Outlook 2022: A ‘just’ or ‘just in time’ transition for the UK North Sea?

For over 200 hundred years, the world has relied on fossil fuels for affordable, reliable energy. How does it get to an economy based on greener energy without triggering an adverse reaction?

This year saw dramatic manifestations in the UK of the delicate nature of energy supply and demand. A mere suspicion of potential fuel shortages resulted in panic buying of petrol. And a slew of energy suppliers went bust due to record wholesale gas prices juxtaposed with a government-mandated energy price cap. There are varying schools of thought on how to move forward as we go into 2022. One is to stop investment in fossil fuels immediately and live with the consequences, with any disruption justified to expedite green energy development as a matter of necessity. The other is a more conservative—or perhaps pragmatic, given the underlying market structures—approach, looking at the forecast