The recent Supreme Court ruling on the Finch case, concerning the Horse Hill onshore oil development, has led to significant changes in how Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) will be conducted for both onshore and offshore oil and gas projects. The court’s decision, issued on June 20, 2024, deemed the Surrey County Council’s approval of the Horse Hill oil extraction project unlawful due to the failure to assess the atmospheric emissions from the end-use burning of the extracted oil.
This ruling extends its implications beyond the original case, directly affecting offshore oil and gas projects under The Offshore Oil and Gas Exploration, Production, Unloading and Storage (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2020. The judgment mandates that EIAs must now include assessments of the emissions resulting from the eventual combustion of the extracted hydrocarbons.
In response to the ruling, the Government has announced it will no longer defend its position in judicial reviews related to the Jackdaw and Rosebank offshore oil fields. Additionally, the Government is deferring the assessment of all new and ongoing environmental statements related to oil and gas extraction and storage activities until new EIA guidance, expected by spring 2025, is developed and implemented.
A Government spokesperson commented, “This decision is an inevitable consequence of the Supreme Court’s findings. Continuing to assess environmental statements under the current guidelines could result in operators wasting time and money on submissions that will not meet the newly required standards.”
