, Mathieu noted that any future projects under the Adura banner would represent smaller opportunities. This contrasts with the major new and tieback fields that Equinor is currently pursuing in Norway. He indicated that Equinor’s broader international oil and gas development strategy will primarily focus on the Atlantic Margin, including operations offshore Brazil. In the UK, new legislation will permit tiebacks to existing fields and infrastructure, although new field exploration remains banned.

The UK government is currently reviewing decisions on Rosebank in the West of Shetland and Jackdaw in the North Sea, following court rulings that quashed their licences. Mathieu emphasised the need to await signals from the new government regarding go or no-go decisions on these two major projects. He described the combination of these assets as having very strong industrial logic, a position reinforced after the Labour government extended the terms of the energy profits levy. The formation of Adura allows for an optimised operating model suited to the realities of the mature UK shelf.

Mathieu added that the strategic assessment includes connecting smaller pockets of resources to existing infrastructure throughout the portfolio. However, he stressed that the immediate priority remains getting Rosebank to start production. Adura holds interests in ten North Sea producing oil and gas assets. These include operated sites such as the Gannet complex, Nelson, Penguins, the Shearwater installation, and Victory in the Greater Laggan Area west of Shetland, as well as the Mariner field, which was formerly operated solely by Equinor.