Campaigners from Fossil Free London staged a demonstration outside the Bank of England on Monday 28 July, dressed as robbers emblazoned with the Norwegian flag in protest of the “daylight robbery” the Rosebank oil field would be for the UK public, if re-approved by the Labour government:

Rosebank: daylight robbery

Rosebank is the largest undeveloped oil field in the North Sea. If developed, it would release an amount of emissions equal to those produced by all 28 low-income countries in the world.

In January, a court overturned the 2023 approval of Rosebank, deeming it unlawful. The UK Government will now decide to re-approve or reject the field, once owner Equinor has re-applied for permission to develop the field.

Chanting “Rosebank Oil is a scam, Labour do you give a damn?”, the campaigners carried loot bags labelled “UK Tax Payer Money” filled with fake money from a makeshift vault, holding placards stating “£1.5 Billion for Norway, Net Loss for UK”:

The UK public is predicted to cover over 80% of the costs of developing Rosebank, due to generous tax reliefs that allow oil and gas companies to write off most of their development costs before profits are taxed. Norwegian state-owned oil company, Equinor – which owns the majority stake in Rosebank – is expected to profit up to £1.5 billion, along with its partner, Ithaca.

Despite some tax income from profits of Rosebank – most of which would come after 2030 – the UK Government is expected to incur a net loss of over £250 million.

The Norwegian government has a sovereign wealth fund that is largely funded by state-owned companies like Equinor, currently worth over $1.3 trillion that is reinvested towards the country’s public environmental, social and governance issues.

A con

The profits from the prospective Rosebank oil field are expected to contribute to this, while the UK public are likely to be worse off from the deal. Rosebank’s main offshore vessel will even be constructed in Dubai, reducing the potential for increased jobs from the field in the UK.

Robin Wells, Director of Fossil Free London said:

It’s plain and simple, Rosebank is daylight robbery. If allowed, Equinor – a Norwegian oil giant – will rob us blind, hoarding massive profits for themselves and leaving behind nothing but a trail of climate chaos and a net loss for us. The UK government needs to stop this carbon bomb, and act in the interests of the general public. Scrap Rosebank, and invest in a just transition.

Featured image and additional images via Fossil Free London

By The Canary

This post was originally published on Canary.