In my head the world narrative is this:
The US had a headstart in the Wind/Solar race, but China and Russia tied the US’s shoelaces by empowering their Oil companies, and China leapt off to an amazing lead in this new global market that they are dominating.
Europe knows who the winner of this race will be, and Germany is trading happily with China. The UK is on the fence with their “special” relationship with the US and the clear energy winner, China.
UK is attempting to bend over backwards for both (a rubbery spine is a must), but the energy/fossil-fuel giants here ultimately see the writing on the wall and know that China is the future. They want to get in early on any deals that are being struck once they bail from oil: early stock in Wind/Solar companies, guaranteed supply contracts, golden parachutes.
If the government can guarantee them some concessions during this energy pivot with the odd 100 grand here and there, then they can sleep a little better at night
Hasn’t really went well for them, considering:
- the big expansion in renewable energy projects
- their calls to legalise fracking being denied
- the government upholding their commitment to ban new north sea drilling
- the coal plant in Cumbria being scrapped
- the windfall tax on energy companies going ahead as planned
Womp womp
Would they not also be lobbying for ICE cars/trucks? Or would that be counted differently? At the moment we have had the big positive step of moving the date back to 2030, at the expense of more flexibility around hybrids (which are shit for the environment) and reducing the tapering of ICE sales.
You can’t substantiate this without knowing what policies might have been had there not been lobbying.
We know policies from their manifesto, and we can look at our dropping fossil fuel usage.
What exactly is this government doing to assist fossil fuels? I can’t think of a single thing.
The likes of Just Stop Oil want us to simply turn off the taps in the North Sea, creating the same chaos for working people that they do on our roads. It’s contemptible.
- Kier Starmer, 2023
The government is likely to approve new drilling in the Rosebank oil field.
