Denmark puts 2050 date on end to North Sea oil & gas extraction

Denmark has announced its intention to stop all oil and gas exploration in its North Sea territory by 2050, putting pressure on neighbouring oil producers, such as the UK and Norway, to follow suit.

Almost half a century after the country began production, the parliament in Copenhagen voted to cancel its latest round of licencing as well as all future tenders giving companies the right to find and produce oil and gas in its waters.

The decision received cross-party support from left-wing parties and the centre-right opposition and makes Denmark the first major producer of fossil fuels to announce an end date for extraction.

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"We are now putting an end to the fossil era," said Danish climate minister, Dan Jorgensen, describing the agreement as a "new, green course for the North Sea" that will be of benefit to everyone.

The country has often modelled itself as a global leader in climate policy and is pushing ahead with some of the most ambitious climate targets in the world, aiming to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 70% by 2030 and reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

The debate around the future of Danish oil production has been high on the political agenda since the start of the year when the government announced it would postpone the latest round of tenders.

Following the parliamentary vote, that round is cancelled and the terms for companies currently operating in Denmark's part of the North Sea basin are set to change, the minister said, adding that the decision will cost the state around €1.7 billion.

Denmark produced around 83,000 barrels of crude oil and another 21,000 of oil equivalent in 2020. By comparison, the UK and Norway produced about 1.8 million barrels in 2019.

The decision was hailed by Greenpeace as "a historic turning point" and a "huge victory for the climate" which should help to build momentum to end future extraction in the North Sea.

"There is no doubt that Norway and the United Kingdom, which have even greater oil production in the North Sea than in Denmark, will now be put under extra pressure to also deliver on their international commitments to slow down the climate crisis," said Helene Hagel from Greenpeace Denmark.

"This is hopefully the first step towards a total phasing out of fossil production in the entire North Sea," she added.

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The decision was not criticised by some climate activists, however, including Greta Thunberg, as not going far enough, pointing out that the country has still got three decades to go during which time extraction can continue.

However, the Danish climate minister said that ending exploration in 2030 or 2040 would have meant the country was obliged to compensate companies for the investment they already made in drilling and equipment.

The cost of an oil drilling platform can be between €130m and €1.3bn, and there are about 50 in Denmark, Jorgensen warned.

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