The Glasgow-based Oceanic Group is known for holding glitzy ceremonies across the UK, Ireland and the United States, but multiple former staff allege its ‘rogue’ boss failed to pay them the wages they were due.
The UK Government has announced that the controversial Jackdaw gas field project will go ahead.
This has been the source of significant debate, with some campaigners arguing that the climate impact of burning gas extracted from Jackdaw is incompatible with the UK’s environmental targets. The government says gas from the new field will increase the nation’s energy resilience.
Climate campaigners and online commentators have questioned claims over the positive impact that the field will have on jobs and energy prices.
When the project was green-lighted, the UK Government stated that Jackdaw would “create 27 new direct jobs”. This comes from an environmental impact assessment released by Jackdaw’s owner, Adura, which is in turn controlled by Shell and a Norwegian government-owned firm called Equinor.
The document says the field will create 27 “new new full time equivalent (FTE) roles required for the Jackdaw-specific activities”. The company also claimed that it would bring a “consistent level of employment averaging at nearly 500 jobs a year in direct, indirect and induced employment”.
However, the company’s breakdown of these jobs includes 273 existing jobs on the nearby Shearwater North Sea platform, which will be the ‘host installation’ for Jackdaw. This means that gas drilled in the new field will be sent to the Shearwater platform to be processed and brought onshore. Adura says the 273 existing jobs will be “safeguarded” by the new Jackdaw expansion, and that the Shearwater platform will continue to operate for longer, but they are not newly created roles. The estimate of 500 jobs also includes jobs estimated to be protected and increased in the supply chain, not directly for the operation of Jackdaw.
The relatively small number of new jobs created by Jackdaw is down to the facility being largely unmanned and remotely operated. It is connected to an existing hub, the Shearwater platform. This makes it easier and less labour-intensive to operate effectively.
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In an interview with BBC Breakfast, the UK government’s energy secretary Miatta Fahnbulleh said: “This project does not have an impact on affordability and bills'. She also reiterated this statement on BBC Radio Scotland, stating that Jackdaw “won’t lower energy bills this winter”.
This view is shared by many energy market analysts and points to the way the gas markets work.
While Jackdaw will increase the amount of gas production in the UK and supply customers here, the public do not feel the benefit because gas prices are effectively set by international markets. This means prices paid by UK consumers are primarily decided by wholesale prices in the European gas market.
The UK also gets around half of its gas supply from Europe, primarily from Norway, rather than domestic fields.
Prices for gas have increased dramatically in recent years due to various factors, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the 2026 conflict between Iran and the US/Israel.
This insecurity led to soaring wholesale prices, impacting households in the UK and around Europe.
At its peak, estimates have suggested that Jackdaw could account for 6 to 6.5 per cent of the gas produced in the North Sea. While theoretically increases in gas production should see prices go down in the general European market, Jackdaw’s production is not large enough to have a significant effect, say analysts.
According to a report by Oxford Smith School, even if the UK maximised oil and gas extraction from the North Sea, it would only reduce bills by £16 to £82 per year. Estimates from the North Sea Transition Authority suggest there are the equivalent of about 2.5 billion “proven and probable” barrels that could be extracted.
Over its lifetime, Jackdaw is estimated to produce gas with an energy equivalent to around 40 million barrels of oil.UK customers are particularly exposed to fluctuations in wholesale gas prices. This is partly because 85 per cent of UK households still rely on gas boilers to heat their homes. This is far more than most comparable countries.
The price of electricity is usually set by the most expensive source of available power generation need . This is usually gas, which is more expensive to produce than many other fuels.
The price of electricity is usually set by the most expensive source of power generation needed to meet demand. This is usually gas, which is more expensive to produce than many other fuels.
While most of the UK’s energy may be produced more cheaply by renewable sources, gas is still needed to meet the demand. This means that overall electricity prices usually follow gas prices in the UK, even when a lot of electricity is being produced by cheaper sources such as solar or wind power.
Because the UK imports a significant amount of its energy, it is exposed to shocks in the market and disruptions in the supply chain. Disruptions in global supply caused by the conflicts in Ukraine and Iran have led to calls for the UK to produce more of its own supply of oil and gas. The logic being that the country would be more resilient to these sudden changes.
The UK’s energy system is considered to be one of the most reliable in the world, and there have not been any nationwide power outages since the creation of the national grid 75 years ago.
According to the Institute for Government, increased domestic production of gas could have a small impact by providing additional tax receipts when global prices spike, which would slightly help the government in mitigating the economic disruption in supply. However, economic impacts are “likely to be small and would not arrive quickly”.
Analysis from research group Nesta concluded that additional North Sea Oil licensing such as Jackdaw is unlikely to significantly improve the UK’s energy resilience.
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Alastair leads our fact-checking arm, The Ferret Fact Service, and writes about disinformation and conspiracy theories. He also delivers training on media literacy and spotting disinformation. He spends his free time at gigs in basements.
