Fossil fuel giant Shell has been forced to reveal the true scale of planet-heating emissions from its Jackdaw gas field following a successful legal challenge by Greenpeace UK and Uplift.
In the additional information Shell has submitted to the government today, the oil company calculates Jackdaw’s total emissions, including those known as Scope 3, could be as high as 36 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent over the project’s lifetime. This is equivalent to the average emissions of around 20 million cars driving on UK roads for a year, according to analysis by Greenpeace UK.
The disclosure follows a successful legal case brought by environmental campaigners that quashed consent for the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields. The judge ruled they were unlawful as the approval process didn’t take into account emissions from burning the oil and gas extracted from those fields.
New gas from the North Sea will not lower energy bills for UK households as it’s sold on the global market.
Commenting on the report, Greenpeace UK’s co-executive director Areeba Hamid said:
“Now our legal win has forced Shell to reveal the sheer scale of pollution expected from Jackdaw, it’s looking more and more like a dud project for the UK. The gas from Jackdaw won’t take a penny off our energy bills but will generate as many emissions as 20 million cars driving on UK roads for a year. This will fuel more extreme weather like the devastating droughts, wildfires and floods we have seen this year, leaving ordinary people to pick up the bill. It’s decision-time for ministers: if they approve Jackdaw, it’ll be Shell’s profit, our loss.”
ENDS
Contact: Greenpeace UK news team on 020 7865 8255 and at press.uk@greenpeace.org