SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon at the party's 2019 conference
Why the SNP is wrong about Cambo
Scotland’s largest party stands accused of failing to see the big picture on the UK oil and gas industry’s contribution to the energy transition
An August letter from Nicola Sturgeon, leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) and first minister of Scotland, to UK prime minister Boris Johnson urging his Westminster administration to reassess UK continental shelf (UKCS) projects that have production licences but have yet to commence development has sent a chill through a UK oil and gas industry largely centred on her northern fiefdom. But influential voices are emerging to make the case as to why she is mistaken. Sturgeon’s U-turn on projects such as the West of Shetland Cambo field is largely naked politicking. The SNP previously emphasised the future role of ‘Scotland’s oil’ in bolstering the economy of a post-independence state, a
Also in this section
9 January 2026
The Latin American producer’s crude prospects rely on a multi-pronged approach where even the relatively easy wins will take considerable time, effort and cost
9 January 2026
While many forecasters are reasserting the importance of oil and gas, petrostates should be under no illusion things are changing, and faster than they might think
8 January 2026
Indonesia and Malaysia are at the dawn of breathtaking digital capabilities. Their energy infrastructure must keep up with their ambitions
8 January 2026
The next five years will be critical for the North Sea, and it will be policy not geology that will decide the basin’s future
