Written questions by Bowie.

What recent estimate his Department has made of the carbon savings achieved by connecting buildings to district heating networks, such as the Mersey Heat network in Liverpool.

The Government's assessment of carbon emission savings associated with various policies is set out in its Carbon Budget Growth and Delivery Plan, most recently published in October 2025. The policies specifically associated with heat networks are estimated to save 3.02 MtCO2e per annum on average over Carbon Budget 6, which is the 5-year period from 2033 to 2037. Heat networks will also be expected to contribute to emissions savings from other policies aimed at decarbonising heat and buildings.

What his planned timetable is for a decision on the approval of the Jackdaw oil field.

The Secretary of State will be making a decision as to whether or not to agree to the grant of consent in due course.

What is his timeline to determine the Rosebank oil field application.

The Secretary of State will be making a decision as to whether or not to agree to the grant of consent in due course.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of Ming Yang opening a wind turbine manufacturing plant in the UK on energy security.

We cannot comment on individual investment cases, but maintaining a secure energy supply is a key priority for the UK Government. Investment into the energy sector is subject to the highest levels of national security scrutiny, and we will continue to work closely with industry to build secure supply chains and ensure the UK remains one of the most attractive investment destinations in the world.

What discussions he has had with the North Sea Transition Authority on Shell and ExxonMobil’s divestments in the North Sea.

Details of Ministers’ meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.

What discussions he has had with the North Sea Transition Authority on the purchase of eleven Shell-operated gas fields by Viaro Energy in the Southern North Sea.

Details of Ministers’ meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK.

What discussions he has had on the continued purchase of crude oil stocks not already held at the Prax Lindsey oil refinery site to allow the refinery to continue operating.

The Official Receiver (OR) decided to cease refining operations at Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery on 21 July 2025. However, the sales process continued to be run in parallel, and the OR has received a range of proposals - from specific asset acquisition to acquisition of the entire Immingham site to purchasing the refinery as a going concern. The OR has progressed a small number of parties to the next phase of the sales process. This is based on an assessment of their proposals with regard to providing the best outcome for the Company’s creditors in line with the liquidator’s statutory duties. The OR aims to conclude negotiations with interested parties by mid-October. The Government is providing the OR with short-term funding to cover the essential operating costs of the site. The final operating cost will depend on market conditions and the strategy adopted by the OR. Parliament will be kept informed of the associated costs through the usual budgetary and reporting mechanisms. Ministers have held several meetings with the OR since the insolvency was announced. Insolvency legislation clearly determines the actions that are undertaken by the liquidator, which is the OR. The OR must act independent of Government, in accordance with statute, and they are accountable to the court. As an independent office holder, the OR cannot be directed by Government.

How much was paid for crude oil stocks to allow the Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery to continue operating.

The Official Receiver (OR) decided to cease refining operations at Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery on 21 July 2025. However, the sales process continued to be run in parallel, and the OR has received a range of proposals - from specific asset acquisition to acquisition of the entire Immingham site to purchasing the refinery as a going concern. The OR has progressed a small number of parties to the next phase of the sales process. This is based on an assessment of their proposals with regard to providing the best outcome for the Company’s creditors in line with the liquidator’s statutory duties. The OR aims to conclude negotiations with interested parties by mid-October. The Government is providing the OR with short-term funding to cover the essential operating costs of the site. The final operating cost will depend on market conditions and the strategy adopted by the OR. Parliament will be kept informed of the associated costs through the usual budgetary and reporting mechanisms. Ministers have held several meetings with the OR since the insolvency was announced. Insolvency legislation clearly determines the actions that are undertaken by the liquidator, which is the OR. The OR must act independent of Government, in accordance with statute, and they are accountable to the court. As an independent office holder, the OR cannot be directed by Government.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the period to find a buyer for the Prax Lindsey oil refinery.

