Offshore Energies Magazine - Issue 55 Spring 2023

News

New licensing rounds, profits & security pique public interest most in 2022 Most of last year's headline news in the national press was about the net-zero emissions target, seen through the twin lenses of new field developments and the higher profits tax

From the UK energy desk editor's point of view, last year was crammed with UK oil and gas events – and with many strong opinions about those events. The cost of living crisis, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and energy security vied with the national and global problem of combating climate change – an expensive proposition on top of the high prices induced by energy scarcity. Against that background, decisions about new field licences, the consequences of improbably high retail prices, how to tax profits upstream and national energy security were all big – and often emotionally charged – stories over the course of last year, according to analysis by media monitoring agency Vuelio. For some media outlets, they were all signs that the UK should rely less on fossil fuels and accelerate the transition. For others, security of supply was the crucial angle: it was a sign the UK had to minimise the consequences of the war, likely to last years, by preparing more thoroughly. "Support UK jobs, economy and skills" was the most visible key message of 2022. The more significant prominence came in the second half of the year, as OEUK’s criticisms of the tax and the need to boost domestic production of oil and gas came across loud and clear in this message in the first half. This would mean tighter environmental management, better asset stewardship, and less carbon-intensive production.

Key Message Penet rat ion ey message p netration

UK jobs, economy and skills

76%

Secure and reliable energy Committed to safe operations The safe and responsible decommissioning of… Sustainable energy Technological and scientific leadership Diversity and inclusion

22%

9%

7%

6%

3%

2%

Source: Vuelio

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

May was OEUK’s most successful month in terms of both reach and volume of citations, with 2bn impressions recorded as a result of 3,000 articles ( see glossary ). Leading the fray to this day is the UK government's windfall tax, which Rishi Sunak, as chancellor, had initially ruled out under the Boris Johnson premiership. That won him plaudits from the North Sea Transition Authority’s chair, a former Conservative energy minister, Tim Eggar. But it is now a fact of life – and with Jeremy Hunt the incumbent in Number 11, at a higher rate than ever. OEUK achieved headline prominence in wide-reaching media channels last year, including BBC Online, as it campaigned against the Energy Profit Levy. CEO Deirdre Michie wrote an open letter to the business secretary saying the tax would put investment at risk, endanger thousands of supply chain jobs and undermine energy security targets. Further comments from Ms Michie on eco activists undermining investor confidence and hindering the progression to net zero also resulted in headline coverage. September saw a second spike for reach in 2022, as the number of impressions neared May's at 19.9bn, despite almost 60% fewer articles. Coverage of offshore wind achieved high levels of syndication in articles with high reach. This surge focused on OEUK calls for the government to "rapidly accelerate" investments in the North Sea by speeding up production and expanding offshore wind. Articles also

Top Publ icat ions (Reach and Volume) o p li r v

Mail Online BBC Online MSN Ireland BBC Scotland News… MSN UK The Independent Express (Online) Telegraph (Online) MSN Greece msn TradingView

53

29

12

20

137

42

25

44

3 20

6 11

Reuters Online MSN Venezuela MSN Español MSN LatinoAmerica MSN Spain Sky News (Online) Yahoo! News UK & Ireland

1 1 1 1 13 120 21 7

The Times (Online) MSN New Zealand

0bn

10bn

20bn

Source: Vuelio

Glossary Reach : Total number of people who see your content. Better understood as opportunities to see and hear. Volume : Total number of pieces of news articles, be they online content, newspaper articles or broadcast pieces. Sentiment : How positive or negative the news article was about OEUK/industry Prominence : Where the story appeared in the article, from "Headline" down to "passing mention" .

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