(Reuters) – U.S. President-elect Donald Trump called for “opening up” Britain’s North Sea and getting rid of windmills in a post on his social media platform Truth Social on Friday.
In October, the British government said it would increase the tax on windfall profits for North Sea oil and gas producers to 38 percent from 35 percent and extend the tax for a year. The government wants to use oil and gas revenues to raise funds for renewable energy projects.
“The UK is making a big mistake. Open up the North Sea. Get rid of the windmills!” Trump’s post said.
His post was in response to a report on US oil and gas producer APA Corp’s Apache unit plans to exit the North Sea by the end of 2029. The company expects production in the North Sea to drop by 20% compared to last year in 2025.
Oil companies have been steadily pulling out of the North Sea in recent decades, with output falling from a peak of 4.4 million barrels of oil equivalent per day at the turn of the millennium to around 1.3 million boed today.
Meanwhile, the Labor government aims to quadruple offshore wind production to 60 gigawatts by 2030.
Britain and European countries have seen major developments in offshore wind in the North Sea, but the fast-growing sector has had a difficult few years as costs have risen due to technical and supply chain issues, as well as higher interest rates, causing many companies to reconsider investment.
The North Sea Transitional Authority, Britain’s offshore oil and gas regulator, declined to comment on Trump’s post. Britain’s Department of Energy Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Britain aims to largely decarbonise its energy sector by 2030, which will mean reducing its dependence on gas-fired power plants and rapidly increasing renewable energy capacity.
North Sea producers have warned that the higher tax rate could lead to a sharp drop in investment and are pulling out of an aging pool ahead of further tax hikes.
Britain’s biggest North Sea oil producer Harbor Energy is looking to sell stakes in North Sea oil fields and is reviving plans to go public in the US, Reuters previously reported. The American oil company Exxon (NYSE:) completed its exit from the North Sea region last July.
Companies are also reconsidering their investments in offshore wind farms or have assumed reductions due to the rising costs of developing wind farms that can be more than 100 km (60 miles) offshore.
Orsted (CSE: ), the world’s largest developer of offshore wind farms, cut its investment and capacity targets last year.
