Oil Giant Shell Pulls Out of Cambo Field Off UK

LONDON (Sputnik) – Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has announced it will not move forward with investment in the Cambo field off the north coast of the United Kingdom, in a decision environmentalists saw on Friday as the end of the controversial project.

In a statement released on Thursday evening, the company said that "after comprehensive screening of the proposed Cambo development, we have concluded the economic case for investment in this project is not strong enough at this time, as well as having the potential for delays."

Although Shell, which had 30% stake in the field, added that "continued investment in oil and gas in the UK remains critical to the country’s energy security," the announcement has been celebrated by environmental groups that have been campaigning for the closure of the oil field in the North Sea.

"Shell is out. This is the beginning of the end for Cambo," the Stop Cambo campaign group tweeted, warning that they will not rest until the whole project is shut down.

Greenpeace UK, which in October lost a legal challenge to force the UK government revoke its decision to allow British Petroleum to drill for oil at a field in the North Sea, said Shell’s withdrawal should be a "death blow" for Cambo.

"As yet another key player turns its back on the scheme, the Government is cutting an increasingly lonely figure with their continued support," the ecological movement wrote on its Twitter account.

Labour lawmaker and Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero, Ed Miliband, also welcomed the decision made by Shell as "a significant moment in the fight against the Cambo oil field."

According to Miliband, the right choice for the UK's future energy security is to rapidly accelerate renewable alternatives and guarantee that the interests of oil and gas workers are protected with a just transition.

The oil field located to the west of the Shetland Islands, off the Scottish coast, has the potential to produce 175 million barrels of oil in its first phase.