The Official Receiver (OR) decided to cease refining operations at Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery on 21 July 2025. However, the sales process continued to be run in parallel, and the OR has received a range of proposals - from specific asset acquisition to acquisition of the entire Immingham site to purchasing the refinery as a going concern. The OR has progressed a small number of parties to the next phase of the sales process. This is based on an assessment of their proposals with regard to providing the best outcome for the Company’s creditors in line with the liquidator’s statutory duties. The OR aims to conclude negotiations with interested parties by mid-October. The Government is providing the OR with short-term funding to cover the essential operating costs of the site. The final operating cost will depend on market conditions and the strategy adopted by the OR. Parliament will be kept informed of the associated costs through the usual budgetary and reporting mechanisms. Ministers have held several meetings with the OR since the insolvency was announced. Insolvency legislation clearly determines the actions that are undertaken by the liquidator, which is the OR. The OR must act independent of Government, in accordance with statute, and they are accountable to the court. As an independent office holder, the OR cannot be directed by Government.

What assessment he has made of the potential implications for his Department’s policies of Shell and ExxonMobil’s divestments in the North Sea.

DESNZ is unable to comment on the specifics of any individual project or the investment decisions of individual operators while the regulatory process is underway. This is a matter for the North Sea Transition Authority.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the closure of the Prax Lindsey oil refinery on the domestic price of (a) diesel, (b) aviation fuel, and (c) heating oil for off-grid homes.

The Government continually monitors fuel supplies across the country and has robust, tried and tested plans in place to ensure these supplies are maintained at all times. We continue to work closely with industry to monitor the situation. The prices of fuel are influenced by (i) fluctuations in crude oil prices and (ii) refining margins, both of which are affected by global market conditions. We do not expect the closure of Prax Lindsey oil refinery to impact prices.

What discussions he has had with the Official Receiver at the Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery on the purchase of crude oil to allow the site to continue operating.

The Official Receiver (OR) decided to cease refining operations at Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery on 21 July 2025. However, the sales process continued to be run in parallel, and the OR has received a range of proposals - from specific asset acquisition to acquisition of the entire Immingham site to purchasing the refinery as a going concern. The OR has progressed a small number of parties to the next phase of the sales process. This is based on an assessment of their proposals with regard to providing the best outcome for the Company’s creditors in line with the liquidator’s statutory duties. The OR aims to conclude negotiations with interested parties by mid-October. The Government is providing the OR with short-term funding to cover the essential operating costs of the site. The final operating cost will depend on market conditions and the strategy adopted by the OR. Parliament will be kept informed of the associated costs through the usual budgetary and reporting mechanisms. Ministers have held several meetings with the OR since the insolvency was announced. Insolvency legislation clearly determines the actions that are undertaken by the liquidator, which is the OR. The OR must act independent of Government, in accordance with statute, and they are accountable to the court. As an independent office holder, the OR cannot be directed by Government.

What assessment he has made of the potential implications for his Department’s policies of Viaro Energy controlling 5 per cent of the UK’s total gas production.

DESNZ is unable to comment on the specifics of any individual project or the investment decisions of individual operators while the regulatory process is underway. This is a matter for the North Sea Transition Authority.

Whether he has had discussions with the Official Receiver on the inability to find a buyer for the Prax Lindsey oil refinery.

The Official Receiver (OR) decided to cease refining operations at Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery on 21 July 2025. However, the sales process continued to be run in parallel, and the OR has received a range of proposals - from specific asset acquisition to acquisition of the entire Immingham site to purchasing the refinery as a going concern. The OR has progressed a small number of parties to the next phase of the sales process. This is based on an assessment of their proposals with regard to providing the best outcome for the Company’s creditors in line with the liquidator’s statutory duties. The OR aims to conclude negotiations with interested parties by mid-October. The Government is providing the OR with short-term funding to cover the essential operating costs of the site. The final operating cost will depend on market conditions and the strategy adopted by the OR. Parliament will be kept informed of the associated costs through the usual budgetary and reporting mechanisms. Ministers have held several meetings with the OR since the insolvency was announced. Insolvency legislation clearly determines the actions that are undertaken by the liquidator, which is the OR. The OR must act independent of Government, in accordance with statute, and they are accountable to the court. As an independent office holder, the OR cannot be directed by Government.

Whether his Department is taking steps to ensure the delivery of crude oil stocks to the Prax Lindsey oil refinery site.

