The Draupner platform in the UK North Sea
North Sea production to see minor boost
Taxation strategies in UK and Norway to continue to play important role for a region in which significant volumes of medium sour have offset the loss of similar quality Russian barrels and balanced the influx of US light sweet grades
North Sea oil output is set to rise in the next couple of years, briefly stalling longer-term structural decline in the mature basin. Crude and NGLs from the two major producing nations, Norway and the UK, are expected to rise by 7% in 2025 compared with this year, and a further 1.6% in 2026, to peak at around 2.94m b/d, with Norway doing most of the heavy lifting, according to forecasts from Argus Consulting, a division of price reporting agency Argus Media. Investment in the Norwegian offshore sector has been boosted by a temporary tax regime brought in by the government in mid-2020, designed to give the country’s economy a lift following the outbreak of Covid. This has stimulated activity
Also in this section
4 December 2025
Time is running out for Lukoil and Rosneft to divest international assets that will be mostly rendered useless to them when the US sanctions deadline arrives in mid-December
3 December 2025
Aramco’s pursuit of $30b in US gas partnerships marks a strategic pivot. The US gains capital and certainty; Saudi Arabia gains access, flexibility and a new export future
2 December 2025
The interplay between OPEC+, China and the US will define oil markets throughout 2026
1 December 2025
The North African producer’s first bidding round in almost two decades is an important milestone but the recent extension suggests a degree of trepidation
