Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-03-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent assessment she has made of the availability of bank loans for oil exploration companies which operate in the North Sea.

Andrea Leadsom

Banks must make commercial decisions with regard to lending. The Government’s clear view is that the UK’s offshore oil and gas industry has a bright future and will remain a significant and important industry and energy supplier for the UK. The Government’s confidence in the sector was underlined in the tax reform package outlined by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Budget , worth £1 billion. In the Budget, the Chancellor also announced that the government is willing to consider proposals for using the UK Guarantees scheme for infrastructure where it could help secure new investment in assets of strategic importance to maximising economic recovery of oil and gas. Any proposals would also need to meet the existing criteria of the scheme, including in relation to commerciality and financial credibility