Member Info for romaron

Good point KO. Not sure if you'd get an answer but maybe Waldorf plus a few other odds and sods but most likely an end-of-life field from one of the few remaining bigger companies or those just fed up with the uncertainty around the basin. I'm pretty sure it would be quite simple to add 1P this way plus 2P from investment in same field.

Whilst here I was watching Newsnight yesterday and Louise Haigh (ex Transport Minister) was on. She more or less said that misogyny was rife within Labour and aimed at Northern women. Using the fact that they were being continually briefed against. Victoria Derbyshire commented with "what about Ed Miliband?". That for me is confirmation that Ed Miliband is clinging on and it is only a matter of time before his removal. Sounds to me like he has lost the confidence of many in the cabinet. Starmer we know procrastinates but you can't keep your finger in the dyke forever. As in the phrase "a rising tide lifts all boats" I wouldn't be surprised to see the O&G get a nice uplift in the future. Let's hope it is the "near" future. That could open the door to developing Bressay.

Hi VoR - Asia is a growth area so unlikely that Serica would be anti-growth. I'm not even sure that Serica were the transformational deal.

I do think that Serica have a different philosophy and it was more an ambitious AIM company trying to do a Mike Ashley taking over what looked like a tired company with some good assets and a creaky balance sheet. Then some jiggery-pokery with the tax credits and some wheeler-dealer car-boot sales and onward to the next UK deal.

I think Serica wasted a lot of time and money pursuing a target that was forced into talking to them. I'm glad they're out of the way.

To get behind the lies, obfuscation and subterfuge you need to break down the NZ claims into language that I can understand. Chris Morrison has done that here. I especially like the quip about ISAs " for instance, allowing a UK consumer to invest £20,000 tax-free in an ISA account cannot be counted as a gift from the government, since the money belonged to the investor in the first place. "

https://dailysceptic.org/2025/05/05/dale-vince-says-ecotricity-has-received-net-zero-in-state-subsidies-but-his-definition-of-subsidies-is-a-little-narrow/

Ed Miliband was quick to describe the victory of his friend Ros Jones being re-elected as Mayor of Doncaster as "brilliant" on "X".

The numbers tell a different story:

2021 https://www.doncaster.gov.uk/services/the-council-democracy/mayoral-election-results-2021

2025 https://www.doncaster.gov.uk/services/the-council-democracy/mayoral-election-results-2025

Tick Tock

Also slipped in underneath is the request for "our" views on air-to-air heat pumps. Grants coming for them too?

I didn't know this "The Dutch are doing just that, ramping up gas production and supporting new projects to cover domestic demand up to 2045."

And the Dutch could teach a Yorkshireman or a Jock a lesson about parsimony.

I remember being shown the area of a big department store in Amsterdam by Italian friends that housed books, newspapers and magazines some 30 years ago. There appeared to be a long queue but facing the wall. It was a very orderly line of people who were not queuing but reading mainly magazines in their lunch hour. At the end of their lunch hour they very tidily replaced them.

I can think of better ways to spend a lunch hour.

The cost of NZ is becoming ever harder to disguise and its benefits are as ephemeral as where the energy comes from.

We don't know the full story yet and may never but they are saying a Foreign state is involved in a terrorist plot to attack a UK target. Seven of those arrested are Iranian nationals. I'm not connecting the two nor the US and UK attitude towards the 50 per cent of the Rhum gas field owned by the National Iranian Oil Company. Not our problem.

A meaningless number "A commitment to net zero — estimated to have the support of 70 per cent of the parliamentary party"

You could throw in a number for Gaza and support for Crimea too. 98 per cent of people support World Peace. I quite like Marmite but wouldn't fight over it. I think NZ has lost its allure. It'll disappear along with puberty blockers, ESG and DEI.

I'm a novice in politics but becoming a fast learner. BBC bias does exist but it is no different in many other trades and industries. I get as annoyed as anyone else when Justin Rowlatt or Fiona Bruce report on climate but many get just as upset when Jeremy Bowen reports on Gaza or Steve Rosenberg on Ukraine. I think that Kuensberg and Derbyshire keep their neutrality in the same way they won't tell you which way they voted. They do all hear gossip though and we should always remember that there is an element of entertainment and they want your attention for their viewing figures. Upsetting and pandering both get results. I sometimes listen to James O'Brien to learn about spin and disagree with 90% of his spiel. Most of the time it is better not to shoot the messenger. Not one would turn down the opportunity to get Ed Miliband (or Starmer) in front of the camera. I imagine that Nigel Farage is even more in demand. That is today. Who knows what tomorrow brings.

I think BBC bias is overrated but not prepared to discuss here. You've actually reinforced my opinion ukbb. NZ was instrumental for Reform imo but Streeting didn't defend it. It really is no longer the poster boy for Labour. That to me is significant but then again Streeting is a Blairite and Ed is of the far Left.

I think Ed is on the spectrum.

On Kuenssberg this morning. Wes Streeting explaining away the Labour defeats following the recent elections. I have time for Streeting, maybe because he comes from Stepney as did my father. He is also towards the right of the party and has a reputation for being a straight talker. In his case to paraphrase, "Hell yes, he's tough enough"

He will however also get instructions from Labour HQ and "media guidance". That is why mantras will be repeated by others and those who stray risk the wrath of the whips. It is often immaterial who you get in front of the camera as the message is the same.

When pushed on progress and 'further and faster' Kuenssberg said - that's fine but you're doing it with things they [the public] don't want.'

He replied that it is outcomes people want to see and gave a list (mantra).

