A tale of two regulatory landscapes: the UK and Norway

The stark contrasts between the UK and Norway demonstrate how policy stability can shape the long-term trajectory of a mature basin

The UK and Norway share the geology of the North Sea, but their oil and gas regulatory climates could scarcely be more different: where Norway provides consistency and long-term certainty, the UK has veered through cycles of policy instability from government to government. Mixed signals UK authorities have sent very mixed signals about the future of North Sea oil and gas over recent years. Just a decade ago, the government was strongly promoting investment, for example through tax allowances that spurred the development of several 100m bl projects. Then in 2019, the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) regulator temporarily paused licensing to assess whether its policies were in line with