The OGA mandates collaboration and cooperation when seeking to acquire or invest in offshore licences or infrastructure
OGA takes aim at Elgin-Franklin laggards
The UK upstream regulator is unhappy at partners in the field dragging their feet on the sale of ExxonMobil’s stake
The UK’s Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) has opened an investigation into the proposed sale by ExxonMobil of its stakes in certain UK North Sea fields to Norwegian private equity-backed Neo Energy. It is specifically focused on the speed at which partners in the Elgin-Franklin complex are agreeing to the major transferring its ownership there, amid concerns it is not progressing as quickly as expected. The consent of joint venture partners is required to effect transfer of the stake. But, as negotiations that began in February 2021 have not yet reached a conclusion, the OGA has opened an investigation under its Sanction Procedure. It has previously voiced concerns on “transaction drag and the ch
Also in this section
9 April 2026
The April 2026 issue of Petroleum Economist is out now!
9 April 2026
Offshore operators are working through an FID backlog as the rig market consolidates, helped by improving project economics and a renewed security drive
2 April 2026
Alongside a rapid continued build-out of renewables, China’s latest five-year plan stresses the value of domestic hydrocarbon production for energy security and calls for increased Russian gas imports
2 April 2026
The government is taking important steps to revive domestic production, lift investment and benefit from the geopolitical crisis even if more needs to be done in the longer term