1. Safer streets

2. Stronger more secure borders

3. Waiting lists falling

4. Cost of living improving

What! No clean power by 2030?

Sometimes it is what they don't say.

"A careful look at Figure 1, shows that society-level energy return on energy invested (EROEI or EROI) grew from about 5 in the 17th century to about 30 at peak in the late 20th and early 21st century. As discussed before, EROEI matters. Low EROI means that a larger amount of society’s effort is geared towards the basic subsistence tasks of gathering energy and growing food. High EROEI means much more time and effort can be devoted to higher pursuits.

Unfortunately, the expansion of energy and wealth can lead to complacency and we collectively forget what it was that allowed us to create the most prosperous society the world has ever known. Bad ideas like Malthusianism can flourish and luxury beliefs that undermine the very principles on which society was built can begin to take over. We have people like those mentioned above who can live off the fruits of their ancestors’ endeavours yet do nothing themselves except increase entropy and disorder. The very same people who would have us believe a bloke in a dress with a Gender Recognition Certificate is a woman, also try to kid us that a wind turbine with a Renewables Obligation Certificate is a dispatchable power station. In the name of saving the planet, we are being forced to give up on concentrated, reliable energy and energy supply is dwindling as shown by the orange line in Figure 3 below. We are being forced to move backwards to high-entropy, diffuse sources of energy like wind, solar and wood pellets so societal EROI is falling."

Part of an article by David Turver

Been out all day so really just skimming headlines. Delighted that we are not merging with Serica. They were a lottery winner with Rhum and their investors are entitled to their rewards and returns. The problem is that they thought this gave them an opportunity to behave like the "nouveaus riche" and sit at the table with the bigger names of the North Sea.

EnQuest has the better management and depth. It is led by an exceptional individual who survived the turmoil of fracking and the Saudi response. He will probably sail us through the Net Zero debacle.

I'm glad he is still in charge. He will never sell us cheap and is more than capable of tackling parvenus and bottom scrapers (encouraged by Miliband and the CCC).

The future for EnQuest is secure. If the UK don't want an O&G industry fair enough. Tidying up what we have will be financially rewarding for EnQuest; maybe not for the UK. Time maybe for politicians to get real? Not really our problem as investors but very serious if you're a citizen. We hold good cards and still have flexibility.

Good luck to the Serica investors for the future.

"The decision not to send Keir to campaign will shake even moderate confidence in No10. The PM was presumably advised that he’d be tainted if he visited Runcorn and Labour then lost. But given there were only six votes in it, a margin he surely could’ve affected, he looks lazy and/or cowardly instead. The result is short-hand for Starmer’s governing style, paralysed by his deference to consensus and aversion to risk – a man who prefers Davos to Westminster politics, too clever-by-half." Tim Stanley DT

The hedging bet reference is that AB is a regular attendee to Davos but has also donated to the Tory Party. Nothing straightforward in the political space.

I had the Ash tree crown reduced yesterday. I double checked that my tree surgeon wasn't the one that chopped down the White Webb oak that AI says was illegally felled. He moaned that so far he hadn't been paid and all he got was a free Toby carvery but disputed that it was illegal (he was joking) but because it didn't have TPO protection it was legal. He told me that Enfield are suing the company that allowed it for a £1 million for loss of "amenity value" and thinks it'll cost them £600k in the end.

In the evening I was approached to be a Local Councillor for Reform at next year's Local London elections.

Spin that wheel AB!

Https://www.thegwpf.org/publications/uk-consumers-face-2-3-billion-annual-bill-to-prevent-green-energy-blackouts/

Both parties were warned five years ago.

The timing is suspicious. It favours Starmer. Blair diverts the blame on ditching the crazier aspects of NZ away from Starmer. Does seem like Miliband is being deserted.

I doubt Blair would have intervened if it wasn't welcome. Very promising. This from the report:

"Net-zero policies, once seen as the pathway to economic transformation, are increasingly viewed as unaffordable, ineffective, or politically toxic."

If Labour do even worse than predicted at the Local Elections and it is blamed on NZ then Starmer would have support to change direction and you'd hope that Miliband might do the right thing, though I doubt it. I sense the hand of McSweeney here. This is a major play imo but I am a novice at politics. Why now?

For 20 years, every aspect of the grid has been subordinated to the concerns of the eco-warriors. It’s no surprise that our electricity system is now both unaffordable and dangerously unstable. We can no longer afford to have energy policy determined by fantasists.

Andrew Morton - Net Zero Watch

My uncle's magnifying glass shop burnt down in the hot summer of 1976. We never did find out what caused the fire.

From AI - "Australia is grappling with challenges to grid stability due to low inertia caused by the rapid growth of renewable energy, particularly rooftop solar. As a result, the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) is exploring measures to reduce solar output and increase reliance on gas generation to maintain grid stability."

Bad timing for this (also AI):

" AC/DC is rumored to be planning a first Australian tour in a decade, potentially in late 2025, as part of their global "Power Up" tour. While no official announcements have been made, the band is expected to play major stadiums in cities like Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth.

But you left the best bit out M. You speak a number of languages ; perhaps you can translate this response from DESNZ to what Ratcliffe had to say. To me it is a 'word soup' of meaningless mantra.

"A spokesperson for the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero said: “Our mission is for clean power by 2030 because clean, homegrown energy is the best way to protect billpayers and boost Britain’s energy independence.

“A strong UK emissions trading scheme will play a key role in this, driving green investment as part of a broader industrial strategy, creating jobs and growing the UK’s economy.”"

They should have added "World Peace and getting on with your family relations" very laudable but hard to achieve.