The Official Receiver (OR) decided to cease refining operations at Prax Lindsey Oil Refinery on 21 July 2025. However, the sales process continued to be run in parallel, and the OR has received a range of proposals - from specific asset acquisition to acquisition of the entire Immingham site to purchasing the refinery as a going concern. The OR has progressed a small number of parties to the next phase of the sales process. This is based on an assessment of their proposals with regard to providing the best outcome for the Company’s creditors in line with the liquidator’s statutory duties. The OR aims to conclude negotiations with interested parties by mid-October. The Government is providing the OR with short-term funding to cover the essential operating costs of the site. The final operating cost will depend on market conditions and the strategy adopted by the OR. Parliament will be kept informed of the associated costs through the usual budgetary and reporting mechanisms. Ministers have held several meetings with the OR since the insolvency was announced. Insolvency legislation clearly determines the actions that are undertaken by the liquidator, which is the OR. The OR must act independent of Government, in accordance with statute, and they are accountable to the court. As an independent office holder, the OR cannot be directed by Government.

What steps he is taking to (a) mitigate the effects of market dumping of and (b) reduce strategic dependency on imported photovoltaic inverters from China.

Solar goods and services are global commodities, and it is likely that we will continue to require imports in the short to medium term. The UK has a strong electrical manufacturing sector and there is an opportunity to scale this up through our ambitious Industrial Strategy, which has identified advanced manufacturing and clean energy industries as priority growth sectors, providing benefits for the manufacture of balance of system components, which are essential to enabling solar installations. The Solar Roadmap also commits government to consider the case to further support companies wishing to scale up production of solar technologies and processes, including inverters.

What assessment he has made of the potential for energy usage data collected by smart grid components to be exploited for (a) strategic and (b) military intelligence purposes by foreign state actors.

Recognising the importance of renewable and smart energy systems for flexibility and decarbonisation, the Department is working to ensure these systems are developed in a way that is secure by design, protecting energy supply, infrastructure and consumers, as well as national security. As part of this work, Government has published two consultation packages which set out proposals for minimum security and grid stability requirements, including for organisations remotely controlling electrical load. The Department collaborates with other government departments, agencies, Ofgem and industry partners to understand and mitigate threats to energy infrastructure, setting robust regulatory standards for cyber security through the Network and Information Systems Regulations. This includes working with regulators to ensure these regulations cover critical operators as the sector evolves.

What steps he is taking to ensure that firmware updates to photovoltaic inverters connected to the UK grid cannot be used as a vector for cyber or physical disruption.

Maintaining security of energy supplies is a key priority and critical energy operators are required to meet a minimum standard of cyber security and resilience, through the Network and Information Systems Regulations 2018. The Department works continually with Ofgem and the National Cyber Security Centre to ensure that these regulations continue to capture all the most critical operators of energy generation systems. Distributed and smaller-scale generation are key components of a smart and resilient energy system. We are working to ensure that the system is developed in a way which is secure by design.

What his Department’s planned timeline is for reviewing the electricity licensing regime to address the use of equipment from high-risk foreign vendors.

The protection and security of the energy sector is a priority for this Government, including manging risks from supply chains. DESNZ will continue to work closely with cross-government counterparts alongside industry to explore what further proportionate action can be taken to reduce the risks to energy infrastructure. Ofgem and DESNZ have robust market monitoring schemes to assess electricity generation licence applications. Ofgem’s principal objective is to protect the interests of existing and future consumers, including the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and security of supply.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of a coordinated shutdown of photovoltaic inverters manufactured by companies headquartered in China on UK power grid stability.

Recognising the importance of renewable and smart energy systems for flexibility and decarbonisation, the department is working to ensure the system continues to be secure by design, and protects energy supply, infrastructure and consumers. As part of this work, Government has published two consultation packages which sets out proposals for minimum security and grid stability requirements, including for organisations remotely controlling electrical load. Maintaining security of energy supplies is a key priority and critical energy operators are required to meet a minimum standard of cyber security and resilience, through the Network and Information Systems Regulations 2018. Distributed and smaller-scale generation are key components of a smart and resilient energy system.