TURNING the North Sea transition into a “renewables powerhouse” must be a “national mission” for both UK and Scottish governments, according to a taskforce.

Philip Rycroft, independent North Sea Transition Taskforce chair, made the remarks less than a week after Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) argued the basin could produce around half of the UK’s oil and gas needs if the Labour government ditched its opposition to new projects in British waters.

Accepting the government line as a “political decision,” Mr Rycroft argued it was “not an economic one,” insisting it “makes absolute sense to take what you can from the North Sea” rather than import.

Urging ministers to “act now to restore investor confidence” or risk production falling faster than renewables are able to take up the slack, he called on the Westminster government to “create a powerful, ministerially led committee” consisting of industry leaders, unions and ministers of both UK and Scottish governments.

“This is an absolute no-brainer,” he said.

“We have the resources, we need those resources and we can extract them at a lower carbon intensity.

“We need to be optimising what we take from the North Sea as we then move through the transition to what will ultimately be a renewable future.”

Slamming the comments as “just more of the same from the oil industry,” Friends of the Earth Scotland’s Rosie Hampton said: “The oil industry has dictated and undermined the terms of the energy transition for too long.

“Politicians should instead be talking to the workers and the communities about what their needs are from the move away from oil and gas.

“This means paid retraining and financial support for those who need it, alongside investing in wind manufacturing to create good, local jobs that serve the energy needs of our communities, not the profits of industry bosses.”

A Department of Energy and Net Zero spokesperson said: “We have already taken rapid steps in delivering a fair and orderly transition in the North Sea, with the biggest-ever investment in offshore wind and up to £21.7 billion in funding over the next 25 years for carbon capture and storage and hydrogen projects.”

A Scottish government spokesperson said: “We have consistently called on the UK government to approach decisions for North Sea oil and gas projects on rigorously evidence-led, case by case, basis — with climate compatibility and energy security key considerations.”