Oil and gas operators in the North Sea have ramped up their lobbying efforts to persuade the government to reverse, or at least dilute, its tax hike on those companies to pay for the cut in fuel duty.
Early on Wednesday Oil & Gas UK, the industry’s lobby group, produced figures showing confidence among producers in the area had slumped.
On a scale from 1 to 100, with 50 being neutral, overall confidence dropped 12 points to 51. For E&P companies, the fall was particularly pronounced, with a 25 points drop to 46, the lowest ever for the sector. Confidence among major producers, meanwhile, was 21 points lower at 39.
