AC-2024-LON-002888 - [2025] EWHC 2139 (Admin)

“9A The principal objective and the strategy

In this Part the “principal objective” is the objective of maximising the economic recovery of UK petroleum, in particular through—

development, construction, deployment and use of equipment used in the petroleum industry (including upstream petroleum infrastructure), and

collaboration among the following persons—

holders of petroleum licences;

operators under petroleum licences;

owners of upstream petroleum infrastructure;

persons planning and carrying out the commissioning of upstream petroleum infrastructure;

owners of relevant offshore installations.

The [OGA] must produce one or more strategies for enabling the principal objective to be met.

A strategy may relate to matters other than those mentioned in subsection (1)(a) and (b).

For provision about producing and revising a strategy, see sections 9F and 9G.”

Within the context of the 1998 Act the defendant is described as the OGA. Section 9B sets out the exercise of certain functions of the defendant. Section 9BA goes on to define certain functions of the Secretary of State which, as described above, are in this case exercised by OPRED. Those two sections provide so far as material as follows: