FirstFT: UK fires starting gun on North Sea oil and gas explorations

UK regulators today fired the starting gun on a new round of licences enabling companies to explore for oil and gas in the North Sea, as climate campaigners threatened a legal challenge.

The North Sea Transition Authority is expected to award more than 100 permits to companies by the end of June as the government seeks to bolster Britain’s energy self-sufficiency, partly by extracting more fossil fuels from the North Sea, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

But environmental group Greenpeace claimed the licensing round was potentially “unlawful” and indicated it would try to launch a legal challenge.

Climate campaigners have said the government’s efforts to secure more oil and gas from the North Sea conflicts with its commitment to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Licensing rounds used to be a near-annual event. But a pause was introduced after the last round in 2019-20 as the government promised to design a “climate compatibility check” to ensure that permit awards were “consistent with the UK’s wider climate objectives”.

Thanks for reading FirstFT Europe/Africa. Let us know your thoughts on the newsletter at firstft@ft.com. — Jennifer

Five more stories in the news

1. US: ‘nothing off table’ in response to Opec+ oil cuts The White House said no action was off the table a day after the Saudi Arabia-led cartel unveiled sharp cuts to global oil supply, as it considered new releases from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve to contain energy prices.

2. EU and Norway agree ‘joint tools’ to tackle gas crisis Oslo said it would work with Brussels to develop tools aimed at reducing high gas prices ahead of a looming energy crisis this winter. Norway has replaced Russia as the EU’s biggest supplier of gas since the invasion of Ukraine.

• More on energy: The UK is poised to sign a deal with an EU energy partnership it left after Brexit, in the first result of warming ties with Brussels.

3. London’s most expensive home ‘owned by Evergrande founder’ The 45-room mansion overlooking Hyde Park is owned by Hui Ka Yan, the head of the embattled Chinese property group and formerly China’s richest man, according to people familiar with the secretive £210mn sale.

4. BoE says £65bn gilt intervention averted financial ‘spiral’ The UK central bank defended last week’s emergency intervention in the government debt market in the wake of Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s “mini” Budget, saying it stepped in to prevent a £50bn fire sale of gilts by pension funds that would have taken Britain to the brink of a financial crisis.

• Opinion: The turmoil in gilts shows that governments elsewhere will have to work harder to keep markets on their side, writes Katie Martin.

5. Gotham and Portsea founders join forces in short selling fund Two of the biggest names in short selling are joining forces to launch a new hedge fund next year, betting that a downturn in markets will help them replicate successful wagers against companies such as Wirecard and Steinhoff.

How closely did you follow the news this week? Take our quiz to find out.

The days ahead

EU Prague summit Member states will discuss limiting energy price rises at an informal European Council meeting. A growing number of countries have backed a cap on gas prices.

Economic data Jobs will be the focus in the US, where the labour department’s September payroll report is expected to show slower hiring in September and the unemployment rate near a record low of 3.7 per cent. The UK publishes its quarterly productivity overview, the Halifax monthly house price index and a monthly employment report. Italy has August retail sales.

Corporate earnings JD Wetherspoon releases its fiscal year report.

Scottish National Party conference Scotland’s largest political party begins its 88th annual gathering in Aberdeen tomorrow. First minister Nicola Sturgeon is set to deliver a keynote speech.

UK train strike Another 24-hour walkout will be held tomorrow by RMT union railway workers in a dispute over jobs, pay and working conditions.

Elections It’s another weekend of polls, starting with a general election in Lesotho today in which outgoing prime minister Moeketsi Majoro is not running. Austrians cast ballots in presidential elections on Sunday, when incumbent Alexander Van der Bellen defends his six-year term. Germany holds a state election in Lower Saxony the same day.

What else we’re reading

Where climate change isn’t global: auditing Auditors have highlighted climate change as a challenging issue in vetting some companies’ accounts — but not consistently. It could be that auditors, given a choice, are avoiding a hot-button issue while they still can, writes Helen Thomas.

How the cost of living crisis is squeezing UK households One-fifth of Britons say they are being forced to borrow more to meet their payments, with half unable to save at all, as households are feeling the pain of the cost of living crisis. Explore how surging inflation is shaping spending and borrowing decisions in this series of charts.

Iranian students are shaping anti-regime protests For the first time in years, Iran’s universities have re-emerged as the centre of outrage over the death in custody of a woman arrested for allegedly violating the Islamic dress code. Despite crackdowns, the protests have continued to spread.

Time for investors to learn a new game If anything is clear from recent turmoil in the UK government bond market and gyrations in sterling, the times are seriously out of joint. What can we do about it? Buy property, consider green investments and delay retirement, John Plender writes.

Best US cities for foreign business, ranked Miami has been ranked the best city in the US for foreign multinationals to do business, in the inaugural Investing in America ranking compiled by the Financial Times and Nikkei. Last year, the Florida city pulled in the most foreign direct investment per capita of any place studied.

Fashion

Consider sneakers the footwear equivalent of Facebook: somewhat passé now that they’re pervasively co-opted by baby boomers and billionaires. Millennials and Gen Z are retiring their trainers to revisit formal shoes — even with leisurewear.