Jersey Oil & Gas has secured approval from the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) to extend the second term of its P2170 ‘Verbier’ licence on the UK Continental Shelf.
The new expiry date of 28 February 2027 grants an additional six months on the licence and brings its schedule in line with the company’s P2498 ‘Buchan Horst’ licence, both situated within the Greater Buchan Area (GBA).
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The P2170 licence is made up of blocks 20/5b and 21/1d, for which NEO NEXT+ ENERGY is the operator with 50%. Jersey Oil & Gas holds a 20% stake and Serica Energy owns the remaining 30%.
The second term of a UK offshore oil and gas licence sets a time frame for licensees to seek Field Development Plan approval and precedes the third term of production.
According to Jersey Oil & Gas, aligning the durations of the Verbier and Buchan licences supports the authorities’ drive for an integrated Area Plan.
The company noted that the joint venture (JV) partners have always considered an area-focused approach as dependent on phased development, starting with the Buchan resource.
A request to similarly extend the Buchan licence’s second term will be submitted to the NSTA later this year, Jersey Oil & Gas stated.
This application will present an updated development schedule and is expected to include another extension bid for Verbier.
Jersey Oil & Gas highlighted that industry uncertainty driven by policy shifts from successive UK governments had slowed progress on the Buchan project, prompting a broader review of possible development options and a lengthened timeline.
While earlier plans proposed using the Western Isles floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, the company indicated that market conditions require further evaluation of alternative production solutions.
The NSTA has asked the GBA JV partners to continue assessing the potential for connecting additional nearby resources into a Buchan-based production hub.
It has also requested that third-party resource owners be involved as part of a wider integrated plan for the area.
Activity at the project is expected to continue into 2027. The JV partners are currently finalising the work schedule and budget for next year to support ongoing progress and licence obligations.
Jersey Oil & Gas CEO Andrew Benitz said: “We are pleased to receive a licence extension on our existing Verbier licence, which now aligns the timing of both of our GBA licences, as we continue to work on engineering the optimal development solution for the area.
“As we have always highlighted, there is an exciting opportunity to unlock the resources across the area through the development of a Buchan-led production hub.
“We continue to urge the government to work constructively with industry on critical oil and gas development approvals and bring an early end to the Energy Profits Levy, which has unquestionably led to a significant slowdown in investment activity.”
