Neptune to spend £800 million-plus to help secure UK energy supplies

Neptune Energy plans to spend more than $1 billion (£810 million) over the next five years helping to secure energy supplies for the UK.

The firm, which currently operates around 11 per cent of the UK’s gas supply from fields in the UK Southern North Sea and the Norwegian North Sea, said its investment would also accelerate the transition to net zero.

Chief executive Pete Jones said: “Securing lower carbon energy supplies is a national priority for the UK and Neptune has an important role to play. The government’s energy security strategy gives clarity on the key role of the North Sea in providing this security and its importance in the energy transition.

“While the UK represents just 10 per cent of Neptune’s production, it is an important growth area for us, with investment options in the North Sea that will not only increase the UK’s energy security, but also support jobs and boost the supply chain.”

In the last three years, the firm has spent more than $500m securing energy supplies for the UK - equivalent to $3 for every $1 Neptune has earned in the UK. In addition, the company has spent more than $500m developing new projects around its Gjøa hub in Norway, which exports gas to the UK via the St Fergus gas terminal.

Since 2018, it has contributed more than $1.8bn to UK GDP and supported an average of 3,270 jobs each year. For every Neptune employee in the UK in 2021, around 18 jobs were supported elsewhere in the domestic economy, the firm added.